《In the World of Sword and Magic as Space Marine》 Chapter 1: New World, New Character Chapter 1: New World, New Character William loves fantasy and sci-fi genres, the lore and stories intrigue him which he wants to learn more. This interest leads him into ying tabletop games such as D&D to Warhammer franchise ever since he was little. Now, as an adult, this hobby became a part of his life. William''s story begins on Saturday night, as he and his friends just finish their quest of ying the Cult of Damned, but during the final moment in thebat, William''s character died, which he wasn''t happy after the campaign was over. As traditional, William burns his character sheet and ns to make new characters for next week''s game session. Since his character dies with honor, Dungeon Master (DM) allowed William to make new characters with no restriction. This gave him a rare opportunity, so when William got home, he immediately began to create his new character, after hours of experiment and multiple failures, William finished his new character. "This is perfect since I can make any character as long as I follow the rulebook, DM can''t say ''No'' to this. Good thing I saved the digital copy of this ss online." With excitement fade away William realized that he is tired and very sleepy, after checking his phone, he realized that it was 3 am in the morning, so after saving his new character sheet in hisputer and quick hygiene, he went to bed with aplishment. -------- William woke from his sleep when a sound of metal banging got louder and faster. "What is making that noise?" When William opened his eyes, the first thing he realized was that he was leaning on something, notying down in his bed. The second thing was a strange creature in front of him, a humanoid and small as a little kid but with green skin and the ugliest face William has ever seen (but somehow familiar). The creature was banging William''s head with a wooden club and making metal banging noises, this was when a third and final realization came to William as he is now wearing armor from head to toe. Finally, the creature stopped banging William''s helmet and started yelling, in which more creatures appeared from the bushes. Two more creatures came and started talking to each other with a strangenguage, this was when William realized that these small creatures are goblins. "No freaking way, am I still asleep and having a realistic dream? Or is this real?" William started to wonder if his situation was real or just a dream, but one thing for sure, He has control of his body. William did what any other people would do, he grabbed two goblins using both of his hands and broke their neck with ease, this surprised him as he didn''t know his own strength. For thest goblin, he stood up and kicked the goblin in front of him, the moment William''s foot hit the goblin''s stomach, it just exploded as if it was hit by a truck. Blood and guts were everywhere, and William dropped two goblins as he understood that he was not dreaming, he killed someone or something and he was for some reason okay with that. "I guess all those times ying D&D campaigns actually paid off, but if this is not a dream then where am I?" William didn''t panic or freak out, but he was surprised due to the armor he was wearing. He wasn''t wearing typical armor like the knight''s full te armor but very futuristic armor with ck and white with the symbol of Maltese cross in both of his shoulder tes. It only took William only three seconds to recognize the armor and symbol he was wearing, it is a Space Marine power armor, more specifically an Imperial Fists'' ck Temr aka Rogal Dorn''s angry boys. This did not make sense to William, because normal humans can''t wear or even move due to weight and size unless the wearer is gically modified Space Marine with gene seeds. William found an answer to his question, he realized that his body is not the same as his old one, instead of average Joe, he is now 7.5 feet tall and weighing 800 pounds. After a few minutes of little panic and critical thinking, William decided to find a civilization (if there is any) to find more answers. But first, check his equipment in his pouches and weapons. Currently, he has: [1 Bolt pistol with 4 magazines in belt pouches (10 rounds in each magazine), 1bat knife (Size of a short sword for normal human), Chainsword and 4 frag grenades.] ''This is not even close to standard Space Marine equipment. I got a Bolt pistol and Chainsword but Space Marines should have at least a standard Boltgun.'' William then thought ''What if'' and decided to check his new theory by saying "Status!" Chapter 2: Counterattack Chapter 2: Counterattack Nothing appeared when William said ''Status'' which he now feels like an idiot. "So I have no status to see. Ok, what about inventory." When William said ''inventory'', a typical inventory screen appeared with a list of items in each slot. [Inventory: 100 Bolter pistol ammo, 10 food rations, 3 repair kits and 3 first aid kits] William closed the inventory and used othermands to see what else he had, in the end, he learned that he only had inventory and appraisal skills. "So that is it, no status, no level, no crazy cheat skills but just inventory and appraisal. Still, I''m a superhuman now so I will manage somehow." Finally, William decided to move on and get out of this forest to find any sign of civilization, after two hours on the walk he found a dirt road with a sign of a wheel track in the middle. Using his helmet, William found the freshest track and decided which direction to go, less than an hourter, he was finally out of the forest and saw small smoke in the distance. With new rejuvenating hope of finding people, William started to increase his pace, which is equivalent to going 25 miles per hour. It only took William 20 minutes to find the people he was tracking; it was a caravan of small 5 merchant wagons and 25 people taking a short break. The group of guards were aware of William''s approach and were on guard since it is hard to miss 7.5 feet tall giant with full armor running in their direction. William stopped 20 yards away from the group and greeted them with a friendly wave to show no hostility, guards saw this and realized that the giant wasn''t going to attack but maintain their guard. "Hi, my name is William and I''m kinda lost, are you guys heading to town or vige?" A person who looks like a leader of the guard responds to William''s greetings. "I''m Herman, a leader of Firedes, which lord do you serve Sir William?" William paused and thought about his options for response, it would be better to clear any misunderstanding before it bes a bigger problemter. "I do not serve lord, I''m searching for a way back home," William exins his situation to Herman with the simplest possibility, by the time he finishes the story, few merchants join the guards to check the giant. "Wow, he is a giant." "If he is not a knight maybe he is an adventurer." "Maybe he is a hedge knight, you know, without a lord to serve." After exnation and gain a little bit of trust, Herman introduces William to the head merchant named Tom to determine what to do. "We are only two days away from a vige called ''Greenhill'', it is a logging vige with merchant and adventurer''s guild, you can join us if you want." William agreed to Tom''s offer and decided to join the caravan, that night, he got a chance to learn about the country he was in and current events as people shared stories. Next early morning, after breakfast, the caravan was ready for the road and William joins the guards for a quick brief from Herman. "With our current speed, we will be arriving at Iron Guard bridge tonight. It is a safe zone since the patrol outpost is located but stays alert for any bandits or monsters since we are now on a popr road for many travelers." After Herman''s brief, the caravan began their journey, since it was William''s first caravan ride, he was ced in the front side of the wagon. ording to Herman, putting a new guy on the front in the first mission is an unspoken tradition that William didn''t mind since he wants to contribute. The morning was uneventful until after lunch break William saw a fallen tree blocking the road ahead, with his helmet sensor identifying 22 life signs hiding. William called Herman and Tom to notify the problem ahead, which they slowed down the speed of the caravan, so they wouldn''t alert the enemy but buy enough time to n for a counterattack. After a few ideas were thrown around, William brought his old campaign strategy which would be perfect for the current situation. At the ambush site, the bandits were getting tired of waiting and startedining. One of their lookouts saw a lone man approaching with a hunchback in the distance, fully covered in arge nket and carrying a bag with all kinds of items hanging around. It was clear that this person wasn''t a part of the caravan they were waiting for, but the leader decided to grab the lone man quickly without making noise before the caravan arrived. Chapter 3: First Quest Chapter 3: First Quest William was d that his power armor came with temperature control or he would be dying with sweat and back pain. William''s n was to be alone target with goods, but the problem was his size, so Tom decided to cover William with arge nket and instruct him to show signs of struggle to attract the bandits. When William finally arrives at the fallen oak tree, four bandits jump out of both sides of the road and try to grab him but fail to move the target. It was at this moment William removed his nket, grabbed a bolt pistol and fired his gun while shouting "For the Emperor!". This led to four dead corps with blown heads, remaining bandits were frozen from shock and William took this advantage to fire 6 more rounds, removing a total of 10 bandits including the bandit leader in 5 seconds t. By the time William starts to reload his weapon, four bandits realize that they lost their leader and start to panic. William finished his reload and finished the remaining bandits. When Tom and the rest of the people arrived, William moved the fallen oak tree and moved 4 bodies to the side of the road. Herman asked William "What was that loud noise? Was it your doing?" and William replied simply with "Yes." It only took a few minutes to collect all the bodies of bandits and their ID tags in their neck for reward money, and since it was William who defeated them all, the loot and reward money goes to him. William now has 18 gold, 45 silver and 76 copper coins in his possession, which solve his current financial issue. The caravan continues their journey and finally arrive at the Iron Guard Bridge after sunset, Herman and William went to the patrol office to turn in the in bandits'' tag and report the incident. A few questions and a vouch from Herman, William received a total of 65 gold coins for 22 bandits and 11 gold coins for bandit leader total of 76 gold coins. ording to Herman, one day for the inn is about 25 copper coins and 100 copper is equal to one silver and 100 silver is equal to one gold. William also learns that since the war between the two kingdoms ended 3 years ago, there has been a lot of bandit activity, so the king personally ordered the increase of bounty reward as long as they have evidence to prove it. (This is why Herman vouch for William during questioning). The caravan will continue their journey the next day and manage to arrive at their destination much earlier than expected. The group arrived in the afternoon and went to the inn to stay for the night, Tom and his merchants nned to meet their business contact tomorrow morning, meanwhile, Herman''s partypleted their quest and decided to have a little downtime. For Herman and William, they will head to the adventurer''s guild to find answers and register William as a novice adventurer since he shows great potential. After a big dinner and a few half dozen ales, William went to the barn to rest since the inn''s floor and bed can''t support his weight, but he did get a discount for the inconvenience. -------- The next day, outside of Adventurer''s guild building, William stares at the door and shows no fear but excitement. When Herman and William entered the guild building, then the ce turns quiet instantly and everyone stared at two new people who just entered. Maybe because it''s a new face in the building or 7.5-foot-tall a heavily armored giant just entered the building with each step sounds like a warhorse. At the receptionist''s desk, receptionist Mia did her best not to freak out when a giant ck knight entered the building. She tries to stand professionally and hold her position as a veteran receptionist. "Good morning, wee to the adventurer''s guild, Greenhill branch, how can I help you?" Mia said with a smile and a weing voice. "I''m here to register this young man into the guild, I''m Herman, leader of Firedes and I can vouch for him." "Yes, of course, please fill this form and the registration fee will be 10 silver coins." William removed his helmet to show his face since he didn''t want to be rude, when Mia saw William, she was surprised as he looked like a regr human (ck hair, brown eyes and strong jaw). After filling the form and processing it, William received his guild medallion, ording to Mia, the guild medallion can be used as a border pass for an adventurer. It is also imbued with magic to track kill records. There are two reasons to imbued with magic, one is to keep in the track so there is no mishap with who y what and the second reason is to record any murder or criminal act which it can be used as evidence. Herman exins to William that most of the application fees go to the production of medallion since it is a magic item, so the guild pays an award for retrieving a fallen adventurers'' medallion. With the registration process done, William was told that he is now an adventurer and good to start his own quest, which can be found in the quest board. "You are now adventurer; you can choose toe with us on another convoy or you can go on your own path. It is up to you but remembers to take care of yourself and don''t trust anyone, that''s my advice as to your senior." Herman gave hisst word of advice to William. William was unsure what to do but he knows this is his adventure and must find an answer to how he got here. "I will go on my own and I will earn my ce next time when I see you," William said to Herman. With a smile, Herman said, "William, I''m rank C, you are now E, which is beginner, you have a long way to go before meeting us on the same road. Come on, we need to get you a few things before starting the farewell party tonight." When William and Herman left the guild, the crowd of adventurers began to talk about the neer. Mia was hesitant to process William''s paperwork as some of the information didn''t make sense, such as William put the ss a [Space Marine] with a note saying he specializes in mid-range and meleebat. The other problem is how she has to exin this to the Guild Master, a giant man with full te armor register as a novice adventurer and he isn''t a knight or some noble, but amoner, there is no easy way to exin this to higher-ups without digging more information on this new adventure. William only bought a few items such as dry food, waterskin, shoes and sparerge cloths. After finishing his shopping, two men went back to the inn to meet up with the rest of the group. That night, William, Herman and Tom''s party have a big celebration to give William a farewell and weing of joining the rank of an adventurer. By the end of the night, thanks to his Space Marine biology William didn''t get drunk from therge amount of alcohol he consumed, but he did gain a drinking reputation equal to the dwarf. The next morning, William bid farewell to Herman and Tom as the caravan left the Greenhill, afterward he headed to the guild building to start his first job as an adventurer. At the quest board, William was looking for options, as quests for rank E are mostly typical such as herb picking, helping guild staff, and minor jobs within Greenhill. Interesting quests such as hunting monsters are given when the adventurer ranked is D or up and the only way for William to hunt at rank E is to join the rank D party. William thought it would be difficult to find a party willing to ept him as he is a new guy, but it turns out that his first impression from yesterday and the drinking reputation fromst night''s party gave him the most wanted newbie. So, within 5 minutes, William joined a party temporarily in exchange for carrying heavy loads of supplies. The small party is led by a young fighter named Sam with his 3 other party members, Jones an archer, Andrew the heavy ax, and Kol the rogue. When William introduced himself, he was bombarded with questions from the party members which he tried his best to answer without giving it too much information. The Sam''s party''s quest is to eliminate a band of goblins near the lumberjack site, it is a simple and clean quest which most of the adventurer prefer because goblins hunting is easy money, but it also an important quest because out of control goblin poption can lead to horde which it can turn rank D quest to B rank. After a quick introduction, Sam''s party head out to their destination with William carrying 7 days'' worth of food and other essential supplies in his inventory. Chapter 4: New Weapons and Loots Chapter 4: New Weapons and Loots The party''s destination takes about 1 hour of walk from Greenhill. While on the road, Jones kept his eyes aware as his sight was better than anyone else (except for William). Halfway to the destination, the party encountered arge group of 35 goblins and 5 hobgoblins. William and Sam''s party prepared to fight as there is no way they can escape. William position himself in front of the party to act as a tank while Sam and Kol stay close to Jones and Andrew covers the party''s rear. The first to act was 10 goblins with throwing spears, but unfortunately, they all aimed at William as he''s the biggest target and most threatening enemy. All 10 spears bounced back from armor and in response, William threw a frag grenade right at the center of 10 spear goblins. With arge explosion, all 10 spear goblins and 3 hobgoblins in the back caught on the explosion and died instantly. With the entire front group of goblins obliterated, 20 goblins and 2 hobgoblins on the right side of the party started to panic. It was this moment when Sam, Kol and Andrew rushed toward the remaining goblins. Sam, who is the most experienced adventurer, rushed towards 10 goblins in the middle and Andrew went right side against 5 goblins, meanwhile, Jones tried to use his bow to take down goblins one at a time. After blowing up entire groups of enemies, William pulls out his chainsword and bolter pistol at 5 goblins on the right side, with a battle cry of "Die, Green Skin!" The loud roar of chain swords cleave 2 goblins and st 3 remaining enemies with pistol fire. By the time William finished 5 goblins, Sam and Andrew were holding the line while Kol and Jones were attacking in the range, so William decided to nk the enemy on the right side and confront the 2 hobgoblins. The first hobgoblin tries to block William''s chainsword with its iron buckler, but it buzzes through and hits the hobgoblin''s shoulder. The second hobgoblin tried to attack William but instantly died from the punch in the head by William''s left hook. With two hobgoblins dead and an open opportunity to attack in the rear, William decided to wipe out entire goblins by unleashing his remaining 7 rounds from a bolter pistol. Because of the angle, he shot from he managed to take down two or more targets with one bullet, the remaining 3 goblins were finished by Sam and Andrew. The clean up was messy since most of the dead enemy turns into a puddle, the party manages to loot a few coins but there were no items worth looting, meanwhile Kol inspected the bodies and found something interesting. "They were in the battle not that long ago before ambushing us, it is unusual for thisrge group toe out this far away," Kol said "Maybe they got greedy and decided to take a chance with us", Andrew replied. Sam agrees with Kol''s theory, but it doesn''t exin why goblins had a prior injury or move this far from their territory. William didn''t say as he was focused on what he saw, vast in-game loots on top of the monster''s bodies with information floating just like in the game. William didn''t believe what he saw but they are indeed items rted to fantasy and Warhammer 40K. William decided to pick all the items and put them into his inventory as Sam and others aren''t able to see or grab them. ''This is why I have an appraisal. Only I can obtain these items just like in the video game.'' William thought as he finished grabbing thest item into his inventory. After a few minutes of discussion, the party decided to continue as they still need toplete their quest. One hourter, the party made it to the lumberjack site, Sam and others decided to talk to the camp manager, while William gave an excuse of him being toorge for a tent and decided to wait outside. While waiting, William checks his inventory to organize and see what he obtained. [Inventory: Bolter rifle with 210 rifle ammo (Comes as 7 magazines each hold 30 rounds), 4 Prometheus grenades (Used by Space Marine called Smanders. Burnsrge areas after it explodes)] By the time Williampleted inventory, party members came outside to brief him. "So, it turns out a small group of goblins is attacking more often than usual, ording to the camp manager. Our job is to eliminate those goblins for the next 5 days, the lumberjack camp will be our base camp until work is done." Sam said as William now understood why the party had 7 days'' worth of food before leaving Greenhill, Sam instructed everyone to rest so they can hunt tomorrow in full strength. Since it waste afternoon, William decided to test his new weapons to get familiar, after a few adjustments of the bolter rifle, William patrolled the camp to see if there were any potential enemies in the area. After 20 minutes of patrolling around the camp, William found 7 goblins wandering around without purpose or sign of intelligence, it is as if they lost a reason to do anything. With no concern, William fired 7 shots from his bolter rifle, all of which are headshots. After checking there isn''t any more enemies, he went to the nearest goblin corpse to search for any loot. What William found was no loots but the realization that goblin body was already rotten beyond for normal, ''These goblins were undead before I killed them''. William stood up after finishing his appraisal loot, grabbed one of the dead goblins and started running back to the lumber camp. A few minutester, William arrived at lumberjack camp, to find people either cooking for dinner, cleaning equipment, or ying cards to entertain themselves, finally William found the party and reported what he found. At first, they didn''t believe his story about undead goblins until the body of the rotten goblin was presented but suddenly screams and panic spread all over the camp. Large numbers of goblins and hobgoblins are approaching the main tent and they don''t look alive. "We are under attack by the undead, Sam we need the guild''s full force, this is beyond our ability to handle," Kol advises Sam while everyone else including William holds their ground as hordes of zombies approach the main tent. "We need to pull back with many survivors and go back to town, we need to warn everyone about the army of the undead," Sam told the camp leader, and the camp leader informed Sam that there is a warehouse with 5 wagons, enough to take everyone else to the town. "We will hold back the approaching undead while everyone else prepares the wagons for the departure." Sam gave instructions to his party while surviving campbors retreat to the warehouse, William pulled his rifle back into his inventory and pulled out his pistol and chain sword for both range and melee to hold the line. The horde of undead goblins and undead hobgoblins slowly approach the defending line while Sam''s party slowly pulls back from the main tent to the warehouse, when undeades to the main tent, William pulls out his new hand grenade and tosses it at the center of the undead. When the Prometheus grenade exploded, it was spectacr and beyond what William expected as undead and tents caught on ming explosions leading into small firestorms. ''Holy crap, Smanders do not joke around with their weapons.'' It wasn''t just him, but everyone was rmed as the small metal ball caused so much damage. The explosion of the grenade made a breathing room for the rest of the party to pull back to the warehouse where the rest of the survivors ready the wagons. "We are ready to depart but there is a problem." The camp leader informed the party as he looks William, "He is just too big and there is only enough room to carry everyone, he has to follow us on foot." The camp leader said as Sam protest but William stop him, "You guys need someone to hold back the undead while leaving the warehouse, I can follow you guys on foot after you all leave," William said to everyone, after checking the road, William opened the warehouse doors as all 5 wagons with survivors left the camp at full speed. While wagons disappear into the darkness toward Greenhill, William checks his weapons as he turns around to face countless hordes of undead in front of him. William attacks the undead army with a smile as he knows his armor is imprable, within one hour all his standard pistol ammo was depleted (all 106), and he was fighting only with a chain sword. William ran toward the lumber processing area to look for any makeshift weapons, but unfortunately, there weren''t any, so he starts throwing logs toward a group of undead as they approach. Since there were plenty of logs, William felt he could handle the rest of the undead until he was struck by 12 bolts of magic missile and fireball in the chest. William hasn''t injured thanks to the armor, but he was shocked by the magic attack, the magic missile didn''t do any damage, but fireball managed to push him off from the pile of logs he was standing on top of. The helmet''s life sensor indicates there are 5 life forms behind an army of undead, as William stands up, he pulls out his bolter rifle and frag grenade to face the new enemy in the battlefield. The explosion of the frag grenade gave enough distraction for him to run toward new enemies and fires his bolter rifle. The rounds hit 3 hooded men and at the same time, arge number of undead crumbled. Two remaining hooded men took cover behind the remaining undead, but it was useless as William can hear a chanting voice, this didn''t stop him from continuing his attack, so this time he used his second frag grenade and tossed it at the center of the undead army. With arge explosion, William charged with his rifle and tackled anything standing in his way like a truck. When he saw his target in front of him, William tackled him with full force, killing the 4th man. At that moment a second target who is wearing fancy robes and cloths opens his palm and sts William with mes which engulf William. Chapter 5: Fame and Troubles Chapter 5: Fame and Troubles Evan''s POV, Evan the Marked One is baffled by a mysterious ck knight with a strange weapon at first. Believing he is just another adventure. Evan decided to turn the knight into his bodyguard after turning the knight''s corpse into an undead. But who could have guessed that this ck knight killed his 4 followers and destroyed half of his undead army all by himself? Evan nned to massacre the people of Greenhill and grow his undead army bigger. Usually, this is impossible because it requires arge amount of magic and mages to maintain control of the undead. This all changed when his new mysterious patrons gave bountiful power. He doesn''t know this new patron or their ambition but if he can wield powerful magic, he doesn''t care what price he must pay. After the fourth necromancer died by the ck knight''s attack, Evan unleashes all his power on the ck knight and set him on fire. With the ck knight dead and half of the undead destroyed, Evan approaches his dead followers, but the moment he turns his back, a burning ck knight jumps out from the fire and grab Evras''s neck. --------- It was surprising how there wasn''t any difort from the fire, Space Marine''s power armor was designed to withstand any element attack with a certain limit. After realizing he wasn''t hurt or turned to ash, William jumped out of the fire and grabbed a hooded figure in the neck to prevent him from casting, the reason for keeping the hooded figure alive is because he needs information. "Who are you and why did you attack the camp?" Before William could get his answer, he saw a medallion a hooded man was wearing, it had an 8-pointed star ne covered in blood. The moment William saw the medallion, he felt rage, aplete unstoppable rage that he never felt before in his life. Without hearing an answer from Evan, William crushed his neck and snatched the medallion as William dropped the body. Instantly William heard a cold voice around him. "Ah, Astartes, we didn''t expect you in this world? I see you have our marker, put it on and we will give you all you desire." Then he heard other voices, "I can grant you the power enough to achieve honor and glory," Said the angry voice. "I can grant you eternal life," Said the sickly voice. "I can give you what you desire most and bring your fantasy to life," Said a lustful voice. "Don''t you want to know how you got here? I can give you the answer you are searching for." said the first voice, the menacing voice. Hearing four voices in his head, William saw a vision of his desire and everything that can be achieved. A glorious battle in which no one can match his strength, living an evesting life to witness empire rise and fall, a room filled with food, golds and women waving at him. Without realizing, William tried to wear the ne, but suddenly something unexpected happened. "NO!" Another entity''s voice with rage and vengeance can be heard from William''s head then crushed the ne into pieces. The voices of four beings disappeared, the marker was destroyed and a mysterious entity also disappeared, William standalone trying to understand what just happened. As far as William can understand, he is in the world of fantasy of sword and magic, but not this is not the Warhammer Fantasy world. There are two reasons why he was certain, first was the voices he heard, he is 100% certain that it was a voice of four chaos gods and one of the voice was likely Tzeentch who ask William why he was in ''this world'' as if Tzeentch didn''t expect to meet Adeptus Astartes at all. The second reason is that he is in the body of Space Marine that he created for the D&D campaign beforeing to this world. With these two reasons, William is certain that everything that happened to him wasn''t done by chaos gods but by someone else. ''For now, I have to find how I got here and how to go back home''. With a new purpose, William starts looting the five dead bodies of necromancers, four only had herbs, and few silver coins (total of 80), the leader on the other hand have 45 gold coins, a magic book, a magic ring and 4 health potions. William was disappointed because the reward for fighting undead hordes wasn''t much at all, so he decided to check the undead for loot and he wasn''t disappointed as he now collected his rewards. [One ammo chest (Contains 200 pistol ammo, 15 frag grenade, and 300 rifle ammo), one mer with 5 canisters, and a power sword.] After William finished his looting and collecting his rewards, he decided to put all the damaged weapons and armor in his inventory for repairs as they were overdue from proper maintenance. ----------- The next day, arge group of adventurer including Sam''s party arrived at the camp, William was in his spare clothes, cooking his breakfast. At first, the group of adventurers didn''t know who William was until they saw his guild card for his identification. Sam and others were relieved as William was in one piece but surprised how he managed to y an army of undead without a single scratch or turn to undead by the necromancers. Without his power armor, William looked like a tall adventurer but big and with his power sword in hand, no one challenged him regarding fighting the undead army and necromancers. With undead remains taken care of, most of the adventurers return to Greenhill while the guild posts a few groups to watch over the camp so that workers can return to work. The story of William''s deed spread all to the neighboring viges faster than the wind as the adventurer''s guild reported the incident to the headquarter in the capital. This became the most popr news in the kingdom and thanks to this, many nobles took a great interest in giant ck knight and how to take advantage. Meanwhile, William and Sam''s party receive a hero''s wee when they return to Greenhill. It takes about 8 hours toplete equipment repair, so William decided to take this opportunity to rx and enjoy the festival. By early afternoon, everyone was eating, drinking or dancing in the town square, Sam and his party can be seen among those people, while William is in his chair enjoying his food and drinks as youngdies bring it to him. For William the drinking ale and beer were great but unfortunately, he couldn''t get drunk or even feel the buzz from the alcohol. It was one thing that William regretted being a Space Marine. Due to the Space Marine''s gene seeds imnt, it prevents him from poison, including alcohol. If he wanted, he could beat anyone in the drinking contest even if the opponent is a dwarf. Three people approach William''s table, it was Greenhill noble, guild master, and merchant''s guild president. The noble with expansive cloth starts the conversation, "Hello young man, I''m Baron Sternagel and I would like to officially wee you to Greenhill". "Thank you, this is a lively town" William respond and finish an ale in one go, "I''m Caulifield, Greenhill''s guild master" a middle-aged man around histe 30''s intruded himself, and finally an old man with sses said "I''m Leonhart, a president of the merchant guild here in this town". It was a formal introduction and William knew why they approached him, it was to create a connection and appeal to the potential adventurer, but for guild master Caulifield, it was different as he wanted to know if the report was true regarding of ck knight. The conversation with all three was usual praise, William''s history and his armor. Baron offered William a position of officer in his military, while president Leonhart offered a prestigious job position within his business. But it was a guild master''s offer that got William''s attention, an opportunity to rank up twice if he canplete one job as a test. It was a never-ending conversation so William decided to end it, "I will think about your offers and give you my answer in a few days" With that conversation ended and William continue his free meals and drinks. The next day, William went for an early morning walk to get some fresh air as he thought about three offers. Baron and the president of the merchant''s guild wasn''t the right choice for him as it will ground him in this town. The guild master''s offer is interesting because William can get a higher rank if he passes the test, which he can move to another town after the test. In the end, William decided to ept the guild master''s offer but also earn favor from the other two without epting their offer. By the time William realizes he ends up in the adventurer''s guild, "I guess I''ll give them my answer tonight" and headed toward the Inn that he was staying. The inn where William is staying is called [First Barrel]. It is a decent ce since ites with breakfast and a first-floor bed can hold his weight. The owners are decent people and they weed William before he earned his fame, so he decided to stay a little longer and help with small chores such as wood chopping. After breakfast William went to the back yard and started chopping wood to make firewood, it was a simple job but it gave the opportunity for him to test his strength and to see if he can rip firewood like Captain America. When William finished his shore, a group of people approached him. "Are you the adventurer who defeated the army of the undead in the lumberjack camp?" When William turned around and saw 5 knights in dark armor standing in front of him. "Yes, I''m William, how can I help you?" One of the knights steps forward, "In the name of his majesty and the Order of ck mes, we are here to confiscate your armor and weapons. For civilians to possess this equipment is against thew" Knight said with a demanding tone as William tried to understand his situation. "You are joking right?" Chapter 6: Expedition Chapter 6: Expedition William was a bit confused as to why a bunch of knights decided to take away his war gear. The Space Marine armor is impossible for normal humans to use it as it will destroy their body moment they try to move it. The only thing William can make sense of is that those 5 knights just heard a rumor of a giant ck knight and thought William might have stolen their order''s war gear. "Look, I have different ck armorpared to yours. I didn''t steal or found it from some dead body, so there is no need for you to take my equipment away." William exined to the knights as he dropped the ax and picked up firewood from the ground. One of the knights who stepped forward didn''t give second thoughts as he once again demanded William to give up the armor. "If you refuse to give up the armor and weapon, we will take it by force." With that, all 5 knights draw their swords and point it at William. "Yea, I kinda knew you would say that." William threw the firewood at the first knight''s head and struck his chest with his right kick. The first knight got flown away which hit two others behind him, the only remaining enemies William have to fight are the other two knights. With a quick gab of punches, the remaining knights were defeated without any lethal damages to the knights. "You guys are greenhorns aren''t you? Your coordination is all off and rushes to a fight while showing plenty of openings." William said as he pulled out his power sword from his inventory and carried it on his shoulder as he approached the down knights. All 5 knights were out cold which was disappointing as William expected more from them. ''I guess there is no need for a power sword since they can''t fight. I expected more from the knights but they are nothing but kids with fancy armors and swords.'' William thought as he was about to put his weapon away when he heard multiple footsteps approaching where he is. "I want those recruits back right now. Our expedition can''t be dyed, find those 5 idiots and I don''t care if they are the sons of nobles!" Sound ofmand can be heard as dozens of knights with dark armors run around checking each house. William''s head pops out from the corner of the inn''s back, ''Crap, there are more of them.'' With that, William grabs all 5 knights and tosses them into the middle of the street, "Knights are sleeping in the middle of the road!" One shout from ''someone'' causes every knight to turn their attention. This gave an opportunity for William to escape back into the inn and watch a group of knights carry their recruits back from where they came from. ''Ok, now that is done, I need to see the guild master.'' After making sure all the knights left the area, William re-equip his power armor and headed toward the Adventurer''s guild. It only took William 5 minutes to arrive at his destination, the main hall went silent as everyone turned their attention to ''ck Knight''. "So that is his armor. No wonder he could fight the army of undead all by himself." "He looks like a walking metal giant, I can''t see any weakness in that armor." "Do you think he will create a party? We should join if he does." Various whispers can be heard as William approaches the receptionist on the front table to request an audience with the guild master. "I''m here to meet the guild master, I believe he is expecting me," William said to the receptionist as thedy sent one of the workers to notify the guild master. After waiting for a short few minutes, William is led to the office on the first floor. Inside the office, William saw the guild master but also 3 other people as well. Two were Baron Sternagel and Lionheart of the merchant guild, but thest person is someone new. The man is around in histe 40''s, wearing heavy dark armor with silver decoration and a longsword in his waist. William could guess that this man could be themander of the knights in the town and him being here means trouble. "William, thank you foring. We were just talking about the possibility of you joining Sir Dolven''s expedition, of course, you will be paid handsomely." Said Caulifield while three men watch William in silence with a bit of concern in their faces. "What is the purpose of this expedition by the way?" William asks the guild master but before Caulifield can answer the question, Sir Dolven responds first. "We will be meeting with the rest of the troops and head to the east in 5 days. We are going to take back Deron, the city of the vampire." Chapter 7: Holy Fire Chapter 7: Holy Fire "A vampire city. If you have an army to take on the vampire army why do you need me?" William asks Sir Dolven with curiosity, if they need additional muscle in the battle they could have asked for a more experienced adventurer. "With a special guest, we''ve been gathering various adventurers to join our causes. Your guild master rmended you as a representative from the Greenhill branch. Also, thanks to your reputation as a yer of the undead, I''m certain you will make great additions to our military strength." Sir Dolven said as William looked at the guild master and the other two leaders of Greenhill. They seemed nervous but William can''t me them as Greenhill doesn''t have a powerful adventurer, so when high rank noble from capital ''request'' people to fight for their king, the three leaders had no choice but to give William. "I understand, I will ept the special quest as long as I can rank up at the same time. Are we leaving today?" Hearing William''s word, all three leaders finally rxed as their duty to the king and country was fulfilled without sending all their men power. "We are leaving tomorrow morning, it seems we have trouble maker this morning and caused a dy." Sir Dolven said with annoyance in his voice as he looked at William and his armor. If William can guess, Sir Dolven is a career military leader and holds high on the reputation of nobility. After Sir Dolven received the stamp and approval from the guild master he left the office, leaving William and three leaders alone in the office. "It seems no matter who''s a job offer I take I would end up in the service of the military expedition," William said to all three men as he turned around to leave the office, since Sir Dolven got the quest contract approved there is no reason for William to stay there anymore. Since his day is free now, William decided to go goblin hunting around Greenhill as many of the goblins made a camp after fleeing from an army of undead. -------------- 1 Hour Later, Outside of Greenhill, ''Seems like there are a couple of them wandering around but so far I see no camp or hideout of goblins.'' William pulls out his sword from the dead goblin as he looks around to see if he missed any enemies. After killing over 30 goblins, William is certain there is camp around Greenhill forest but he didn''t find any. ''Where could those goblins hide?'' William thought to himself as he grabbed the goblin corpse and realized something unusual. The goblin he is holding is dirty and covered with dust from top to bottom. This clue gave William an idea as he started scanning the ground for potential entrance. It took William two hours to find a hole hidden in the bush and trees, but the ground tells a different story as it is full of trails and tracks of goblins. ''Well, shit. No wonder I couldn''t find the camp. It was underground this entire time.'' William thought to himself as he removed the bush and trees to find the entrance. When it was cleared, he found a small hole that no adult human can enter or a Space Marine can. After thinking about his options, Williames up with a good old fashion of fire trick as he pulls out mer from his inventory. Just as he was about to pull the trigger, a group of adventurers came out of the forest. "Oh, shit. You are the ck Knight, yer of the undead. What are you doing here?" One of the adventurers asked William with a surprised expression. "Hunting goblins." With that, William pulled the trigger and unleashed promethium fueled the fire onto the hole. In a second, the entire ground starts to smoke between cracks as screams of goblins burning alive can be heard. "Nothing helps me rx more than killing goblins with holy fire." With that, William pulled the trigger once again at the entrance while a group of adventurers got nervous as they saw ck Knightugh with malice. Chapter 8: The Wild Beasts Chapter 8: The Wild Beasts The mes of mer continue to burn underground, so William decides to check his inventory as he wonders how to retrieve the loot from the dead goblins. The group of adventurers left the area long ago ever since he gave an evilugh. After taking a seat and going over the inventory, William found something interesting in the corner of the screen, an option to turn on the ''Auto loot'' ability. ''Is this what I think it is?'' William decided to turn on the ''Auto loot'' ability, and suddenly, his inventory started to stack up with bolter rounds, frag grenades, mer fuel canisters and an increasing number of goblin ears. By the time it reached 122 goblin ears, the me in the underground slowly died off and inventory stopped receiving the loots from the fallen goblins. ''I guess I''m done for the day. It iste afternoon so I better get back and turn this in.'' William stood up and before he left the area, he pulled out two frag grenades and tossed it on the goblin cave entrance. After three seconds, grenades explode and cave-in the entrance, no goblins or small monsters will make a nest on the cave again for a while as long as the entrance is blocked. -------------- Greenhill Adventurer''s Guild, William turned in the goblins'' ears and received a decent amount of rewards. He decided to spend his earnings on food as his inventory will store it without decaying it. Greenhill is a lumber town and middle stop for many travelers such as merchants, for this reason, it has various shops dedicated to the road food and ingredients. By the time William finished his shopping, he spent most of his gold and purchased three months of food, with that William decided to go back to the inn so he can prepare for tomorrow''s departure. -------------- Next Morning, William left the inn and found himself outside of Greenhill as arge number of knights on horseback and infantrymen waited for the order from theirmander. Before William could ask anyone where adventures gather for the march, a group of adventurers approached him first. "You must be William the Giant, the hero of the Greenhill. I''m Gale, leader of ''Western Eagles'', this is our mage, warrior, healer and ranger." Gale introduced everyone to William but for some reason, they didn''t give a very strong impression to William (I''m not giving them names, they are just NPCs). "Nice to meet you all, I''m William and I will be joining to fight vampires in Deron. Where is Sir Dolven?" William asks the group as he looks around but unfortunately, the army starts to move and another group of other adventures can be seen in the front line. "The army is moving now, we have to move quickly if we want to earn our reward. Let''s go." Gale said to everyone as they also moved quickly to the front side of the army. "William, our job is to scout and kill any monsters blocking the marching army. You can find Sir Dolven after we finish our job today." Gale said to William as he started to run ahead. William, seeing this, decided to join Gale''s group instead of searching for a knightmander. ''I guess I''ll just talk to Sir Dolventer. It''s not like I''m that important, just extra muscle.'' -------------- 4 Hours Later, Nothing happened on the road for hours, no ambush from the bandits or monsters happened so it was an uneventful morning. But thanks to constant questioning from the Gales''s group it turned into an interesting conversation in which William learned few things about this campaign. William learned that his entire job until they arrive at their location will be nothing but scouting and vanguard for the army. From what Gale exined, the adventures are hired solely because they are much more expendable, unlike trained soldiers and knights. Still, the military pays very well so many highly skilled adventures tend to sign up for this kind of war campaign and retire after. The army will schedule to meet with the second army, who are specialized in brand new types of weapons. This interested William but unfortunately, none of the adventures knows what these new weapons are. The only thing they know is that they will meet them four dayster, at the border of vampirend which the City of Deron is located. Just as William was about to ask about the kingdom and it''s leadership but it was interrupted when the party reached the top side of the hill. They saw a bloody fight between another group of adventurers and arge group of wolves. About 13 wolves were attacking 6 members of adventures who are losing the battleground as wolves'' attacking coordination is unnatural for normal animals. Seeing the trouble, William and Western Eagles jump into action to help the other adventures. Because William was equipped with a power sword and bolter pistol, it was no problem for him to eliminate the wolves in melee or short-range fights. Thanks to William''s space marine biology, he was able to run past the Western Eagles and reach the adventures first, which he fired his pistol to kill 10 wolves, emptying the entire magazines. The two remaining wolves looked scared but the third wolf stood strong. The third wolf is much bigger and has darker furpared to other wolves, but one thing that interests William is its red eyes. The eyes are supernatural as if it was possessed by something else, which leers William with hate and bloodlust. William seeing this decided not to take any chance with the wolf with the red eyes as he y two other wolves and charge towards thest remaining wolf. "Die!" William shouts as he swings his power sword at the wolf but to William''s surprise the wolf dodges the attack and proceeds to counter-attack by opening its jaw. To block the iing bite attack William uses his left arm and manages to block it. The wolf, without any regard to its safety, continued to bite and didn''t retreat, which William used his sword to y the beast. "What was that? That beast was very unusual, it was as if it didn''t care if he dies or not." Gales said to William when he reached him. The battle was over when his party arrived but they didn''t mind it because they were fascinated by William''s magic tool (Bolter pistol). As William turns his head to say something, the corpse of the dead wolf starts to glow red and starts to transform into something else. "Everyone retreat! Something is happening to the dead wolf''s body!" William gave an order to everyone as he pulled back and reloaded his pistol. ''It seems we have a chaos problem.'' Chapter 9: Hounds of Khorne Chapter 9: Hounds of Khorne "Someone is raising the undead wolf, there must be a necromancer nearby!" One of the adventures said as he grabbed his injured friend and retreated. Fighting the undead is challenging to the adventure when half of the party is injured but fighting an undead beast is impossible because they have superior speed and don''t get tired. William on the other hand knows better. He''s been familiar with Warhammer lore and units of every faction, so he knew this creature is something much more terrifying and dangerouspared to some undead animal. ''It''s a Flesh Hound. He is just testing me isn''t he?'' He thought as he put away his bolter pistol in his holster and pulled out a frag grenade from his pouch. Flesh Hound is a demonic beast in service of Khorne, a Chaos God of blood and murder. This creature is the hunting dog of the Blood God and never rests until it''s prey is dead. The Flesh Hound is muchrger than a regr wolf, in real lifeparison, they are a simr size to the adult tiger. "Come at me you foul creature, taste the wrath of the Emperor and his Angel of Death!" William gave a battle cry and ran toward the Flesh Hound, but the demon beast dodged the Space Marine at thest moment. The Flesh Hound opened its mouth to bite William''s leg to reduce the movement speed but to its surprise, Space Marine expected this move. William, who anticipated the attack, made a quick stop and turned around to face the Flesh Hound, turning the fight into a close melee. Using the power sword, William blocked the demon beast''s attack and cut it''s mouth in half which he used the beast''s momentum topletely cut it horizontally. "I expected more of a challenge but that was easy¡­ way too easy." William stabbed the demon beast''s head just in case and about to put the grenade back into his pouch when he heard a scream in the distance. The corpses of the other 8 wolves turned into Flesh Hounds and started attacking the adventures. "They are not undead wolves! Form up a defensive position!" Gale gave an order to everyone as Flesh Hounds started to circle the adventures to attack the weakest prey. William sees this, pulls the grenade pin and rushes at the densely packed Flesh Hounds he could find. With three demon beasts closely together William threw his grenade and in a few seconds, all four beasts died from the explosion. The remaining five Flesh Hounds turn their attention to William and decide to attack him as he is a much bigger threat. "Come at me you beasts! Feel the wrath of the Emperor''s finest warrior!" William shouts at the Flesh Hounds as he pulls out Chainsword from his inventory to dual wield. With a power sword in his right hand and Chainsword in his left, William cranked the engine of the Chainsword to bring out deadly sounds. The Flesh Hounds were divided into three groups as two went to left and right and a single one stayed in front against William. First to attack William is the left side as two charged ahead as if they didn''t care for their safety. William sees this, blocks both demonic beasts using his two weapons and slew one of them with a Chainsword right in the head. This resulted in Chainsword stuck in the Flesh Hound''s skull, so William used his inhuman strength to swing the Chainsword, resulting in the dead Flesh Hound mmed into another beast. With the second Flesh Hound staggered, William struck down the demon beast with his power sword, killing it with one swing. But William''s back is now defenseless as two Flesh Hounds and one in the front charges to kill the Space Marine. Before they could do anything, the group of adventurers intercept the demonic beasts and start to do some damage as now adventures have greater numberspared to Flesh Hounds. With Gale''s Eastern Eagles and other adventure partiesbined, a total of 11 adventurers stand against three Flesh Hounds, giving William plenty of time to recover his Chainsword from the dead demonic beast and reposition himself. "Thank you for taking their attention for us, now we are more prepared to face these hell hounds," Gale said to William as everyone formed up standard Front, Middle and Back rank against three remaining Flesh Hounds. "No problem, I''ll handle two while you guys finish thest one," William spoke with a loud voice as he once again cranked the Chainsword engine and started walking toward ahead without any concern, leaving the formation. "Wait, what do you mean¡­" Gale tried to stop William but he had to stop as three demonic beasts charged at them. William once again rushed ahead to fight two beasts in meleebat, seeing this third beast turn at William but before it could do anything William kicked the third Flesh Hound which it knocked towards adventurers. "I''m busy, y with them," William said to the third beast as he continued his fight against two Flesh Hounds. Using his power sword, William stabs the first Flesh Hound as it opens its mouth while buzzing the second one''s belly with Chainsword. It was quick and swift in one motion as William killed the two demonic beasts at the same time. The third Flesh Hound after getting kicked by William got killed by the adventurers as they overwhelmed it by sheer numbers. It took a minute but when thest Flesh Hound was killed, all of the corpses of Flesh Hounds disintegrated, leaving only bones of regr wolves. "We did it! We killed the hell hounds!" The rest of the party cheered as they survived a deadly encounter. William on the other hand knew this was just a beginning as Khorne was just testing him and soon other Chaos Gods will make their move against him. ''I need to think of something to fight against chaos. Flesh Hounds are just hunting dogs and if I''m not wrong, the entire hunting party will soon appear, bringing absolute death and destruction.'' William thought to himself as he cleaned his weapons and put away his Chainsword back into inventory. Chapter 10: New Loot Chapter 10: New Loot William and the rest of the party burn the corpses of the remaining wolves and bones of the former Flesh Hounds. Normally, adventures would retrieve the remains to turn it to the guild for small reward but as of now, their priority is to return to the army and report about sudden hellhounds ambush. ''When we get back, I should check my inventory to see what I got. If I''m guessing it right, the stronger the monster I defeat, the better loot I will get. So I hope I get something good from Flesh Hounds.'' William thought to himself as he took the rear guard within adventures. If there are any monsters or bandits, William will be able to find them thanks to his helmet sensor. The Space Marine''s helmet is built with filters, auto senses and various visual protection such as blinding lights or darkness as it allows the wearer to see in night vision, infrared and ultraviolet ranges. It only took one hour for the party to find the army as they were taking a break without any incident. William and Gale went to find Sir Dolven to report about their scout mission and what happened. It only took a few minutes when two men found Sir Dolven as he was walking over and talking to his soldiers. It was a sign of good leadership, who cared about his troops even though Sir Dolven himself is a noble andmander of the Order of ck mes. There is something you can respect from the man only by the action instead of the use of words. "Sorry to interrupt your inspection but we have an urgent report," William asks casually, while Gale freaks out due to the way William talks to Sir Dolven. "William, I heard that you went on a scouting mission ahead of the army. I see you have already met Gale, so what is the report?" Sir Dolven spoke with interest and causal tone as he didn''t seem to mind the status difference. Gale stepped up to give the report, "During our mission, we encountered another party fighting wolves. When William and my party help them to kill the beasts, some of them turn into hellhounds. We manage to kill them and burn the body but I''m afraid we are already facing the enemy influences even before entering the vampire territory." When Sir Dolven heard hellhounds, he showed great concern and confusion as vampires tend to use necromancy, not demonic sorcery. "Are you sure it was a hellhound, not undead wolves used by the necromancers?" Sir Dolven asked as he looked at both Gale and William (Well, his helmet). "We are sure wolves were dead before they turned. But when we killed them, they turned into dust as only their bones remained." William exins and describes more in detail without giving away the influence of Chaos Gods. If they learn about Chaos Gods it will only wee them into this world with more demons and nightmare monsters much scarier than typical monsters. "If somehow vampires managed to obtain the power of demons, we are in trouble. But the second army is already ahead of us and if we don''t meet them in time, we will lose the war before starting the first battle. We will continue with our schedule but I will make sure we prepare for possible ambushes from vampires." Sir Dolven said and ended the meeting as he now had to gather his lieutenants for new information. "For now our job is done. William, we will go back to the front after we take a short break. The other party can''t go since they have two people down due to injury. I''ll get you before we leave." Gale said to William as he walked away to find his party members. ''I guess I have time now to go over my loot.'' William found himself in an isted area to rx and go over the new inventory. ''Let see, bolter rounds, more rations, first aid kits, repair bots¡­ oh this is new.'' With excitement, William checks the new items as he clicks it for more detail. [Oath of Loyalty (Purity Seal ) x1: To symbolize the first victory against minions of Chaos, the Emperor awarded you with a Purity seal. Grant the user better leadership and loyalty from allies.] [Support Order (Artillery Bombardment) x1: "Infantry win firefights, tanks win battles, artillery wins wars." An old saying from an Artillery Officer. Grant the user an ability to call down bombardment from Basilisk, a mobile artillery tform armed with a massive earthshaker cannon.] ''Holy crap, these two are very useful items. Didn''t know I can get support ability just like COD killstreak reward.'' With new items and supportability, William equipped the seal into his armor and artillery order in his helmet disy which appeared on the top left side. Now, William is certain that he can obtain more than just ammunition and battle gear from defeated enemies. The stronger the enemy, the better gear or ability he will earn but that all depends on luck. After organizing his new and old gear, William equips himself with a bolter pistol, power sword, and three grenades, the standard equipment William prefers as he wants to save ammunition for bolter and mer until a real battle happens. When it was time, William met up with Gale and others to continue their recon mission. The army continued their march without any incident throughout the day and expected to meet the second army outside of the vampire town right on schedule. ----------- Outside of City of Deron, Four Days Later, "Battalion, halt!" With loudmand, Sir Dolven stopped the army when they arrived at the second army''s base camp right outside of the City of Deron. With the first part of the mission done, adventures took a breather as theypleted the main quest of the special quest. For the second part, adventurers can participate in the military battle as mercenaries for additional reward and opportunity to gain fame but for Western Eagles, they won''t join as they specialize in escort. "William, it was nice meeting you. We hope we can hang out next time and join you for a monster-hunting quest." Gale said to William as his party started to gather their equipment and supplies. "Oh, you guys are not staying?" William asks Gale with surprise. "The thing is we have an escort mission to the capital next week. So we have to go now if we want to make it on time. I know you are going to stay for the second part of the quest so here is my advice. ''Don''t be a hero,'' you only live once and there is no point of reward if you end up bing undead." Gale exins and advises William as he grabs his backpack to meet with the rest of the party. "I will remember that," William said as he smiled as he was not wearing his helmet at this moment. With that, Western Eagles left the camp to meet their new client in the nearby town to start their escort mission. ----------- That Evening, William is requested by Sir Dolven to attend the war meeting as a guest of Sir Dolven and the only adventure participating in tomorrow''s battle. After Western Eagles left the camp, the other party decided not to join the fight as they were the only group left and there is a difference in war effort if they join or not. William on the other hand dly decided to join the fight as he wants to gain more loot and extra reward from the second part of the quest. "William, before the meeting starts, I want you to stay quiet. Themander of the second army can be bit¡­ prideful." Sir Dolven gave a warning as they are the only group in the meeting tent. "Sure, I guess. If I may ask, why do you ask me tha¡­" Before William could finish his question, a group of heavily armored knights came to the tent as the person leading the group spoke out loud. "OK, let''s start this meeting. I have vampires to kill and a region to conquer for my father." A young blond man with gold and red armor said as he put his helmet on the table. Meanwhile, Sir Dolven and his followers only sigh as they already knew this would happen. "William, meet Sir Benton Pius Amadeus the 4th, the Crown Prince of the Alderim and Commander of the King''s army." Sir Dolven introduces the Crown Prince to William as everyone in the tent bow down to show respect. "You gotta be kidding me, a freaking crown prince is inmand of this war?" William whispers to himself as he stares at the energetic prince as he starts to regret not leaving with the rest of the adventures. Chapter 11: Identity of Secret Weapon Chapter 11: Identity of Secret Weapon The crown prince Benton made an entrance with the excitement of gaining recognition after winning this war. To be king, he must earn the respect of the king''s court and nobles, this meant that he must achieve something extraordinary before taking the throne when the timees. "Sir Dolven, who is this giant knight behind you? Is he one of your finest men for tomorrow''s battle?" Prince Benton asked as he looked at the giant man with ck armorer, he was certain that none of his men could do against this mountain as he could feel the presence of veteran warrior within. "No, your highness. This is William the Hero of Greenhill and the yer of the undead. I hired him as part of a military escort and will take part in your campaign." Sir Dolven spoke quickly and tried to change the subject back into tomorrow''s battle. "So, he is the adventure I heard about. No wonder he could defeat the army of undead all by himself, tell me, yer, is it true that you end up using your fist to fight off the undead? Prince asks William as everyone turns their head toward a giant adventure. "...Log," William said "What? Log?" Prince said with confusion. "I used the logs on the camp to kill the undead. Much faster and effective when gravity does all the work." William said to Prince Benton as he turned his head towards the prince. As everyone remained quiet, Sir Dolven broke the silence. "Let us start our battle n, we don''t have all night after all." After Sir Dolven spoke, the prince and everyone returned to reality and proceeded to start the meeting. The meeting was rather boring, the one who talked most was Sir Dolven, who has the most experience in battle as his order has a long history of fighting against undead and monsters. It turns out, Sir Dolven isn''t just lordmander of the Order of ck mes but also Count who governs hisnd given by Prince Benton''s father, King Benton Pius Amadeus the 3rd. When Sir Dolven was a young noble, he managed to defeat a savage beastmen tribe from the kingdom. King Benton rewarded him with higher status and the samend that Sir Dolven fought to protect. "I got it, Sir Dolven, we will follow your strategy and surround the town before sieging it," Prince said with a tired voice as the meeting was going on nearly an hour and a half. "Thank you, your highness. We will prepare the troops and get ready for the battle in the early morning." Sir Dolven ends the meeting and everyone proceeds to leave the tent but just as William was about to leave Sir Dolven stops him to talk to him in private. "I want you to keep your eyes on Prince Benton. He tends to¡­ act first before thinking. I know I''m asking a lot but he is the crown prince and he will one day rule but right now he is just a young man seeking glory and recognition from everyone." There was a heavy concern in Sir Dolven''s voice as he knew there was troubleing. "I will do what I can," William replies and steps out from the tent to get ready for tomorrow''s battle. Managing the army and fighting against the undead is stressful enough but babysitting a prince who can''t think of the bigger picture is just pushing it. ''I guess I will do what I can. Still, I don''t like the idea that we will siege the town wall with full force. Not to mention, Prince kept the information on his so-called secret weapon secret during the war meeting.'' Had enough with politics, William went to his camp area to rx next to the campfire. ------------ Next Day, As William stands next to Sir Dolven as the army marches, Prince Benton and his guards approach them with a smile on their face. "I see your troops are ready for a long battle, but with my troops, we will end the battle by the end of the day," Prince said to Sir Dolven as his troops marched behind the front army. They had much better armor, weapons and fancy clothes than Sir Dolven''s troops and knights but what got William''s attention was the weapons particr troops were carrying. "Those weapons, what are they carrying?" William asked. "Those are our secret weapons. Court Mages managed to produce a ming powder in which engineers designed the weapons tobine it. It is called ''gun'', effective and much more powerful than arrows or bolts." Prince proudly exins to Sir Dolven and William, thetest weapon against their enemy and next potential breakthrough to fight against enemies of his country. While Sir Dolven and the rest of his retainers watch with surprise on their face, William on the other hand was just dumbfounded by how basic the weapon is. The gun troops are carrying is a matchlock rifle, an ancient rifle single fire weapon that uses metal or lead ball but requires a lit match to ignite the gunpowder. On Earth, these kinds of weapons were used until the flintlock rifle waster introduced which took almost 200 years of ingenuity to reach modern-day weapons. Comparing Prince''s gun to William''s bolter is likeparing a baby''s toy car to a supercar with thetest engine. ''So this is their secret weapon. I can see a few ways to improve them and make the Emperor and Omnissiah proud.'' William thought to himself as he watched the two armies slowly move towards the City of Deron. It only took one hour for the entire army to make it to the outskirts of Deron. The Prince and Sir Dolven expected the undead to take defense on the walls of the city but for some reason, there was no sign of any vampires or undead within the walls. What is more ridiculous was that the main gate of the city was wide open as if it was abandoned. "We should send scouts to check the city. It could be a trap or vampires just abandon it but better to be safe than sorry at this point." One of the knights heard Sir Dolven''s word and sent 8 scouts to check the city. Within 10 minutes, all 8 returned and reported that the city is empty and there is no sign of living or undead. "Hahaha, I guess vampires ran away with their tails between their legs. Move the army into the city and secure it. If you find enemies, kill them on sight." Prince gave the order as everyone started to give orders, Sir Dolven protested that it could be a trap but it was useless as Prince overruled it with his authority. The main force of the army secured the city within 30 minutes and when Prince Benton, Sir Dolven, William and the rest of the leaders entered the city, Prince dered a reim of the City of Deron back into the kingdom. The troops cheered as it was an easy victory and there was no bloodshed but this celebration ended short as loud horns can be heard beyond the wall. When everyone went to the wall to see what was going on, they saw nothing approaching fog in the distance as their supply wagons and rear guards were being chased by an army of undead. The supply wagons were left behind until it was certain the city was safe but it looks like while they are on their way to enter the city, the undead came out from the underground and ambush them. "This is bad, supply wagons not only have food supplies for our troops but they also have our repair shop and ammunition for our guns." One of the Prince''s retainers shouts as people around him start to panic. "Prepare the knight cavalry and ready my horse. We are going out there to give the supply wagon enough time to escape the undead. I will take the minimum knights as it could be a trap and we need speed thanrge numbers." Sir Dolven gave the order as troops formed up within the walls. "Prince Benton, please stay here and guard the wall until we can get our supply wagons back to the city. We need¡­" Sir Dolven turned around to see the prince but he wasn''t there anymore. Suddenly, royal cavalry charged out from the gate as Prince Benton led the men into battle. "Are you freaking kidding me! He just left without hearing the n at all?" William yells with rage as the useless prince leads his entire 360 royal knights cavalry right into a vampire''s trap. Chapter 12: Punch and Earthshaker Chapter 12: Punch and Earthshaker "They are everywhere!" "Hold the line! Hold the line!" "Skeletons areing out from the ground. They were ready for us." "Your highness, we have to pull back. The supply troops are in a safe distance, we have to retreat." Sir Winton, the main retainer of the Prince Benton advice prince, but Prince Benton was busy ying skeleton spearmen and zombie mobs. "No, we will hold the line here and end this now. This undead army is being controlled by a vampire lord, if we can y it the rest of the army will fall." Prince Benton said to everyone around him as he killed two zombies next to him. Suddenly, three skeleton spearmen appear from behind two zombies and stab Prince Benton''s horse. With the fatal injury, the horse fell as Prince Benton stumbled to the ground and saved himself in thest minute with the roll. Prince Benton got up from the ground and struck the nearest undead while his retainers repositioned themself to protect the prince. "Hold the line, they are nothing but mindless minions." Prince Benton gave hismand to his knights but he knew his troops were slowly overwhelmed by the undead while gaining new soldiers at the same time. As the fight continues,rge monsters appear in the front line and start to devastate the knights left and right. 30 Minotaurs skeleton warriors with heavy weapons manage to overwhelm the knights on horseback with a single strike and crush their heads with ease. The bnce of the battle changes dramatically and Prince Benton''s knights start to lose their confidence. "We can''t hold them anymore, we have to fall back to the city." One of the knights yelled but just as he was about to turn his horse around, a group of zombies mmed into the horse knocking him down. Seeing the opportunity of the stunned knight on the ground, zombies drag the fallen knight and start to rip him apart. Seeing this, Prince Benton lost his concentration for a second but that was enough for one of the Minotaurs skeleton warriors to hit him with bone mace, disarming the prince. "Your highness! Defend the Crown Prince, we need to..." Sir Winton couldn''t finish his order as a ck arrow pierced Sir Winton''s left eye. With second leadership down, knights lose their fate and start to fall back more and more. With all this happening, none of the knights saw a giant ck armored temr approaching the battlefield with unbelievable speed. ------------------ BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM!!! Four precise explosions destroyed the undead army''s push against knights, giving breathing room to the living. "TAKE THE WOUNDED AND RETREAT TO THE CITY! I WILL HOLD THEM OFF" With a booming voice, William gave themand to the troops as he pulled out more grenades. This time, instead of frag grenades, he pulls out Prometheus grenades to create a firewall between knights and undead. BOOM, BOOM, BOOM¡­ Multiple explosions can be heard once again as the violent fire starts to engulf the skeletons and zombies. Taking this chance, everyone slowly falls back to the city as William uses the mer to create more firewalls. Eventually, everyone who is alive managed to make it back to the city gate. William, confirming that he is thest living being on the battlefield, put his mer in the inventory and ran in full speed back to the city. Thanks to his Space Marine biology, William made it back in no time as his full speed can outrun any undead. Seeing this happening, Sir Dolven''s soldiers close the gate a moment William made it back to the city. "William, are you ok?" Sir Dolven asked William but William wasn''t listening to the single wording from the knightmander. "How many did we lose?" "Only 120 knights made it back and half of them are injured and out of action until they are healed." Sir Dolven said to William with a saddened voice. Prince Benton''s royal cavalry is mostlyposed of minor nobles'' sons that support Prince Benton in political ways. "Where is the prince?" "He is with the retainers. Well, there are only three of them now instead of 14." Sir Dolven pointed behind William, turning around William saw three people attending the prince near the closed gate. William, seeing where Sir Dolven pointed, starts to walk toward the group next to the closed gate. When he finally arrived, he immediately punched the prince''s stomach and face, denting the prince''s armor and helmet. "You stupid fool, I should have just let the undead rip you apart instead of saving your skin. You are not ready to be a king nor lead soldiers to the war!" William then lifts the prince and tosses him to the retainers. "Take him away and heal him. We are now in survival mode and have work to do." ------------------ "Do you know what you just did? You punch the prince, you won''t survive the wrath of the king when he finds this out." Sir Dolven said to William as he halted the other knights from attacking William. After all, William did punch their prince to the point he went unconscious with few broken ribs. "I will face that problem when we survive this mess," William said to Sir Dolven as he walked towards the wall defense. It will most likely be a difficult siege battle as the undead army will go on full force without fear or fatigue. Without killing the vampire lord, there will be unlimited undead for days toe. When William and Sir Dolven made it to the top of the wall, the fear ran down on Sir Dolven''s back as he saw on the other side of the wall. The fire died out as the battlefield is now filled with the undead army three timesrger than before. The skeleton soldiers of all races, zombie hordes, ghouls of all sizes and finally a Grave Guards and Crypt Knights, a powerful undead knight with the finest weapons. "Looks like they were ready for us, this is three major armies altogether. This means we have not just one vampire lord but three total." Sir Dolven whispered to himself as he saw an unstoppable force in front of him. "When you said three vampire lords you mean those three right there?" William pointed his finger at three men riding a skeleton horse with expensive but tattered armor. Thanks to William''s helmet he could see them in close rangepared to others who couldn''t see without focusing their eyes. "Yea, I see them. They are indeed vampire lords. Looks like they are keeping themself away from thebat range." Sir Dolven said to William, but what he heard next is a surprise to everyone as William gave an order to all. "Everyone take cover, do not peak your head out until bombardment is done!" With that sharp whistling sound of the artillery, an entire battlefield suddenly engulfed with fire and explosion, shattering the very earth undead is standing and bringing the might of the Astra Militarum Chapter 13: Vargheists Chapter 13: Vargheists The Basilisk artillery bombardment on Vampire Lords'' undead armysted a whole 10 minutes as it destroyed the very earth they were standing on. The Support Order ability was very simple and quick to use as William simply marked the area that he wanted to fire upon in his helmet''s minimap and confirm the strike. After 10 minutes passed, William and others peek their heads to see what happened to the enemies and the result is theplete annihtion of enemy forces. The entire field is now covered with impact craters as countless forces no longer cease to exist. Even if Vampire Lord somehow survived the attack, there is no corpse or bones to create a new undead army as there isn''t a single sign of remains on the battlefield. "Damn, that was more effective than I thought. I wonder if there are more options on Support Order than just artillery strike?" William said to himself as he stood up and observed the now destroyed battlefield. "You did this? How?" Sir Dolven asked William as he couldn''t believe what he just witnessed. Thergest undead armies he had ever seen just a few moments ago are no longer there as William gave a sudden order to take cover which a secondter, a thunderous sound and ungodly magic of sort shook the earth. "I had to use a rare magic item to wipe out the enemy. I was first hesitant to use it in the beginning as there was only one army but seeing how two other armies joined, I decided to use it and save us the trouble." William exined to Sir Dolven and others what he did and why he decided to use it. Hearing William''s exnation, Sir Dolven was moved by William for using a rare and powerful magic item to save his men instead of not using it. After all, a magic item powerful as this would go for a high price, especially if he sold it to the king or high nobles. "I have to admit, I''m d I hired you for this expedition. If you weren''t here, I''m certain every one of us would end up bing an undead puppet of the vampire." Sir Dolven wiped his forehead as he exhaled and took a deep breath. Just thinking about bing a zombie or servant of the vampire is a nightmare to him as he will be forced to serve the enemy of mankind. "You''re wee, after all, I took the job to see what a vampire is like. I just wish I could have fought one in 1 vs 1 duel instead of wiping them out like¡­" William didn''t his sentence as his helmet sensor went off with rm to indicate one of the targets survived the artillery attack. "It looks like I will get my wish after all. One of the Vampire Lords somehow survived the attack and about to cast some sort of magic." William informs others as he steps forward to jump from the wall. Thanks to his power armor, Williamnded with superheronding and started to run towards thest vampire on the battlefield. It only took a minute for William to reach the Vampire Lord as he saw a tattered and pale vampire finish his spell with a scroll in his right hand and a red bottle in his other hand. "What the hell?" Just as William finished his sentence, Vampire Lord crushed the bottle and drank from it as a scroll on his right hand burned into ash. Vampire stares at William, his body grows bigger and limbs extend, transforming into a monstrous giant bat with crawls as long as a short sword and wings big enough to cover man as a whole. ''Oh shit, it transformed into Vargheists. How in the world did he do that to turn it into a monster unit from a Warhammer fantasy?'' William thought to himself as he pulled out a bolter to shoot at the Vargheist. Fighting a giant monster isn''t a problem for William, but when that creature starts to fly, then it bes a huge problem for him and others in the wall. With uracy from the auto-targeting system, William managed to damage the left side of the Vargheists''s wing but that wasn''t enough to stop him from getting bodym by the vampire beast. Pushing him 20 feet from where he was before. "This is much better than fighting some human vampire. Now, you beast, face the Emperor''s greatest warrior and his wrath." William once again fired his bolter onto Vargheists as it slowly walked towards him, but somehow the beast withstands the bolter rounds briefly as if it was nothing. In close inspection, William saw the bullet wounds from the Vargheists''s body slowly regenerates as it pushed fragments out from the body. ''It seems I need to go old school.'' With that, William put his bolter back into his inventory and drew his power sword and brought out the chain sword from inventory. The sounds of chainsword crank out loud as the power sword starts to generate blue energy. William and Vargheists stare at each other for a few seconds before both fighters charge at each other. William was first to draw blood as he mmed the vampire beast with his right shoulder armor and proceeded to cleave the beast''s right arm with a chainsword. The chainsword rip and tear the Vargheists''s arm but before it could reach the right shoulder, the beast pulled itself back and rip the tattered arm. The missing arm slowly starts to regenerate as part of the right arm turned into dust. "Interesting regeneration, but is it enough for you to survive before I chop your head off?" With a battle cry, William once again charged with powerful force but Vargheists dodge the attack by jumping into the air and hovering with injured wings. Vargheists use this opportunity to counter-attack by striking William from the above as it uses its massive body as a weapon itself. William dodges the attack by rolling away and uses his quick feet to make a sharp turn to stab the beast''s back with a power sword. The Vargheists cry in pain when William finally stabs the beast and proceeds to sh its back with his powerful strength but Vargheists attempt to push William with its wing. William expected this counter-attack, so he did something unexpected, he let go of the sword and dodge the wing attack. Which he immediately use the chainsword with his two hands and cleave the Vargheists''s waist. The powerful chainsword engine roars in full power as it slowly rips through the Vargheists''s body, ultimately cutting it to two. The lower part of the Vargheists''s body slowly turns into dust as Vargheists cough ck blood and cry in a low tone. William, who is now covered with ck blood and guts retrieve his power sword and pull out his mer from his inventory. "Now, burn and die you foul beast." With that William ignited his mer and burned the Vargheists into ash as Promethium fueled fire engulfed the vampire beast, turning it into a pile of ash. Finishing his fight against Vargheists, William opens his inventory to see what kind of loot he got from destroying the undead army, two Vampire Lords and Vargheists. It turns out he is well rewarded as now he has thousands of bolter rounds, mer canisters, grenades of different kinds and few interesting items. [Champion of Living (Purity Seal) x1: Grant the wearer minor protection against necromancy and bonus advantage against the undead of all kinds.] [Retractable Lightning ws x1: A powerful power fist with retractable lighting ws built in it. A left-handed power fist] [sma Rifle x1: A powerful energy weapon design to deliver superheated sma. Ites with 30 fuel cell magazines] [Heavy mer x1: Much more powerful and heavier version of the mer. Heavy mer is powerful enough to melt armor and even tank armor. Use the same fuel canister but it is heavy even for Space Marine.] [Jump Pack x1: Give Space Marine the ability to jump across the battlefield in long-distance and safelynd from a big height. It requires Promethium fuel the jet pack (One canister can give five jumps).] Chapter 14: New Information Chapter 14: New Information William returns to the City of Deron with a power sword in his right hand and chain sword on the other hand as troops in the town wall cheering his name. Soon, the fearful atmosphere disappears in the city as troops are once again busy with work as sergeants and lieutenants give orders to secure the city, marking sure that there is no additional surprise. Meanwhile, inside of the city castle, William is currently meeting with Sir Dolven to discuss the next step into resettling the city while nning for a possible counter-attack from other Vampire Lords. "As of now, we have enough forces to secure Deron. I already sent a message to the nearest regiment to send additional troops and supplies so we can move on to our secondary mission." Sir Dolven said to William and other officers in the meeting. William showed a confused face when he heard a secondary mission which Sir Dolven saw and decided to continue to exin. "Previously, when weunched this expedition, we expected a month-long siege on Deron, but thanks to you William, we have the city within a day. This moved our schedule ahead of schedule as we now have to move to the second part of the n. When we receive the reinforcement, we will move our main force into Fort Stormfist and establish a defense against the Vampire army." Sir Dolven points at the map on the table as William turns his head to see the location. On the map, Fort Stormfist is located about half a day to the west from Deron within the mountain. This gives Fort Stormfist a perfect defensive location against any invading army as it is a geological choke point and able to withstand the invaders for months. Seeing this, William asks Sir Dolven the obvious question. "It is a perfect location to defend against an invading force, which right now is us. How do you expect to make a sessful siege against the Fort defense?" William asked as a few of the officers from the Prince Benton''s nodded their heads. "We are ready for that. You see, Fort Stromfist has a few secrets that only the Royal family and few chosen nobles know about. First has a secret tunnel that leads into the main castle, this is meant for escape and secret supply run during the siege. So, while the main force attacks in front, a special unit will enter the fort and open the main gate. More detail will be discussed in the future, but if we secure the Fort Stormfist, we are guaranteed to secure this city and its resources for our kingdom." Sir Dolven exined the basic part of the second mission and moved on to current issues with the city itself. William learned from the meeting more detail about the city itself as Deron has two main resources avable. First is the iron mine, which is located three miles in the north of the city and already has fully established facilities for miners and smelters to work. Second is the southern area outside of the city as soils are rich with nutrients to produce high-quality wine. In short, the City of Deron is a trade capital of the iron and wine for the western region of the kingdom of Alderim and a potential ie boost for the lord who rules over. Soon, Sir Dolven ends the meeting but requests William to stay to talk to him. When they are finally alone, Sir Dolven grabs two cups and a wine bottle to share a drink with Undead yer. "You are full of surprise, you know that. Completely wiping out three vampire armies, killing the giant monster in a duel and finally, punching the living shit out of the Crown Prince of the Alderim. You would be perfect for royal politics back in the capital, there would be a lot of tension when other nobles learned that we sessfully took over the Deron." Sir Dolven said to William and drank his wine. There is a different waring and Sir Dolven isn''t equipped to fight the political battle as he is more of a military noble and prefers to battle defending his country. "I don''t mind, as long as I get my promotion and move up the rank, let the nobles fight each other," William said to the exhaustedmander as he drank his wine. For William, he is more worried about Chaos Gods and their influence on this world than some political chess game. Sooner orter, William needs to get involved to build up enough military forces to fight against Chaos, but right now William needs to gather intelligence and learn more about this world so he can predict Chaos Gods'' move. "You may not want it, but you are already in as every noble knows or will know of your deeds from Greenhill and here." sir Dolven grabs the bottle to pour another drink for himself as William stops to look at themander. "What do you mean by that? I''m just adventuring in a special quest, afterpleting the second part of this mission, I''m returning to the road." When Sir Dolven heard William''sment, he gave a smallugh and gave the whole wine bottle to William. "What do you think will happen after this is over? Prince Benton will receive recognition from the king and other nobles which he will gain more supporters. On the other hand, I will return to my region to replenish my troops for the next expedition or war. Do you think King Benton will give this city and fort to some noble who never participated in this expedition? There is no next line of a sessor as they all died out over 150 years ago when the vampire wiped them out. This means you are a potential candidate, no, THE only candidate as you single-handedly deliver the city back to the kingdom. Hearing this, William paused for full minutes to process the new information. He is just a simplemoner adventurer with no history of noble bloodline in this world. Unless there is a different culture and ways of doing things, there is no way the king or nobles will allow amoner to control the region of rich resources and military fort. "You do know that I''m amoner right?" William said to Sir Dolven after a full minute of pause. "Yes, I was once amoner as well. You may not know this, but I join the war as a young man and earn my way through the rank within the military. By the time I reached myte 20''s, I received a knighthood and earned the nobility. Now, I''m in myte 40''s, I''m amander of the Order of ck me and hold the title of Count. So, in my point of view, you have a chance to be a Lord of the Deron and Fort Stromfist. William, I rather have you rule this region than giving it to some worthless noble to lose it to vampires again. I will back you if you receive the king''s decree and decide to ept the title of nobility." With that, Sir Dolven put down his cup and stood up to return to his duty as he left the meeting room. "Damn," This was the only thing William could say as he sat alone in the meeting room as he once again paused to process new information and make ns for the possible oue from this. ---------------- Prince Benton made a full recovery thanks to the healers and for the next few days avoided William like a gue. It seems William''s rough punishment for reckless leadership changed Prince Benton''s attitude and views on general things as his action led to the deaths of many royal cavalry knights. As for William, he was busy training ''gunmen'' as Sir Dolven finally saw the simrity between William''s bolter and royal gunmen''s gun. At first, William refuses to train them, but after seeing their training and how they managed to drop or fail to reload their rifles, he finally epts the position of training instructor until reinforcementes. William renamed the ''gunmen'' into ''riflemen'' before starting the training and gave the basics of the firearms from the scratch. While troops were learning the basics, William also gave special lessons to officers of each toon, the military tactic called ''Volley Fire.'' William learned that riflemen fire all their weapons at once giving massive damages to the targets but due to the primitive design of the rifle, it took at least 30 seconds to reload their rifles. Seeing this, William decided to teach the old school military tactic from the movie when he saw it back home. "Simple but interesting tactic, I''m surprised we never considered this before. Will there be a better way to increase the efficiency of the troops reload time?" Prince Benton said to William as he was fully focused on the lesson. Prince joined William''s lesson in the middle as logic within the volley fire tactic made much more sense. "Prince Benton, you are wee to join the lesson but please hold your questions until I finish the lecture," William said to the prince and continued his lesson. After 30 minutes of the lecture, William finishes his lesson and moves on to the prince''s questions. "As the Crown Prince asked before, there are multiple ways to increase the efficiency of the reload time. First is having arge number of riflemen to increase the line of volley fire, which gives enough time for each line to reload and ready for the next fire. This is costly as it requires huge military funds to train and equip the troops. For this reason, there is a second option, to equip the troops with better guns while maintaining medium size troops." William grabs his bolter and shows it to everyone. "This is called bolter, it holds 30 rounds of ammunition in the magazine and can fire all of them within 1.5 seconds in full auto. Unfortunately, there is no way we can replicate this weapon as weck the technological skills to produce it. Still, using the basic function of the bolter rounds, I design an improved rifle with a new type of ammunition instead of the usual lead ball." William said to everyone as he showed his design of the rifle. It was a simple drawing of the rifle but with a big metal cylinder and hammer in the back. William, using his helmet''sputer, introduced the revolver rifle with ammunition to the fantasy world. Chapter 15: Reinforcement Chapter 15: Reinforcement 8 Days Later, William and Sir Dolven were on the eastern wall gate, staring at the far distance with a dark cloud slowly covering the sky. With William''s helmet, he could see a glimpse of Fort Stormfist in the distance until clouds block the scene. While Fort Stormfist is covered by the dark cloud, the City of Deron is clear with sunny days as if two ces in the same region havepletely different weather patterns. "It seems vampires are gathering their forces in the fort. The gathering of dark clouds seems supernatural and will slow down our army''s mobility. " William said to Sir Dolven, but the oldmander remained silent as if he was expecting an uing dire future soon. Before William can speak, a single long horn can be heard from the western side of the wall, which indicates a friendly approach to the city. "Seems, our reinforcement is finally here. Took them long enough, should have been here two days ago." Sir Dolven finally said to William with a small smile as he started to take the stairs to greet the iing army. William, seeing this, follows themander after checking his bolter pistol. "Sir Bullen, wee to Deron. We were expecting you and your troops a few days ago." Prince Benton wees the Lord and his minor nobles first as Sir Dolven and William arrive at the western gate. Sir Bullen is arge fat man with a small goatee mustache, dressed in expensive-looking armor. Minor nobles are also wearing somewhat expensive looking armor and cloaks but their troops were in rough shape as basic troops had nothing but outdated armor and weapons on them. "Thank you, Crown Prince Benton. I was dyed due to fighting the undead army''s remnants, they might probably from your victory against the vampire lord''s army." Sir Bullen gave arge smile and exined why he waste. Before Prince Benton could speak Sir Dolven stepped forward to interrupt the conversation. "Well, it seems your men fought well, to survive the remnants of the vampire army it requires courage and bravery. Prince Benton, I believe Sir Bullen and his men should rest and continue our talk tonight after dinner." With that, Sir Dolven''s men guide the reinforcement to their quarters and barracks. Meanwhile, Sir Dolven, William and Prince Benton went to a secured meeting room to discuss a few things. "Sir Dolven, why are we here? We should be preparing for the evening briefing on the second part of the mission." Prince asked the oldmander with a question as William stood in the door to prevent anyoneing in. "Your highness, we believe there is a traitor among the Counsel of Nobles. I believe vampire lords were well prepared and set up an ambush for us. There is no way they would know of this unless someone from our side informed them." Sir Dolven exined to the prince about his concern and the reason why. "Sir Dolven, that is a serious usation. A member of Counsel siding with the vampire is a crime against the crown and will end in the execution of the entire family line. But if you are wrong, it could turn against you the same way." Prince said as he looked at Sir Dolven and then to William. "Don''t look at me, I don''t have any family line," William said to the prince. Hearing that, Sir Dolven gave a small smile as he learned something new about the ck knight. "Your highness, Sir Bullen, mentioned the remnant of the vampire army dying their match. This is impossible since William destroyed all three armies and in the three vampire lords. As you know if a vampire lord dies, his or her army also dies with it, this means either Sir Bullen was lucky to survive a fourth undead army or he is lying about histe arrival." The reasoning makes sense to the prince as he heard and knew of the destruction of three armies and an epic duel between William and a vampire monster. "Ok, fine, but how will we confirm this before we arrest Sir Bullen and his men for treason against humanity?" Prince said with concern as he will be the judge to say the final say on the sentence. "Let me handle that," William said to the prince and Sir Dolven as he opened the door and left the room. -------------- In the Banquet Hall of the City Castle, The banquet hall is full of veteran soldiers from both Sir Dolven and Sir Bullen as Sir Bullen''s men took most of the hall as guests of honor. The foods were supplied and made by the cooks from Prince Benton''s army as the prince brought more than troops with him. "So, how did you manage to survive the ambush?" William asks Sir Bullen at the table as everyone turns their head, focusing on Sir Bellen. "Well, you see. We were only a day away from the city when we got ambushed by therge groups of undead. With diligence and a calm mind, I gave quick orders to my men and vanquished the enemies. Of course, we dispose of their remains to prevent them from rising again, this is why I was dyed." Sir Bullen said with a proud tone as his men cheered with mugs in their hand. "So, how did you y the vampiremander?" Sir Dolven asks with interest since the undead army means there is a vampire lord around during the battle. "Well, he was injured, so it was easy for us to kill it without heavy casualties. I heard of your deed from others, how you y the vampire beast and destroy their armies. It seems you missed one." Sir Bullen said to William with a mocking tone. Hearing this, many of Sir Dolven''s men show resistance as they fully know what William did for their survival during thest battle. "You are right, Sir Bullen. I y the vampire beast and its army, I also can confirm that two other vampire lords are dead as well." There was a silence in the hall when William spoke. Sir Bullen breaks the silence as he ms the table. "Are you calling me a liar? You are nothing but an adventurer and peasant who earned the spot on this table because you killed some beast. You should shut your mouth when you are in the presence of his highness and us, nobles." The shout from Sir Bullen echoed through the hall and the rest as soldiers from both sides looked at the main table. "You are a liar, Sir bullshit. I know for a fact that there was no ambush or undead army as I''m the one who killed all three lords. Also, there is this." William pulls out a ck pouch and puts it on the table, inside there is a letter with insignia and stamp of a noble house in it. "This is the pouch of the vampire lord who transformed into a beast. Lucky for me, his possessions were ripped from his clothes as he turned into Vargheists, a giant bat beast. This letter tells critical information about the Crown Prince''s troop movement schedule and numbers. Also, for information exchange, the person who sent this will be rewarded with the city and its resources. So, tell me, Sir BS. Why does this letter have your house insignia?" William ms the letter on to the table, this revaluation causes the banquet hall to divide in half as soldiers draw their weapons at each other. "That''s impossible, there is no way that letter is genuine, it is fake!" Sir Bullen protests as he and his men stand up with their weapons drawn. "No, this is real as it can get. I also intercepted a second letter from the undead messenger bird that was headed to Fort Stormfist yesterday. It contains information about your arrival with your name on it. You should have been anonymous with you penpalling with vampires." William gave an evil smile, which his side is full of soldiers with their weapons pointed towards at Sir Bullen. "No, there is no way you could have seen the messenger bird in the middle of a night. You are bluffing." Sir Bullen showed a panicking face when William informed him about the second letter but returned to normal when he realized that it would be impossible to intercept the messenger bird in the night sky. "I didn''t say I found the bird in the middle of the night. Now, how would you know that?" William said to a now sweating noble. "You¡­ you dare to use me of betraying Crown? No matter, you all are surrounded by my men the moment this banquet started. Surrender your weapons and I will spare you from turning into undead after your execution." Sir Bullen said with anger in his voice and weapon pointed it at William, Sir Dolven and Prince Benton but they seemed rxed instead of scared for their life. "Sir Bullen, at this very moment, your men are all captured by my knights. Only you and your men here are what''s remaining as we speak." Sir Dolven said as he showed his disappointment to the fallen noble. "No¡­ no, no, no. All of you suppose to die in the battle, but when I heard of victory, I had to act quickly. Now, I just have to kill you all since my men outnumber yours." "No, you are at disadvantage." William pulled out his bolter pistol and fired four rounds, killing four men from Sir Bullen''s side. At the same time, arge group of riflemen appeared from the upper deck and pointed their weapons at the traitor''s men. "This is your Red Dinner, Sir Bullshit." Chapter 16: New Training Chapter 16: New Training "Prince Benton, what will be your judgment for these traitors?" Sir Dolven asks Prince Benton after William executed four of Sir Bullen''s men. Meanwhile, William maintains his bolter pistol at Sir Bullen''s head and pulls out a power sword, intimidating everyone including his allies. "Of course, Sir Dolven. I, Crown Prince Benton, have witnessed the traitorous act from Sir Bullen as conspire against the Kingdom of Alderim by allying himself with a vampire faction. On behalf of my father, King Benton the 3rd, immediately, Sir Bullen is stripped from the noble title of Viscount and all his followers will face the same charge until the end of the investigation." Prince Benton announced his judgment to everyone in the hall in which minor nobles of Sir Bullen''s side started to show panic and great fear. "You hear that? Your lord is no more, so drop your weapon right now or else I will start chopping heads!" William gave amanding shout in which the majority of enemies dropped their weapons due to the survival instinct. Still, few of the enemies maintain their ground but it was pointless as more of Sir Dolven''s soldierse in and apprehend enemy soldiers. Eventually, all of the soldiers on the lower tables surrendered, leaving Sir Bullen and his remaining men all alone. "I advise you to surrender, but one wrong move and I will remove your head in a second," William said to Sir Bullen, as he secretly hoped to have an excuse to execute the traitor. Sir Bullen''s face turned pale as he realized he had no chance to survive this confrontation. In the end, he and his men surrender their weapons and are apprehended by the soldiers. Just as tension in the hall slowly died down, a soldier covered in blood rushed through the door to give an urgent report. "Report from outside. One of the soldiers freed himself and escaped on horseback." A soldier said out loud as the hall once again went rowdy. Sir Dolven was about to order but William stepped forward as he put his helmet on. "I''ll handle it." William went outside which the sound of his footsteps disappeared as he increased his speed. The moment William exited the gate, he used his helmet to track and found the soldier in the distance. Seeing a good distance between him and the soldier, William increases speed to full gear as he now runs at 40 miles per hour. As William started to close his distance, he equipped one of his new war gear, the jump pack and took a huge jump across and over the soldier. Afternding 20 yards in front, William turned around to stop the charging horse head-on. "Are you crazy? You can''t possibly stop the warhorse all by yourself!" The soldier yelled, but William didn''t budge as he caught the horse''s neck and front side and flipped the animal with the rider on top of it. "Be d I didn''t kill you on sight. I need to know who you''re going to report to." William grabbed the soldier with one hand and gave him a small smack on the head which he went unconscious. William puts his jump pack back into his inventory and walks back to the city with an unconscious enemy soldier in his hand and warhorse''s leash in his other hand. After walking through the gate, William dropped the soldier in front of Sir Dolven''s men and gave the warhorse to one of the knights. "I just smacked him a little, he isn''t dead," William said to Sir Dolven and Prince Benton as he approached them. "We need to redefine the term ''smack'' for you as you are not a normal person unlike that fellow there." Sir Dolven said to William and pointed it at the enemy soldier who is being dragged by the foot soldiers. Meanwhile, Prince Benton flinched for a moment as he experienced William''s punch 8 days ago. "I know my strength, I''m sure just smack him without any permanent damage." William gave his excuse and turned around to see soldiers escort the prisoners to the dungeon. Seeing this, William asked Sir Dolven a question that was in his mind all night. "What will happen to the soldiers? They are just foot soldiers and have nothing to do with treason." "They are soldiers but until we remove the Bullen''s family and his followers we can''t use them in our fighting force. For now, they will be confined in the dungeon, including Bullen and his followers." Sir Dolven exins the process to William as Prince Benton nods his head, agreeing with the oldmander. "Does that mean we will postpone the second part of the mission?" William asks as he points out the main reason why Sir Bullen''s army came to Deron in the first ce. "Probably, Prince Benton and I already sent the message to the capital, so it will take about another 2 weeks for them to send a relief force to Deron." Sir Dolven said as he took a deep breath. It seems this will impact him and others as 2 more weeks of dy will reduce the morale of the troops. "I can use that time to train the troops, not just riflemen but the footmen as well. I believe I can make them more effective in closebat and siege for the second part of the mission." William said to two leaders as he volunteered himself for more troop training. It is good to keep the soldiers busy so for William, he will be busy with a new training regiment and development of the next generation of rifles in the future. "Thank you, William. Soldiers look up to you ever since you defeated the vampire beast, so I believe you training the troops will increase morale until the relief force." Sir Dolven gave his thanks to William while Prince Benton raised his hand to ask William a question. "Can I join the training? Not the training itself but I like topare the strategy and tactics of my lesson to yours." Prince Benton asks William with great interest as he wants to see the training regiments of the mysterious ck knight. "Sure, bring all your gears and I will see you first thing tomorrow morning. Which is about 5 hours from now on." William gave an evil smile and walked away to prepare new training programs for the troops. ------------ 10 Days Later, William focused more on endurance and teamwork than strength as fighting an undead army is a battle of teamwork. Undead soldiers do notmunicate with each other or disy teamwork to defeat stronger opponents. For them, the strategy is all about overwhelming their enemy and recing fallen soldiers with new corpses. So, William decided to work on the soldier''s endurance to strengthen their defensive line while teamwork to help each other to maintain the line. "Keep your shield above your head! Take each step one at a time together, one misstep will bring down the whole formation. If I break the wall, it is another 30ps with the full gear." William said to the soldiers with tower shields as he prepared himself to charge the shield wall. At first, he did this with his power armor on, but after full protest from the entire army, he decided to test it without the armor. Bang!!! William mmed the shield wall with full strength, but it managed to withstand the impact with no one falling out from the formation. The soldiers who were watching the training cheered as they finally witnessed the possibility of passing the impossible task. "Not bad, you can break the formation now." William gave an order to the soldiers and tower walls break the formation to show fully armed soldiers, including Prince Benton. "I can''t believe we passed the test. I swear when you told us about this, I thought you went crazy due tock of action on the battlefield." Prince Benton said to William as he removed his armor and dropped his tower shield. Prince Benton didn''t have to participate in this part of the training but he decided to join the soldiers to lead with example. "I told you it is possible. I knew you guys have shield formation already but itcks endurance because you guys didn''t have me to break your shield wall. Now, the soldiers can withstand even if they get mmed by the cavalry head-on. That is if cavalry survives the riflemen and spearmen." William said as he waited for the next group of soldiers to form up the shield wall. Suddenly, the sound of the horn can be heard from the western gate as it signals an iing friendly army approaching the city. "Deja Vu, this is familiar. Sergeants prepare the troops for the iing army. I will be at the gate to see who it is this time." William instructed the sergeants and left the training field to wee the new army. "I''lle with you, I''m sure my father sent someone from my branch family this time to make sure there is no more dy." Prince Benton said to William as he gathered his gears to walk next to him. "Get yourself cleaned up first. If your father did send someone he trusts, you need to be presentable. I''ll buy you some time." William said to the prince and went to his room to put on his power armor. When William finally made it to the western gate, Sir Dolven greeted him as they waited for the relief army. Soon, the gate opened and they saw an army with a g colored white and gold with a lion in the middle. "Oh no, Of all generals, King Benton sent her?" Sir Dolven whispered in silence the moment he saw the army g. "Her? Who is it?" William asks as he has no idea who the g represents. "Rana Bassilo Beckett, Duchess of Agrus and King Benton''s second niece. She is infamous for defending andunching counter-attacks against invaders three years ago. She is different from other nobles, so watch out." Sir Dolven warns William, as they see a single rider ahead of the army in full gallop. The rider stopped her horse a few feet from William and made a full circle around him. "You are Sir William the Giant? I expect you to be much taller for your given title." Duchess Beckett said to William as she removed her helmet. ''Oh, she is going to be one of those noble.'' William thought to himself as he prepared for another energetic trouble maker in military rank. Chapter 17: Lioness of Argus Chapter 17: Lioness of Argus Rana Bassilo Beckett, the Duchess of Agrus was one of the key yers in thest war who brought victory against the neighboring kingdom. When her fort was under siege by the invasion force, she took it herself to fight the enemy in the middle of the night tounch a counterattack against unexpected enemy forces. The result was aplete victory for Duchess Beckett as she pushed the enemy to the border and wiped out any chance for them to push back again. From this, she earned herself the title of ''Lioness of Argus'' and strengthened the royal family''s influence as she is the second niece of the king. The Duchess of Agrus got off from her horse and approached William. She is 5.9 feet tall, in the mid-''20s with blonde short hair and sharp blue eyes. If she wasn''t intimidating looking, William would have thought she would be a perfect model back on Earth. Well, she does give off a serious vibe that people love to see in sports magazines. When she got close to William, she examined his detailed work of Mark VII Aqu Power Armour and his equipment within him which is a power sword and bolter pistol. While she is examining William, her followers and troops catch up to the city''s wall. "Impressive war gear, I can now believe the story of how you kill the vampire lord but I still have my suspicion that you single-handedly defeat the three armies. You better exin to me when we have time." The Duchess said thest part in a small voice to William as she turned around to talk to Sir Dolven and Prince Benton who just made it to the western gate. "Wee to Deron, Duchess. Was your travel uneventful and full of peace?" Sir Dolven gave his greeting to the fearsome lioness but all he got was sharp eyes from her as she inspected Sir Dolven and his followers. "It was a boring and pointless trip. You should be able to handle the Fort Stormfist with your Order, but because you have a traitor, you dy the mission and bring me to fix your mess." The Duchess said to the oldmander and moved on, there was tension among Sir Dolven''s men but they didn''t say anything as they are smart enough to not get involved. Prince Benton weed the Duchess with an open arm, but instead of warm greetings, he got a gut punch from her who is still wearing a metal gauntlet. "You, what did I tell you about leading the troops against enemies?" She asks the prince who is on the ground with his hands on his stomach. "Think before taking action." Prince Benton said to the Duchess and tried to stand up but got another punch from her in the gut as she punched him again. "If you remember my lesson, you would still have your knights!" The Duchess was about to punch the prince for the third time but was stopped by William as he grabbed her fist. "I believe he got your message, I also punched him for recklessness. So, let''s move on to our mission." William said to the Duchess while her followers drew their weapons at the giant armored man. "Fine, let us go to the city castle." The Duchess pulled her arm away from William and signaled her followers to lower their weapons. Sir Dolven walks next to William and helps the prince get back up, William on the other hand is baffled by the authority she gives off. ''She is a natural leader, she doesn''t ask for respect, but demands it by showing who she is.'' William thought to himself and walked next to Sir Dolven. In the meeting room, William, Sir Dolven, Prince Benton, Duchess Beckett and other officers attend the war meeting to discuss the second part of the mission and relief army''s duty. Just as the meeting is about toe to end, Duchess Beckett objects to her part of the mission. "I want to switch duty with the prince. I didn''te all this way to babysit a city when there is a battle to fight within half a day''s distance." She exins her objection as Sir Dolven signs while the prince protests. "This is my campaign and I will finish this to the end, cousin. There is no way I''ll give up to you." Prince spoke with a strong and serious tone. Ever since William started the training, the prince gained self-confidence and self-esteem as he built a strong bond with his troops. Still, this wasn''t enough as the Duchess matched the prince with her serious presence. "Enough! I''ll stay behind. We had enough dy and I wanted to end this campaignst week." Sir Dolven mmed the table and gave his final say to everyone in the room. William was also tired of politics and was eager to fight the vampire faction so he couldplete this special quest. "Sir Dolven, if you stay behind who will lead the special unit to kill the vampire lord?" Prince asked the oldmander but he knew who would take themand of the mission. "I will take the mission, alone. I already have the detail on the hidden tunnel and other secrets of the fort from Sir Dolven. I''ll kill the vampire lord and open the main gate for you two toe in." William said to the young prince and battled the crazy Duchess. No one from the prince or Sir Dolven''s side said anything as they knew what William is capable of but Duchess''s followers whisper to each other as they don''t trust William and his ability. "You expect us to trust you, an adventure and someone we never heard of until now? Not to mention all by yourself to the fort filled with countless undead and a vampire lord?" One of the female officers said to William as she and others distrust the giant ck knight. "Yes, what do you have to lose?" That is the only thing William said to the officer. The room went quiet, then the Duchessughed out loud which disturbs most of the people as they didn''t expect this reaction from the lioness. "That''s what I said to my advisors when they asked me if I was crazy to counter-attack the invaders. It''s your call, old man. If you trust this giant then I don''t mind his crazy n." The Duchess said as she looked at William, which was a bit ufortable for William since she gave a very different vibepared to othermanders he met before. "It is settled then. Prince Benton and Duchess Beckett will take two armies to the Fort Stromfist while William infiltrates the fort and takes down the vampire lord and opens the main gate. We will begin our attack in two days, prepare your troops and get full rest for the uing battle." Sir Dolven deres the final decision and ends the meeting so everyone can prepare for the second part of the mission. Before William could leave the room, the Duchess stopped him to talk to him. "Is your sword sharp?" She genuinely asks William while pointing her finger at his power sword. "My sword never goes dull and no, you will not borrow it or my other weapons." William grabs his sword''s hilt to show he won''t let go no matter what. "I''m not interested. I want you to participate in tomorrow''s event before we start preparing for the mission." The Duchess said but there is a bit of disappointment in her eyes. "What are we doing tomorrow?" The ck Temr asks the lioness with curiosity. "Execution. I have it with me a decree from King Benton himself to execute the traitors and his followers. I want you to be the one who executes them tomorrow morning." ------------ Next Day, Main Square of the Deron, "In the name of King Benton the 3rd, king and protector of the Alderim have decreed that former Viscount Bullen and his minor nobles will be sentenced to death. May the gods pity your souls and give you peace." One of the female officers read the roll of documents to everyone in the square. In the center, a roll of traitors kneels with their heads on the chopping blocks. "Do any of you men havest words?" Sir Dolven stood up from his seat and said out loud so everyone could hear. This is more of a tradition to give the criminal a chance to repent (But criminals still get execution). The entire square remained silent as no one spoke or had a side whisper to speak their mind. Seeing there is nost word, Sir Dolven moved to the main event of the execution, execution of traitors. "Executioner, proceed and give mercy." Sir Dolven takes his seat next to Prince Benton and Duchess. The moment Sir Dolven''s word ended, a giant ck knight with arge sword approached the tform and went to the first man. Without giving a moment of hesitation, William cut the man''s head and moved to the next. After the 8th man, it was the 9th man''s turn. A man who betrayed his country and sided with the undead to expand his territory, a former viscount Bullen. William looked at the man''s back head for a moment but that was just a second as he decapitated the traitor''s head in one clean swing. Everyone who witnessed remained silent and waited for the next step of the execution, which was confronting the Bullen''s soldiers. "The traitors are now dead and no more. Soldiers, will you remain loyal to the traitor or the crown?" Prince Benton said out loud and waited for the soldier''s response. "We will serve the crown!" Soldiers of former viscount gave their answer and swore loyalty to the King and his son. While this is going on, William puts away his power sword and checks his inventory to see what he got from the fallen noble. As usual, he got more ammunition for his bolter and mer but thest item caught his attention as it was something very different. [Unit Summon (Penitent Engines) x1] "Only in death, their''s or the enemy''s, can forgiveness finally be earned." A giantbat walker, Penitent Engine attacks both friend or foes for they only seek to repent their sins. This unit is equipped with a chainfist for closebat and a mer for crowd control. Chapter 18: Secret Passage Chapter 18: Secret Passage Next Day, On the first light, the two armies march out of the City of Deron and head towards Fort Stormfist with their two leaders leading them. Meanwhile, giant ck Temr left the cityst night to begin his part of the mission. In the main road, William found the secret path which directed him into a valley with a dead end. Scanning the area, William found therge boulder blocking something so using his superhuman strength and power armor he removed the rock to find a wall with a family crest he saw when he was at Deron. After pushing the wall with the crest, it revealed the secret passage to the Fort Stormfist. But because his armor prevents him from going in, William unequips his power armor and proceeds to go in with regr clothes and weapons in his hands. Power sword in the right hand and torch in his left, William slowly walks towards darkness as he burns old spider webs and silent his feet to maintain his stealth (As possible Space Marine can). After 40 minutes of walking in the secret passage, William found himself in the moderately sized room with three different passages. Above each passage, there seems to be a stone carving indicating where it leads to. ''Left leads to the secret door to the treasure room, middle leads to a door to themand center and right leads to back which is next to stables and the supply warehouse.'' William recalls the information he learned from Sir Dolven and proceeds to take the middle path to themand center of the Fort Stormfist. By taking themand center, William can freely move around the fort to find the Vampire Lords. When William reaches the end of the path, put his power armor back on and use his helmet sensor to see if there is movement on the other side. Sensing no movement, William pushes the secret door and finds himself behind a giant curtain of sorts. After moving himself out from the curtain, he found himself in arge room with arge table, multiple chairs and a giant map hanging on the wall (Secret passage was behind the map). ''Ok, it seems like vampires maintain the fort''s furniture and other stuff in good shape, I guess they do love life of luxury just like humans do.'' William then moves to the door to exit the room but the door suddenly opens from the other side to reveal two surprised humans with metal cors in their necks. William was the first to react in time, he grabbed the two human ves, pulled them into the room and closed the door. It was quick and sudden because two humans didn''t have the chance to make a noise or alert the vampire. William points his power sword towards ves and asks them a question. "Do not make any noise or it will be thest thing you will ever do. Now, how many vampires are in the fort and where are they?" William said with a gruff voice which gave an intimidating presence to the ves who had never seen a giant metal knight before. "You shouldn''t be here, the master was expecting an army for days and brought his entire army to this fort." The oldest looking ve said to William with pleading and warning, which the second ve added with his warning. "You came here for nothing but death. Your entire army will be master''s unless you retreat right now. There is no hope to win, we should know as we were once soldiers to the throne." The second ve warned William but the giant knight didn''t budge or gave concerns to the warning. "Let me guess, he buried half of his forces outside of the wall and hid riders in the forest didn''t he?" William said to them which once again surprised the two humans. "How did you know?" Both men gave a surprised face when William guessed the master''s strategy. "Easy, his vampire lords used the same strategy on the battle of Deron. I guess that your master believes in superior numbers and overwhelming the enemy which is easy to predict the strategy based on that. Now, how many lords did your master bring to the fort?" William asks again which two men answer his question. "He brought four lords with him, whichprised his entire military forces." The second man said to William but William can see there is missing information from the man. "There is more isn''t it?" The ck temr said as he moved his sword from the ves. "Yes, since he brought his troops from all over the region, he also brought most fearsome creatures as well. One of them is a master''s mount and it is powerful enough to devastate your army by itself." The first man said with fear in his eyes as the second man finished for him. "He brought a zombie dragon with him. The same dragon he used to conquer this fort and Deron 150 years ago." -------------- Prince Benton and Duchess marched their troops over the hill as they saw the Fort Stromfist. The fort covered the entire mountain passage from left to right, blocking from passing to the other side. From the left side of the hill, arge forest blocks half of the open field before reaching the range of the fort towers which prevents the invading army from using siege machines. "Well, cousin. It seems like the vampires were ready for us just like William said." The Duchess said to the prince with a smile on her face. When she heard William''s n it was crazy and stupid as he rmended not to use siege machines. Now, examining the battlefield, she can see the open field covered with fresh dirt and no overgrown grass, which supports William''s advice on the buried undead army. "Just like the battle of Deron, vampires nt their undead underground for an ambush. This also means they hid shock cavalry somewhere, possibly in the forest right over there." Prince Benton points at the dense forest. Suddenly, officers from Prince Benton''s order the troops to make formation with a tower shield, creating a big wall of tower shields with swordsmen and riflemen right behind them. The Duchess and her troops saw all this with amazement as they didn''t expect the prince''s troops to be well organized and disciplined. It was as if they were looking at experienced veterans on the battlefield instead of spoiled minor nobles'' sons andzy army with expensive war gear. "All troops! Forward march!" Prince gave his order which entire wall of shields and troops behind them marched simultaneously. When the army reaches a certain point in the field, the undead starts to rise from the ground, preparing to kill the living. Unfortunately for the undead army, a wall of tower shields open gaps between and a volley of rifle fire shreds them before they could reach the living. As undead troops get wiped out from the field before they could do anything, the vampire''s shock cavalry reveal themself out of the forest with a sound of heavy hooves. The cavalry isposed of 400 Crypt Knights with heavy armor and 80 undead war dogs with light armor. In normal circumstances, it will take an entire wall of spearmen orpany of crossbows to repel them, but Prince and William brought something new to this fight. "Riders are approaching! Bring out the big guns!" one of the prince''s officers calls out as soldiers in the rear bring out four wagons with something attached to it. The metal mounts on the wagons are made out of rifle-like barrels but much bigger and hold 8 rounds each. There are 16 individual barrels divided into four decks, making it rotatable after each deck fires the round. It is a fantasy world version of a Gatling gun and simr to Helster Volley Cannon from Warhammer fantasy Check (Total War Warhammer 2 for reference). "Fire the Volley Cannons!" The second prince gave hismand, the four wagons with Volley Cannon fired, destroying the first and second lines of undead knights and war dogs in one set of a volley. The rounds from each cannon pierced Crypt Knight''s armor like it was made out of paper. The cannons continue their fire as they rotate to cool their barrels, by the end of the fifth volley, most of the knights fell and war dogs are no more. "That was much more effective than I thought. Good thing that we spend two weeks wisely by building these artillery weapons." Prince Benton said while the Duchess and everyone around her saw all this with their mouth opened. "Who exactly are you, Sir William?" The Duchess said to herself as she and the rest of the troops slowly followed the prince''s army. Chapter 19: Penitent Engine Chapter 19: Penitent Engine Within the Wall of Fort Stromfist, "I am losing my forces faster than I can bring them out from the ground!" One of the three vampire Lords on the top of the wall yelled as he turned around to face hisrade. The two other lords start to panic as their ambush didn''t work and the massive loss of Crypt Knight riders start to lower their morale. "We have to stay with our Master''s n. We will defend within our wall while you bring everything you have to dy their advance. Since they have no siege machines, our archers and capulets will take them down before they can breach the wall." A female Vampire Lord exins her n and about to order her troops to ready their ranged weapons when loud sounds interrupt her concentration. Coming out from the supply warehouse, a big metal human-shaped walker with a female human attached on the front appeared. The woman is wearing white hooded clothes and is connected with multiple tubes on her body. The metal walkers have two long metal arms with weapons attached and slowly walk toward the inner wall open area while screaming "Repent in the name of the God-Emperor! Only he is the salvation!" "What the hell is that?" Male vampires ask others but before anyone could say anything, the Penitent Engine stopped and turned around to see the army of undead and three vampires on the top of the wall. "MUTANTS! No, Genestealers!" The woman shouted and the metal machine charged the undead army, thrashing them with a chain fist. As the army was standing between vampires and the Penitent Engine, they automatically went to the defensive formation and counter against a madwoman in a big walker. "What is the meaning of this? Did humans somehow infiltrate the fort?" The female vampire said as shemanded his knights with ance to repel the Penitent Engine. All this was pointless as the moment undead knights approach the Penitent Engine, the machine turns its arm with two attached mers and unleashes the promethium fueled fire. The entire undead knights engulfed by the fire and turned into dust. With more enemies dead, Penitent Engine continues her attack, destroying foot soldiers and wiping out anything blocking her way. "I got this, focus on the iing army," The third vampire said as he summoned his skeleton monsters to fight against the Penitent Engine. In front of the Penitent Engine, three big skeleton minotaurs with axes and swords block the path. As two sides are about to attack each other, a blue sma hits one of the skeletons which exploded and turns the area into the hot superheated ground. "Damn, that was much more effective than I thought. Penitent Engine, continue your repent for your sins!" Standing on the roof of the building, William gave his order to the Penitent Engine as he used his jetpack to hover in the air. The Penitent Engine continues her attack and shes or burns anything standing next to her. "Archers, kill that flying human!" The female vampire shouted out loud in which skeleton archers fired their arrows at William but it was useless as arrows couldn''t prate William''s power armor. Hovering in the air, William aimed his sma gun at the three vampires and fired it. Boom! The three vampire lords couldn''t react in time to dodge the blue sma as it was too fast for them. With arge explosion, the three vampire lords died instantly, at the same time their undead armies copsed to the ground as if puppet''s strings were cut. "Three down two more to go." Williamnded near the steaming ground where three vampires just died. The Penitent Engine meanwhile, stomps the undead as she searches for something new to crush. Just as Penitent Engine is about to leave, four zombie trolls appear out of nowhere and attack Penitent Engine. "I''m impressed, human, but this is where you die," A male Vampire Lord with fancy clothes appears from the back as four zombie trolls attempt to crush the Penitent Engine while an army of undead zombies with weapons approach the wall. "If you are impressed by this, you would love this." William grabs two hands full of grenades and throws it at an approaching zombie army. The handful of grenades exploded and destroyed many zombies but that wasn''t the end of it as William pulled out heavy mer from his inventory and unleashed devastating fire on the remaining undead army. The ck smoke covers the blue sky and the stench of burning corpses can be smelled by the slowly approaching human forces. "NO! Who are you? How are you doing this?" The vampire started to freak out and didn''t notice Penitent Engine charging at him while thedy sinner used her chain fist to cut the vampire in half. "Nice, all of this should have caught their master''s attention by now. Where is¡­" William couldn''t finish his sentence as a giant red zombie dragon swooped from the smoke and snatched the Penitent Engine with its mouth, crushing it. "You cost me my followers and army. I will enjoy crushing you and the living as I will rece my army with their dead body." A vampire wearing red armor said to William as he turned his zombie dragon mount to face ck temr. The zombie dragon crunch Penitent Engine multiple times before spitting it to the ground and stomping it to finish it. "Damn, I''m gonna need a bigger gun." ---------------- The undead army suddenly fell to the ground while the prince''s army slowly approached Fort Stormfist''s wall. The troops maintained their shield wall formation as sergeants and officers knew archers could still attack them behind the wall. Not even a minute goes by, a cloud of ck smoke rose from behind the wall and the smell of the burning corpse reached the prince''s army. "Continue your march, we have to breach the wall and gate to help William. The fallen undead proves that William killed one of the vampire lords inmend. Prepare yourself for true battle beyond the wall." Prince Benton shouted to boost the troops'' morale but at that moment something big could be seen above the ck smoke. As if a powerful gust suddenly appeared out of nowhere, a ck smoke cleared out, revealing a giant dragon with rotten flesh on it. "That is Blood Duke''s zombie dragon." One of Prince Benton''s men said as everyone including prince and duchess turned pale. The legendary zombie dragon of Blood Duke that wiped out the city of Deron''s defense force finally appeared after 150 years. The zombie dragon was big enough to top over the wall and was crunching something in its mouth. Fearing the worst, the prince couldn''t speak or think as he saw nothing but death in front of him. "Prepare the Volley Cannons and reorganize the troops! No matter where we go or hide we are an easy target for that dragon but we have guns with us so we will stand our ground and hit it with everything we got!" The Duchess was the first to recover from her fear and gave a loudmand to the troops as all of them were terrified by the zombie dragon''s presence. Eventually, seasoned officers and sergeants recovered from their fear and ordered soldiers to prepare them for life and death battle. Just as two armies finish their formation and ready all weapons, something big approaches from the air. Soon, a ck-armored knight with a jetpacknds in front of the army while holding a sma gun in his hand. "William, what happened? Did you killed the dragon?" Prince Benton asked William but he was stopped by one of his men as a zombie dragon climbed over the wall to stand over high up. "That thing isn''t an adult or very old dragon. That thing used to be an ancient dragon, a red ancient dragon." William reloads his sma gun and puts additional grenades in his pouch as he stares at the gargantuan sized dragon roar, shaking ground and trees. Chapter 20: Space Marine vs Zombie Dragon Chapter 20: Space Marine vs Zombie Dragon The gargantuan zombie dragon finishes its roar and expands its wings to take flight. The fearsome creature pped its wings and started to ascend into the sky which many of the men began to panic. Quickly losing their confidence, both young and veteran soldiers begin to break formation which William jumps to boost their morale. "Do not lose your hope and faith! If you flee, this foul creature will hunt us down in our backs. But if you stay strong and believe in me, we will y it and retake the fort, restoring the honor that we lost 150 years ago. Now, prepare yourself for the battle you will remember forever!" After finishing his speech, William aims and fires his sma rifle at the center of the zombie dragon. A jet of blue hot sma hit the zombie dragon and exploded which created a cloud of smoke. Witnessing this, many of the soldiers and officers cheer which boosts more of their morale. Unfortunately, before the smoke could clear out, the zombie dragon emerged and opened its mouth to fire its breath attack. A long stream of fire came out from the zombie dragon''s mouth and was about to engulf arge number of troops. The dragon''s me was stopped by the wall of ice that suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Surprised by the sudden appearance of the ice wall, William turns around to see a dozen wizards from the Duchess''s army all exhausted. ''They must have rushed the spell and used most of the magic they had. I should ask about the magic of this world when I have the chance.'' William finished his thought, aimed and fired the sma rifle at the dead center. He wasn''t sure how the zombie dragon survived the previous attack as he doesn''t miss it. Seeing the breath attack didn''t work, Blood Duke stopped his undead dragon in midair and made a quick turn to fly back. Not giving any chance, the senior officer of the Volley Cannons gave orders to attack the retreating zombie dragon. "Fire everything! Bring it down from the sky!" Immediately, thunderous cannons fire can be heard as all wagon units unleash everything they have at once. The volley of baseball size cannonballs was stopped right before it could hit the target as purple magic shielded the creature. "Damn thing is protected by magic. The rider must be the one casting the protection spell. Keep firing at it, eventually, he will run out of magic." Prince Benton said and ordered his entire range units to open fire. The riflemen and artillery units fire at the zombie dragon to deplete protection magic, but to their surprise, the magic didn''t break or show signs of weakening. The zombie dragon made a full turn and about to make a second attempt to attack with a breath attack again. Seeing the creature opened its mouth and aiming at the army, William jumps into action to intercept its attack. "Not this time," Put aside his sma rifle, William used his jetpack to fly up and approach the zombie dragon before it could unleash its fire breath. Before it could finish charging, William flew right into the zombie dragon''s mouth. "WHAT THE HELL?!" Everyone yells at the same time the moment they see a giant ck temr get himself devoured whole by the zombie dragon in midair. Before the duchess or prince could say anything else, a multiple explosion can be heard from the zombie dragon''s head, neck, and body. After receiving internal damages from eating ck Temr, the creature falls from the sky. Boom! The undead creature crashnds on the ground with a heavy impact. Before the army could surround the now defeated zombie dragon, its rider rose from the ground. Blood Duke, seeing his mighty mount defeated, gather his magic. With magic gathered in dark purple color, Blood Duke unleashes a devastating wave of magic at approaching the army. The first and second lines of the troops got pushed back from the magic and paralyzed by it. Seeing this, a toon of riflemen fire their weapon at Blood Duke but their target disappeared from their sight. Confused by the sudden disappearance, they all paused for a second, but this was enough for Blood Duke to cut them all down with the swing of his sword. "Riflemen, pull back. Swordsmen, cut him down!" Prince Benton gave hismand to his troops as his royal swordsmen stepped forward to attack Blood Duke in closebat. Meanwhile, the rest of the riflemen drag their wounded soldiers the best they could, including paralyzed soldiers from the first and second lines. "You may have beaten my army and pet. I still have my de and magic from my benefactor to defeat all of you all by myself. Bring me your best so I can y them." Blood Duke said to all of the living and once again unleashed his magic. This time, instead of pushing away approaching soldiers, it raised recently killed soldiers as undead zombies. After finishing his dark magic, Blood Duke ordered his 50 zombies to rush the swordsmen. The sh between zombies and royal swordsmen is a one-sided battle, favoring swordsmen, but the moment Blood Duke joins the fight, it turns into carnage as he kills and resurrects them into zombies. Seeing this, Duchess orders her mages to attack the rear side of the enemy formation with fireballs but before it could hit their target Blood Duke''s magic shield blocks the fireballs from destroying his zombies. As every ranged attack didn''t work, the prince ordered all his troops with melee weapons to form up and attack the increased number of undead. Just as both sides are busy fighting, they don''t hear the chainsword''s engine cutting through the belly of the zombie dragon. Finally,ing out from the belly of the zombie creature, a ck Temr reappeared, covered in blood and guts. "Never again will I ever jump into a dragon''s mouth, living or dead," William said to himself and turned around to see the conflict between Blood Duke''s army and Prince''s. Seeing this, William checks his inventory to see what he received from defeating the zombie dragon before engaging Blood Duke on the battlefield. [Heavy Bolter x1 (With x 300 Rounds): A belt-fed powerful bolt weapon used for anti-infantry and a fire support weapon. Also known as ''Backbreaker'' for its oversize and heavyweight, only Space Marine and certain few people with enough strength to carry it without a tripod. Due to the bigger size, the heavy bolter uses .998 caliber bolt rounds which is bigger than the standard .75 caliber bolt.] [Assault Bike x1: Light vehicle used by the Adeptus Astartes for fast speed attack and scouting. This armored bikees with mounted two-linked bolters for range attack before ramming the enemies in front of the vehicle. The assault bike uses promethium as a fuel and is tough enough to break through solid walls at full speed.] Chapter 21: The Weapon of She Who Thirsts Chapter 21: The Weapon of She Who Thirsts Blood Duke kills his enemies with his sword and raises undead at the same time what seems an unlimited supply of mana on him. The source of unbelievable power came from Blood Duke''s new deity whom he doesn''t know the name of or which domain his new deity came from. The only thing that mattered to Blood Duke was defeating his enemies and quenching his thirst for blood that haunted him for hundreds of years. This new god gifted Blood Duke with a weapon that could aplish both. A beautiful sword, a hilt made of gold and rare gems with master craftsmanship that could make every man envious. A magnificent purple de that could cut flesh without wasting a single drop of blood as it can drain the victim in a second. Finally, a pommel of the sword, branded with a strange purple-colored symbol which represents Blood Duke''s new master and god. The Sword of Pleasure is the perfect weapon for a vampire as it connects the wielder with chaos magic and draws its mana, giving an infinite supply of magic. Feeling the various pleasures and satisfaction of killing his enemies all by himself, Blood Duke grinned while experiencing foreign magic from the sword itself. Looking at his sword, the Sword of Pleasure, Blood Duke saw no blood from it as if he never used it on living before. The only difference is that his sword pommel is now glowing with dark purple color while blood within slowly rotates as if it is alive. Turning his head to see the battlefield, Blood Duke saw no blood-soaked grass field, instead, he saw a dying grass field and his undead continued their attack on his enemies, ever-growing his numbers of undead. ''I can feel the power of my new army as if I''m part of them and they are part of me. I no longer have the cursed thirst as I can now enjoy blood without drowning myself. My power can overrule the other vampire masters without the need of minions or armies!'' Blood Duke thought to himself while raising his sword to unleash more undead soldiers in hismand. All of this is interrupted by the unnatural sound of thunderous noise as if a herd of beasts charging at the battlefield. VROOM! VROOM! A ck Temr is riding a mount that could be described as a fast metal horse without a head. William, seeing arge horizontal line between living and undead, changes his direction. Heading towards the edge of the enemy line, he then makes a sharp turn to start the ramming of an entire line of the undead, from one end to another. While running over the undead, William opens fire mounted two-linked bolters which devastate more undead soldiers ahead of him and free allied troops from getting pushed back. "I LOVE THIS THING!" That is the only thing anyone can hear from the ck Temr as he passes the front line of the living soldiers while breaking the entire enemy line with a single swoop. After reaching the end of the line, William once again made a quick turn to make a charge attack on Blood Duke, who was baffled by the sudden arrival of the ck knight who he thought was devoured by his pet zombie dragon. "YOU! You should be dead! And what is that outrageous creature you are riding?" Blood Duke demanded an answer but the only thing he got from William was engine revving as William cranked his assault bike''s engine louder and louder. VROOM! VROOM! VROOM! William''s assault bike charged at Blood Duke with unbelievable speed as the master vampire couldn''t dodge it in time. Blood Duke didn''t get run over but instead, he got hit by the bike and now holding his life in dearly as William increases his bike speed to go faster. Seeing his target is right in front of him and in the point ck range of bolters, William unloads all of his bolter rounds which Blood Duke receives most of them as he tries to protect himself. "Now prepare yourself, you undead piece of shit!" William said to the vampire and momentster, he, his assault bike, and the vampire break through the wall of the Fort Stormfist. Blood Duke, who was between the fort''s wall and ck Temr''s bike, received a full-blown impact of the damage and thrown to the inner wall open ground. Seeing a heavily defeated vampire with tattered red armor, William got off from his bike to approach his enemy to deliver the final blow. "I had enough with skeletons, zombies, and vampires. After finishing you off, I''m going to take a long vacation, away from this depressing ce." William said to Blood Duke as he drew out his power sword. Meanwhile, Blood Duke struggles to move away from the approaching giant death itself as he crawls away inch by inch. Sensing his end approaching, Blood Duke grabbed whatever he could grab and to his surprise, he somehow got hold of his weapon, Sword of Pleasure. Seeing hope, Blood Duke unleashes the chaos magic from the sword within which quickly regenerates his wounded body and repairs his red armor. "Oh no, you don''t!" William strikes his sword at the vampire but now fully powered vampire blocks the attack and pushes the ck Temr with an unnatural magic st. William uses his power sword to anchor himself from push back to the fort wall. By the time he stops himself, Blood Duke stands up from where he was and shows a powerful aura of purple around him. William seeing this, let go of his sword and pulled out a heavy bolter from his inventory to st everything he had onto the vampire. Unfortunately, Blood Duke used his newly founded magic and created a magic shield, blocking all of the heavy bolter fire. William, seeing there is no effect, retrieve back now emptied heavy bolter back to his inventory and grab his power sword from the ground. Two fighters stare at each other as they prepare themself and their weapons for an undeniable duel. William, using his power armor''s helmet, finally saw the symbol of the sword Blood Duke is using. William immediately recognizes the symbol as without a doubt it is the symbol of one of the Chaos Gods. ''So, anesh, The Prince of Pleasure is the one who is powering this fool. I have to destroy that sword before it could corrupt the minds of the living.'' William thought to himself and made the first move to start their duel. As William and Blood Duke began their fight, Prince Benton and Duchess moved their remaining armies closer to the Fort Stormfist. After William broke the enemy line and pushed the Blood Duke away from the battlefield, they managed to destroy the remaining undead and move forward to help William. This tactical decision was reasonable under normal circumstances, but unfortunately for them, the influence of Chaos Gods isn''t something they are prepared for. As they get closer, anesh''s influence starts to corrupt the heart and mind of the soldiers, which begins to slowly open a small warp portal and bring out something that shouldn''t exist in this world. Chapter 22: Black Templar vs Blood Duke Chapter 22: ck Temr vs Blood Duke The sh between two fighters began with the sound of a bolter pistol. William drew his pistol with his left hand and began to fire everything he had as he approached the vampire. Meanwhile, Blood Duke stands his ground and uses his magic to shield himself, waiting for the ck Temr toe closer. When William emptied the pistol, he put away the weapon to which he readied the power sword to strike. Blood Duke, seeing the moment, uses the magic of the chaos to match the speed and strength. With Sword of Pleasure in his hand, Blood Duke swung his de at William but instead of the power sword hitting back, William dodged the attack using his jet pack to take a short flight. Seeing the knight on-air, Blood Duke was too distracted to realize that William left a Promethium grenade on the ground. BOOM! The explosion consumed the vampire and everything around him as Williamnded safely. Knowing that this fight isn''t over, William prepares himself with dual weapons of chain sword in his left hand and power sword in his right. Coming out from the fire, Blood Duke lifts his free hand to gather fire around him which creates a condensed fireball the size of a basketball. "Now, it is my turn." Blood Duke throws his fireball at William which ck Temr simply charges ahead on, surprising the vampire. Boom! A fireball exploded right at William''s shoulder armor and engulfed him with a huge fire. Seeing this, Blood Duke slowly approaches the small firestorm to check if his enemy is dead. When the vampire got close enough a giant metal boot came out from the fire, kicking the vampire''s chest. Blood Duke flew backward, stunned andnded on the ground with a massive dent in his armor. Coming out from the fire, William made a quick dash toward the dazed vampire with two powerful melee weapons. The chainsword is the first to strike the vampire as it hits the Blood Duke''s right arm, tearing the undead flesh with the sound of a roaring engine. The power sword came next, the de went through the vampire''s armor and pin him to the ground as the entire de sank to the top of the vampire. "Checkmate," William said to his enemy as he ready his chainsword but then, he felt a sharp pain from his right hip as if something was stabbing him. Turning his head down, William saw a Sword of Pleasure pierce his armor and slowly bleed out from it. "If I die, you wille with me." Blood Duke said to William, believing ck Temr will pull back from the duel to save himself. The Sword of Pleasure starts to drain the blood of the Space Marine fast, the pain and blood loss could kill the man in a few seconds. Unfortunately, the anatomy of a Space Marine is very different from regr humans as Space Marine have multiple imnts that give him additional organs and give superhuman abilities. William let go of the power sword and grab the Sword of the Pleasure from the vampire. Before the sword could influence the new wielder, William pulled the sword from his stomach and used his superhuman strength to snap the sword in half, destroying the weapon of the chaos. "NO! Do you know what you have done?" Vampire protested but it was toote as his pact with his new god was broken. The blessing of the anesh left the Blood Duke''s body but with interest as chaos magic drained everything from the vampire. Blood Duke, who sought salvation from his evesting thirst and pleasure of blood, starts to lose his body mass, skin shrinks and eventually turns into dust. "This is why you don''t make a deal with any of them," William said to himself as he pulled out a first aid kit from his inventory to heal his wound. Thankfully, for some reason, the Sword of Pleasure didn''t damage or corrupt William''s body. Whether from his purity seal, ''The Champion of the Living'' or autonomy of the Space Marine stopped the chaos corruption, William didn''t care as he was d he survived the boss battle. Just as William finished patching his wounds, he heard the cries of torment from the other side of the wall. Using his jet pack, William stands on the top of the fortress wall to see a bloodbath as the army is barely defending against a small group of demons on the battlefield as onerge demon leads them while dancing. "Kill them in the name of Prince of Pleasure!" Hearing this, the Herald of anesh makes a quick swift attack on the soldiers with their deadly de hands. Seeing her target, The Masque of anesh dances her way to Prince Benton and Duchess as they are fighting on the frontline. Chapter 23: Fury of Lioness Chapter 23: Fury of Lioness "The daemons broke through the rank! Protect the Crown Prince and Duchess!" One of the officers of the army yelled out loud to his soldiers as daemons with ws broke through the tower shield walls. The royal knights on foot intercept the daemons to stop their advance but therge one, The Masque of anesh managed to kill 4 knights instantly and break through the line. "You have a pretty face, dear. I will take your face," The Masque said out loud as she quickly approached the Duchess first. Seeing the approaching daemte, the Duchess pulls out her main weapon, ''Griffin''s Talon''. The ''Griffin''s Talon is a spear crafted with materials from griffin and imbued with magic to give extra damage. "Come at me you daemon! Lioness of Argus will send you back to hell," Duchess yells out loud and charges her horse against the approaching daemte. Meanwhile, Prince Benton also drew his weapon to protect himself and takemand of riflemen to prepare for closebat. "Fix bays! Prepare yourself forbat after firing your weapon!" Prince gave amand to his riflemen as a few of the daemons passed the knights and ran towards them. The officer gave an order as riflemen fired their weapons to hit the targets. But due to weak caliber and firepower, it only slows down the daemons a little bit. Still, this was enough for spear soldiers to make a formation of a spear wall to impale the approaching daemons as swordsmen shop their head, killing them. The duel between the Duchess and The Masque is intense as both fighters strike against each other while protecting themself from each other. Riding her horse, the Duchess used her skill and the speed of her mount to match the Masque''s speed. The Masque on the other hand was just ying with her opponent as she was dancing and attacking with her three limbs (One hand, two ws). "You are just wasting your time, human. This world is new and untainted like a virgin but sooner orter, my lord wille to im this world, just like countless worlds did before." The Masque taunts the duchess while dodging the attack which only enrages her opponent more. "You can try but you will fail. I don''t know which deity you serve but this isn''t the first time your kind has attacked our world before." Duchess said to the daemte as she twisted her spear to make a sharp turn to strike. The spear hit the dancing daemte''s right shoulder but to the Duchess''s surprise, her attack hit the Masque''s shoulder armor. At thest moment, Masque used her dance movement to block iing attacks with her armor. "I can smell an unbroken seal within you, dear. No scent of man taint or nectar of sweet blood. You are a virgin! How delightful, The Prince of Pleasure will have fun with you when I bring you to him," The Masque increased her attacks which put the Duchess on the defensive. Eventually, one of the w attacks struck the horse''s leg, decapitating it and bringing the rider to the ground hard. The Duchess made her roll save and quickly stood up to face her enemy, but it was toote as daemte already got close enough to slice the spear in half. Seeing her main weapon destroyed, the Duchess retreats to reach for her sword in her hip right after she threw her broken spear at the daemte. The Masque just swipes the broken spear and proceeds to attack once again with fearsome speed. Facing a purple daemte, Duchess did her best to fight back but it was pointless as none of her attacks could hit as the enemy just dodge while dancing. Finally, Masque disarms the Duchess''s sword using her second w and superior strength. "Now, be a good human and embrace my lord''s pleasure," The Masque put her main w arm at Duchess''s chin and slowly brought it down to scratch the metal armor. "Magic Missile!" Multiple magic missiles struck the Masque in the back as Duchess''s mages cast their remaining spells at the Daemte. All this was pointless as Masque was unharmed from the magic attack and turned around to unleash her chaos sorcery on them. The madness took over the mages as their heads started to bleed from mouth to ears while their sensation of pain increased tenfold. Eventually, Duchess''s mages copse where they stand as their faces show expressions of agonizing pain while covered in blood. "No!" The Duchess cried out loud and pulled out a dagger to stab the daemte''s stomach. The dagger hit the daemte but it didn''t do much as Masque just smiled with a sound of pleasureing her. "Their souls and magic were tasty. If this world can provide this kind of vor, I''m sure my lord will remove my dancing curse and ce me back as head of his handmaiden," The Masque smacks Duchess with her dance staff as she opened her mouth to bring out her tongue and taste the air as if she was eating something. Seeing this, Prince Benton couldn''t do anything as his riflemen''s gun could hit his cousin and he couldn''t attack the daemon due to his bodyguard refusing to let him go. "Do what you want, daemon. I will not easily break from your torture." The Duchess said to daemte while trying to get up from the ground. The Masque hearing this slowly approaches the woman and stabs the stomach with her w. "That''s the spirit, dear. Try tost as long as possible when you enter the Pce of Pleasure, hahaha." Masque mockinglyughs at her prey as she twists her w to give more pain. The Duchess cried out loud in pain but didn''t beg for her life as she denied the Masque a pleasure of despair. While this is happening, none of them saw fast approaching ck Temr as William dropped from the sky with a power sword in his hand. With a powerfulnding, Williamnds a few steps away from Masque and proceeds to attack the daemte. He didn''tnd next to the daemte as he didn''t want to harm the injured Duchess with his heavynding. The power sword cut Masque''s main w, freeing the Duchess, then William unleashed his bolter rifle at now retreating daemte as she fell back to the remaining Herald of anesh. "What? You, a subhuman minion of anathema. How are you here in this world?" Injured masque said in surprise as she recognized the Space Marine. At this point, humans managed to y most of the Herald of anesh as their numbers diminished into half a dozen. "Go ask your master after I send you cooking," William then brought out a heavy mer from his inventory to fire the weapon at the gathered daemons. The me from the heavy mer quickly engulfs the remaining herald and masque as soldiers pull back to a safe distance. The fearsome Promethium me burns everything as all of the heralds burned to nothing, leaving not even an ash. The Masque was thest one to stand as she managed to survive the powerful me attack. Masque, now missing the main w hand, tries to treat back to warp after witnessing the presence of Space Marine in the New World. Before Masque could do anything to return to immaterium, William charged forward with the jetpack with the power sword. From a single strike from the power sword, William decapitated Masque''s head which daemte''s surprised face roll to the ground. Witnessing the end of thest daemon, many of the remaining soldiers cheered with a victory but experienced officers and soldiers remained vignt as they feared more daemons would appear out of thin air. Meanwhile, many of the healers from the church begin to heal the wounded and cast purity spells to purify the battlefield from daemonic corruption (They never experienced the chaos but they do have knowledge and history from daemonic beings from this world before). Putting away his power sword, William went to Duchess to see her injuries. The Duchess is still on the ground as healers are casting healing magic and purifying spells to remove any taint on her. "What took you so long? I almost had that daemon before you jumped in and stole my victory." Rana (Duchess''s name) smiled andined to William as she looked at the giant ck knight, then she saw the damage from the Blood Duke on William''s armor which stopped her smile. "Looks like you''re not invincible as you seem, Sir William. Do you need a healer?" Rana asked William but before she could get her answer, a great shock wave came out of nowhere as a giant warp portal appeared not far away from the army. "This is not good. Prepare yourself, we have more daemonsing! Take the Duchess and other injured soldiers back," William shouted, giving an order to all soldiers. "No, I can still fight," Rana tried to protest but she stopped knowing that she will be the only burden to William. "No matter what''sing from that portal, you better survive and answer my questions. You hear me?" The Duchess yells out loud as she is being carried away. William hearing this only nodded and prepared himself for the second wave of Chaos attack. Another shock wave, much stronger than before erupts which forces everyone into the ground. William was the only one to stay standing as he saw what wasing out from the warp portal. A huge humanoid creature with four arms, two holding arge sword and the other two in the shape of sharp flesh des. The huge daemon is covered with a few cloths of silk around its body while wearing a beautiful golden crown on its head. This daemon is known as ''Bringer of Temptation'' and one of the most powerful daemons of anesh. The greater daemon of anesh, the Keeper of Secrets, steps out from the war portal and unleashes a powerful psychic aura that puts every man and woman on their knees as they feel anguish and ecstasy. Chapter 24: Reforged Against Terror Chapter 24: Reforged Against Terror The powerful psychic ability of the Greater Daemon made everyone unable to move the moment it appeared into this world. Unable to do anything, William desperately searches for anything from his new loots to see if it can help him. From defeating the Blood Duke: [Thunder Hammer x1: A two-handed heavy melee power weapon of the Space Marine. By emitting the energy field within the hammer''s head, when struck to its target, it releases powerful and concussive force at once to devastate the enemy.] [Storm Shield x1: A power shield used by the Space Marine to protect from heavy projectiles and enemy melee attack. Equipped with an internal gravitic energy field generator which makes powerful blows ineffective. Requires a short time to recharge.] From defeating Zombie Dragon: [Summon Order (Militarum Tempestus Scions) x1: As elite soldiers of the Imperium of Mankind, Tempestus Scions are the Special Forces of the Imperium and are capable of various types of missions including raids behind enemy lines. Summons 50 Storm Troopers of Tempestus Scions equipped with Carapace Armour, Omnishield Helmet, advancedsguns, and grenades.] [Adeptus Astartes Drop Pod x1: Drop from the low orbit, Standard Drop Pod carry 10 Adeptus Astartes and 2 Techmarines (Same Chapter as the yer''s) equipped with standard bolter, bolter pistol, chainsword and abat knife. Will follow the yer as he will be ced as Battle-Brother in Command.] From defeating The Masque of anesh: [Bane of Chaos (Purity Seal) x1: A Purity Seal that gives the user resistance against Chaos corruption.] [Dreadnought Drop Pod x1: Drop from the low orbit, Dreadnought Drop carries one Dreadnought from the same chapter of the yer. The left hand is armed with twin-linked M34 autocannon with armor-piercing and standard round. The right hand is a power fist and has a heavy mer under the arm. The Dreadnought is also equipped with extra armor ting and mounted with auncher to fire smoke grenades and short-range mortar rounds.] The moment William saw the purity seal, he equipt the seal which allowed him to move again and stand up to fight against the Greater Daemon. Still, because of the powerful psychic ability of the Keeper of Secrets, William decided to summon only one unit that could help him as the rest would only be immobilized the moment they got summoned. Using his helmet, William dropped a 30 tons (27,215.5 Kg) Drop Pod right on top of Keeper of Secret. Boom! With the heavy impact, the drop pod hit the Greater Daemon''s head which stunned the daemon underneath. The drop pod opens and a huge Dreadnoughtes out from it, scanning the battlefield including soldiers and William. "Brother, I have arrived. I serve now...and Forever!" The powerful mechanical voice said out loud and walked out from the drop pod. As Dreadnought steps away from the metal tform, the Greater Daemon starts to remove the heavy metal pod above its head after recovering from the stun. When the drop pod was removed, Dreadnought saw what was behind him as it quickly recognized the enemy. "A Heresy, be judged," Within a second, Dreadnought open fire his left arm''s autocannon, unleashing devastating firepower of the heavy ballistic weapon at the Greater Daemon. Seeing this, William went into action as he drew his sma rifle from his inventory and fire at the Greater Daemon. The dust began to engulf the Keeper of Secrets which blocked the visual of the target, but for William and Dreadnought, they continued to fire their weapons as they could see the Greater Daemon through their targeting system. ''Can''t take chance, must kill it before it could regain its posture,'' William thought to himself as he didn''t want to allow the Greater Daemon to have a fighting chance. Just as William finishes his thought, from the dust cloud, Keeper of Secrets charged through with metal ting of the drop pod its hand, using it as a shield. "Brother, evasive maneuver," William gave themand to Dreadnought but the Greater Daemon was too quick to evade as Dreadnought got hit by the metal ting and pushed back by the daemon. "You can''t stop me from doing my master''s bidding, human" Keeper of Secrets said to William while throwing the metal ting away. Just as William is about to fire his weapon, the metal fist smacks the daemon''s face making the daemon step back a few steps away. Walking forward, Dreadnought widened his feet and the engine in the back began to roar as smoke rose from the exhaust pipe. Seeing that Dreadnought is still standing, daemon charges forward at the Dreadnought as the walking tank of the Imperium receives the attack head-on, not budging an inch. Now, two titans of the war and battle are in closebat as both sides push each other in the battle of strength. "Switching to melee," Dreadnought uses his right arm to punch the daemon''s face again, but the daemon quickly recovers from the attack and uses its third and fourth arms (Which are flesh des) to try to stab the Dreadnought. Seeing the danger, William uses his jetpack to jump high above the daemon''s back and use his new power weapon, the Thunder Hammer to attack the daemon''s head. The blue energy of powerful force unleashed upon the Keeper of Secrets'' head as William''s hammer made contact with its target. The powerful blow staggered the daemon enough to stop the attack and it gave an opening for Dreadnought to reposition its power fist to fire me from a heavy mer attached under the fist. The fire covered the Greater Daemon as it began to scream in pain. Seeing possible weakness, William dropped his Thunder Hammer to pull out his heavy mer from the inventory and fire at the screaming daemon. The continuous mes from Dreadnought and William burn the daemon but just as William starts to think they were winning, the daemon starts to swing its duel swords wildly. One of the swords stabbed William, wounding him as the de cut through power armor and appeared in his back. As daemon continues to swing wildly, William gets thrown from the sword and to the battlefield near the fight. For the Dreadnought, he barely dodges bone de and continues his attack adding autocannon. The Greater Daemon receiving heavy firepower from the Dreadnought decide to change tactics by using superior speed. With swift feet, the Keeper of Secrets begins to dodge the attack while attacking the blind spot of the Dreadnought. The tide of the battle quickly changes as Dreadnought starts to get pushed back and receives a powerful sh attack. Still, thanks to the heavy metal ting, Dreadnought didn''t receive critical damage to its mechanism but is unable to make an effective attack on the daemon. Meanwhile, William is on the ground,ying on his back with a huge wound in his stomach as his gene-seed does everything to keep him alive. Now broken and unable to move, William''s power armor locked in ce, making William watch the battle helplessly as a battle between Dreadnought and Greater Daemon continues. Slowly, William loses his consciousness as darkness slowly pulls him into a void, ultimately leaving his body. [Where am I? Did I just die?] William asks himself as he realizes that he is still in the body of a Space Marine but without his power armor or weapons. Around William, the ce began to dim without actual light sources as various humans and other races started to appear in distance. A closer look, William saw those people look rather transparent and wandering around as if they are lost or don''t know that they are dead. [I''m in the afterlife, I died after all. Why am I still in Space Marine''s body?] William began to think but before he could get any answer a man in a full te of armor and carrying a sword appeared in front of William. [You are in the wrong ce, my friend. I didn''t retrieve your soul from the material ne, rather something dragged you here. Someone or something wants your soul, enough to disturb the natural order. Sorry, where are my manners? I''m Kelemvor. The Lord of the Dead and Judge of the Damned.] Kelemvor said to William as he was about to exin William''s situation. Suddenly, a dark purple portal appears out of nowhere and four different handse out, reaching William. One of the hands, the red and bloody hand changes its direction and attacks Kelemvor. The Lord of the Dead defends himself as the red hand continues to attack him but eventually, the hand grabs Kelemvor''s body and crushes him like he is nothing but a bug. As this was going on, a green rotten hand, blue thin hand and purple feminine hand, pulled William against his will and to the portal which disappeared from the ne of the souls. Between the Forgotten Realm and Immaterium, [You should have joined us, mortal.] A menacing voice said to William as other voices joined in. [Now, you will serve us just like your brothers. You will fight day and night against my minions.] An angry voice said as a bloody hand grabs William. [Your fight against my servants was entertaining. Maybe I will keep you like my collection, just like Fulgrim.] A feminine voice came from the purple hand. [You will be my new experiment, you won''t escape this time.] A sickly voice from the rotten green hand said to William while William struggles to free himself. William, now in big trouble, continues to fight back but this time it was hopeless as he is now fighting the material form of the four Chaos Gods. Unfortunately, no voice came to save William this time as his soul is now traveling through the warp, heading to the Realm of Chaos. [Shit, this is it. I''m about to enter the 40K universe.] William thought to himself and about to give up all hopes when a powerful bright light came out of nowhere and vanquished the four hands of Chaos Gods, freeing William. William, seeing hope, embraces the blinding light which helps heal his mind and purify the corruption of the chaos. Soon, William lost his consciousness but before that happened, he heard a voice he didn''t recognize. [I shall reforge you in the fire of my will. You will be the shield and sword against the terror. Now, go!] Thest word from the light woke William as he opened his eyes to see that he was now standing on his feet and able to move freely again. Looking around, William saw soldiers, including Prince and other knights, now on their feet, free from pain and suffering. The battle between Dreadnought and Keeper of Secrets paused as if something is blinding them. Stepping forwards, William finally realized that his power armor is different as he is now wearing the older but much more advanced power armor of ck Temr and holding a two-handed ck power sword. "The Battle-Brother has returned from the brink of death. Now, chosen as Champion of the God-Emperor." The dreadnought said out loud in a mechanical voice as Greater Daemon took a few steps back as light generated from William began to burn its skin. "Wait, I''m WHAT?" William said to himself as everything around him purifies due to the blinding light removing corruption of the Chaos and healing the allies around him. The Emperor''s Champion of the ck Temr enters the battle against Chaos in the New World. Chapter 25: Victory and Next Step Chapter 25: Victory and Next Step The presence of the daemon''s chaotic aura suddenly disappeared from the battlefield when William returned from death. The soldiers including Prince Benton and even the Duchess who is in the rear of the army witness the golden lighting from the ck Temr. With each step from William, the Greater Daemon retreat because of the burning light damaging the surface of its skin all over the body. "This light, how can this be? Only my master knows of this new world," Greater Daemon screams with pain and denies to believe the impossible. Meanwhile, William who now understood the situation stepped forward with his new power sword in his hands and charged towards the retreating enemy. "Your time is up. Meet your maker back in Immaterium and don''t evere back," William said to the daemon and ignited his ck sword which its de came to life as blue light engulfed the de. Seeing theing attack, Greater Daemon shed its des against William''s ck power sword but it was pointless as daemon''s des got cut in half by the ck sword like a hot knife through butter. William, now having an upper hand in the fight, proceeded to decapitate Greater Daemon''s two arms from the lift side using his sword. Crying in pain, Greater Daemon fought back with the remaining two arms but it was pointless as Champion of the Emperor dodge effortlessly and counter-attack with his sword once again. Striking true, William removed one more arm and managed to cut deep in the right leg before retrieving his de. Not giving a moment to recover, William attacked the daemon, this time going for the stomach. With quick steps and speed unlike no other, the sword cut through the stomach of the Greater Daemon from one end to another. "No! This is not the end. My master has ns for this world and for YOU. I wille back and more wille with me," The Keeper of Secrets gave itsst words before the entire body turned to dust and disappeared from the material n of the New World. The two armies cheer the moment they see the victory and daemon''s defeat. Many soldiers cried with happiness that they have survived the unsurvivable battle against daemons from the unknown deity. At the same time, many among the military ranks witnessed the miracle from the ck Temr who called upon iron titan and returned from the dead as a pdin of his deity. In the end, with the vanishment of the Greater Daemon, the battle of the Stormfist finally ended. The two armies of the Alderim survived not only massive armies of the vampire and zombie dragon but a small army of daemons and its chaosmander. The number of casualties was big but not as big as the adversity they faced. Still, from this war, the legend is born. The foundation of a new era is set on stone as a new religion is founded and the creation of a new empire to fight against chaos starts right after. "Batte-Brother, the Emperor''s Champion. I have witnessed the second resurrection of the Emperor''s servant and your action strengthened my faith. First was the return of his son, Roboute Guilliman. Now, your return as Champion proves that he is watching over us, even in this unknown world." The Dreadnought said to William as he turned his entire body to see the two armies celebrating the victory. William just nodded his head and retrieved his weapon from the battlefield. "Are they also servants of the God-Emperor? Or are they just ''help''?" This question from the Dreadnought got William paused as he thought deeply about what to say. If he says the wrong word, the Dreadnought will purge the ''heretics'' without hesitation as ck Temr are infamous for purging non-believers. "They are natives to this new world as this world was hidden from the taint of the Chaos. But one thing I can assure you, brother. They are allies against the Emperor''s enemy as I heard his voice, ordering me to fight against terror as shield and sword. I believe I''m the shield to them as I''m sword against Chaos. William exined best he could as he dodge the keyword ''heretic.'' Dreadnought mentioned the return of Primarch Roboute Guilliman which means he also knows the involvement of the Eldar from the Craftworld. At this point, William needs all the help he could get and this means help from the other race of the world. Just like in the Total War: Warhammer game, the diplomacy and defense alliance are a must if William ns to raise the army big enough to fight against Chaos forces in the future. "... I see. In this dire time, we will need assistance from the locals but they will serve the God-Emperor before we leave this world for our next crusade." The Dreadnought replies to William and watches over the military forces in deep thought. "Thank you brother," William thanked the old Dreadnought and proceeded to walk toward armies as Dreadnought followed behind him. During his path to meet the two leaders, every soldier and officer kneel before the Champion and show great respect to their savior as they believe William is the Great Pdin of the deity. When William arrived to meet the prince and duchess, Dreadnought stood a few steps behind while Prince Benton and Duchess bow before the Champion. This made William panic inside but maintain his posture as he is being observed by the Dreadnought. "Raise your heads, I''m the same person as before. Since this campaign was yours, to begin with, what will be your decision on Fort Stormfist?" William asked Prince Benton which he quickly answered as if he knew this question wasing. "Our forces were nearly wiped out but thanks to you and your titan, we survived the battle. I will leave half of my forces on the fort while I return to the capital and send additional help to enforce this region. I will also talk to my father to put you, Sir William, as the official regent of this region as long as you remain loyal to the crown." Prince exined his n to William but the moment he mentioned thest part, Dreadnought went full alert and turned his entire body towards Prince Benton, aiming his weapons. "Battle Brother William is a loyal champion to the God-Emperor of Mankind. His loyalty is only to God Emperor and serves no other, against this is heresy." With a mechanical voice, Dreadnought said his ''concern'' to the prince as William turned around to ensure his battle brother. "Don''t worry, I believe they know the consequence," William whispered to Dreadnought and turned around to talk to the prince and duchess. "My loyalty is to God-Emperor, but following his teaching, I will protect his subjects even if they do not know him yet." William ensures everyone as everyone lowers their tension. Seeing this, the Duchess joined in the conversation between prince and William. "Sir William, if I may. Who is this God-Emperor? Is he the one who blessed you to fight against daemons?" Hearing this from the Duchess, Dreadnought immediately went into action to answer her question. "God Emperor is the living God of Mankind. He protects mankind from the Xenos, mutants and heretics while guiding us, his Angels of Death to fight against them in the time of war. Only from the Emperor''s light, there is salvation, from his will there is Imperium of Man. The Emperor Protects!" Dreadnought said out loud enough from his speaker to have every man and woman in the armies to hear the words. The Duchess didn''t say anything as she got her answer while Prince Benton was caught off guard as he just saw religious doctrine he never heard of from the iron titan who came from heaven (Sky). "Thank you battle brother for sharing your wisdom. Prince, I would like to keep my battle brother here on the fort to enforce defense against potential invasion force from the vampire. I can guarantee you personally that he will defend the fort until you return from the capital." William said to the prince but to his surprise, Prince Benton said something unexpected. "Of course Sir William, but you will apany me to the capital as I report back to my father. Knowing my father, he will want to meet as you didn''t just defeat the vampire faction single-handedly but also y daemons and improve gun technology to the next level." Prince Benton invites William to the capital as the Duchess gives a small smile to the Emperor''s Champion. ------------------------------ From defeating Keeper of Secrets: [Aegis Terminator Armour x1: An advanced power armor of the Grey Knights. Because of itsrge size and heavyweight, the Aegis Terminator armor is slower than the standard Power Armor, but it makes up for its durability and psychic protection from the daemons. The armor is tough enough to punch through the enemy line while under fire and strong enough to carry a heavy weapon with one hand such as Storm Bolter mounted on the wrist and heavy Nemesis Force weapons. [Gene-Seed of Grey Knight x1: A gic material directlyes from the Emperor himself that allows for the creation of the Grey Knight. When used, the yer will go through the change which will allow him to use psychic ability and be able to y daemon much easier. The Armor and vehicle''s skins will change to match the Grey Knight Chapter. The yer will lose the directmand of the Space Marine of the previous summons since the yer is no longer in the same Chapter.] [Spark of Astronomican x1: A ss sphere that contains a small fragment of the Emperor of Mankind''s psychic light. When the sphere is destroyed, it will release a powerful psychic force that purifies Chaos corruption within the area and lights a short psychic beacon to summon allies from the 40K Universe. Warning: As it is a powerful beacon, it could attract unwanted beings as well. There is a small chance to summon something else instead of allies.] Chapter 26: Feast and Formal Clothes Chapter 26: Feast and Formal Clothes It only took half a day to secure Fort Stormfist and leave the fortress as half of the prince''s military force was left behind to protect the fort. As Fort Stormfist is a barrier between humans and vampire factions, the fort has two parallel walls defended from any invaders. This means that while half of the army was repairing the breached walls that William created during his fight against the Blood Duke, the other half of the army was on the opposite side of the fort patrolling and securing the second walls. Before leaving the fort, William leaves behind the Dreadnought to aid and give additional fighting force just in case another vampire faction decides to invade the fort. William learned the Dreadnought''s name which is Veteran Battle-Brother Raduriel who participated in the many crusades such as The Fall of Agre and Third War for Armageddon. It was during the Third War for Armageddon where Raduriel fell in battle and was reborn as Dreadnought to continue his duty. During wall repair and securing the fort, William checks the Dreadnought''s weapon system and the condition of the machine. To his surprise, William learned that Dreadnought has a simr loot function just like him, able to collect additional ammunition, repair drones and new weapons or parts after defeating the enemy. For some reason, Battle-Brother Raduriel wasn''t bothered by the loot system or ability to gain weapons as if it was a normal thing. He was even able to quickly switch weapon systems just like how William does with his collection of an arsenal. As for the loot, it was different from Williams''s and it seems individuals get their own loot which was good news for William. One key thing Raduriel got was Leviathan Storm Cannon which is a heavy-duty four autocannon that could rapidly fire and destroy anything on its path. With this new weapon, Dreadnought can defend the fort all by himself without any help. Following William''s order, Raduriel stays behind to defend the future base of operation of Adeptus Astartes while William returns to Deron with Prince Benton and Duchess Argus. The return trip wasn''t boring since William was riding his assault bike which many of the knights including two leaders of the armies envied him. By the time two forces returned back to Deron, the Duchess was riding behind William. This scene wasn''t hard to miss by Sir Dolven which he chuckled the moment he saw William''s arrival. "I received the news from your messenger, your highness. If I knew there would be such hardship, I would have gone with you." Sir Dolven said to Prince Benton who arrived right behind William''s bike. The entire city of Deron was in cheer as soldiers weed the returning troops and horns were blown to signal the sess of the campaign. "Thank you, Sir Dolven, it was a hard fight but thanks to the effort from William and Duchess, we sessfully captured the Fort Stormfist and left forces to hold it. Send the message to my father of this good news and tell him that we will be there within 9 days from now." Prince Benton instructed Sir Dolven after he got off from his horse. Meanwhile, William helped now recovered Duchess get off his bike since it was twice bigger than a regr motorcycle. Seeing this, Sir Dolven whispers to the prince as if he won the bet on the gamble. "I see that the Duchess got close to William during the second campaign. You owe me 10 gold coins." Sir Dolven said to the prince and signed him to hand over his reward which the prince did as he gave a sour expression. "I knew I bet on the wrong side. How did you know they would get close like that?" Prince asked which old knight just shrugged and put away coins into his pouch. "It''s an insight you will gain when you''re my age. William and Duchess have personalities that sh against each other but eventually, they would bond, especially during battle. That is if they didn''t kill each other during the sh." Sir Dolven silentlyughs as William and Duchess approach two gamblers. "When are we leaving for the capital? I assume there will be a minimum number of troops between Deron and Fort Stormfist." William asked the old knight as he removed his helmet and held it on his left arm. "My army will leave the city and escort Prince to the capital while the Duchess''s army will remain in Deron and wait for a new order from the king. When we arrive in the capital, I will send my troops back home while I will remain with you all. William, don''t worry about housing since you can stay in my mansion as my guest. Also, nice armor, much more stylish than your old one, I guess being a pdines with some perks, I see." Sir Dolven said to William as he examines the Armour of Faith and ck Sword. William smiles with embarrassment while Duchess clears her throat to get the three men''s attention. "If you two are done giggling like kids with new toys, I would like to prepare our return trip. We will be heading to the capital two days from now. Before then, I would like to make sure my subordinates are briefed and coordinated on the supply line between Deron and Fort Stormfist." Duchess Beckett said in a strict way that almost killed the joyful vibe. "As strict as your fury, cousin. Enjoy the day and rx will ya? Troops need time to recover from the fatigue and we do have a feast tonight. Sir Dolven will take care of those, so don''t go ruin everyone''s mood." Prince said to the Duchess that she did some help as she thought for a second and agreed with the prince''s logic. In the end, everyone decided to reorganize the troops and equipment while Prince''s chefs work on tonight''s feast. For William, he decided to reorganize his war gears and sort what he had left. With so much reward he received from the previous battle, there were few concerns that came. First was the gene-seed of the Grey Knight and Aegis Terminator armor, they are indeed powerful weapons against daemons but to use it means he has to surrender his ck Temr gene-seed in exchange. This also means he will lose themand since he will no longer be ck Temr, the only way William will use these items is if another Greater Daemon appears in this world. Until then these two items are not useful to William right now. The second concern is the biggest of all, which is the Fragment of the Emperor''s psychic light, the Spark of Astronomican. ording to the description, this item will purify the chaos corruption but will summon random allies or something from the 40K universe. Thest part really concerns William as this could summon nightmare things imaginable from 40K such as T''au (Just kidding). The nightmare things such as Tyranids, Necrons or Green tide itself, the Orks. Orks of the 40K are so different from standard orcs of the fantasy D&D world. There is a reason why Orks are called Green Tide as they are unstoppable war factions that will fight anyone or anything as long as they can achieve the war or in theirnguage, ''WAAAGH!'' Not to mention their ways of reproducing their numbers are by fungus spores. This means Orks can increase their number within days or weeks without using additional resources to nurse them to maturity. Also, their technology literally breaks the naturalw of physics thanks to their power of imagination because their weapons and vehicles are nothing but made out of scraps of metals andpletely random unlike humans or any other factions'' technology. So, the Spark of Astronomican is beyond dangerous if William isn''t prepared to fight nonfriendly without heavy backup. The only way he will use this item is only if chaos brings their full force on to this world and William has no other options in his hands. Until then, this item will stay in his inventory and safe. For the summon order and drop pods, William will keep them equipped as long as possible until he gets the permanent settlement. Without a stable line of ies and a ce to put a roof over their head, William can''t just summon an army of soldiers and Space Marines. Unless William receives the City of Deron and fort from the king officially, there aren''t suitable ces he could organize his army. After finishing organizing his war gears, William decided to look around the city castle since he will be gone for a while. With his new power armor and ck sword in his hip, William went to various locations within the city castle such as a library, main hall, etc as he recalls the old D&D campaign from his old world. Just as William was about to finish his walk, William met the Duchess and her entourage in the hallway. "William, why are you still in your armor? Why aren''t you wearing something morefortable? We are not on the battlefield you know," The Duchess said to William as her entourage who were all women giggled in the back. William, seeing he is out number decided to exin his situation as he doesn''t have formal clothing. "Well, I don''t actually have fancy clothing for the feast, so I usually wear my armor," William exins to the Duchess who isn''t surprised or amused by his excuse. "If that is the case, you should talk to the prince and get his tailors to make you something presentable. I''m sure he won''t mind since you did save mine and his skin on the battlefield after all. I will see you tonight and you better not be in your armor, my dear." The Duchess then left with her followers, leaving William confused by what the Duchess just said to him. Afterward, William decided to visit Prince Benton and see if he could get something to wear for tonight''s feast. Chapter 27: Visiting Tailor Chapter 27: Visiting Tailor By the time William made it to Prince Benton''s room, it was near lunchtime (Around 11:20 am). After passing multiple knight guards and escorted to the main chamber, William was weed by one of the prince''s servants as the prince himself weed the giant pdin. Entering the room, William saw 5 servants cing various foods on the table as it seems William interrupted the prince''s lunchtime. "Sorry if I interrupted your lunch. I was told by the Duchess that I need formal clothing to attend tonight''s feast but unfortunately, I don''t have one suitable right now. She also told me that you could help me with the clothing issue since you have few tailors avable with you." William asked the prince which got the prince''s attention. Prince understood that William does not have fancy clothes as he is an adventure and they do not have the resources to purchase formal clothes. Quickly, the prince got into action and paused the whole lunch and summoned his head butler, Jon. "I can see why you came to visit me. Don''t worry, I will have everything taken care of. Jon, please take Sir William to the tailors I brought with me from the capitol. As of right now, this priority job for them and they have until tonight to have clothes fitting for William. Make sure they understand that and let me know when they are done." Prince Benton gave his order to Jon which immediately head butler escorted William and took him to the other side of the city castle where nobat workers reside. "The Crown Prince is very fond of you, Sir William. He has great respect for you and sees you as an example of what an honorable knight should be." Jon said to William as they walked towards the other side of the castle. Feeling embarrassed, William didn''t say much except "I see," and remained silent afterward. "I see you''re a man of short words. I will be in your service since we will be traveling together to the capital. Please let me know if you have any issues in the future and don''t hesitate to ask anything. After all, you did save the Crown Prince''s life from external and internal enemies." With a strange remark, Jon and William made it to therge room where arge group of people was working on various clothes repairs. After a quick scan of the room, Jon found an old man who was repairing the knight''s clothes. Approaching the old man, Jon gets the old tailor''s attention and exins his reason for visiting, "Mr. Harper, by the Crown Prince''s order I bought Sir William for your service. He needs formal clothes for tonight''s victory feast, suitable and presentable for the nobles. This will be a priority requesting from the Crown Prince himself." Jon exins to the head tailor as Harper turns his head to see arge ck knight. After a quick look, the old tailor stood up from his workstation to walk around William for a better look. "Ok, Jon. I got a general idea. Let the prince know I will take care of this new challenge before the feast tonight." After hearing the confirmation, Jon left the room as William remained still as Harper continued his examination. "I need you to take your armor off and wear something casual. I can''t get good measure if you remain in that bulky armor," Harper said to William and pointed his finger at the small room where tailors are using it as a changing room. "Sure, I will be right back," William replied and followed the instructions to make a quick change. Inside the changing room, William unequips his armor and puts everything in his inventory. Thanks to his unique ability of inventory, William only has to pull out his inventory screen and just unequip the equipment. The same thing for casual clothes as William can either equip or bring out clothes from the inventory to put it on. After taking his time, William left the changing room to find a small army of tailors (Around 20 tailors) waiting for him as Harper stood in the middle with a long measuring tape around his neck. "Ok, team. We only have until tonight to make suit fitting for this giant. I want three groups to handle the upper, middle and lower parts of the clothes. Also, make sure we use durable materials since the wearer isn''t a standard knight. Now, get to it!" With Harper''smand, all 20 tailors went to their stations as the head tailor gestured his hand to William so he could stand in the threerge mirrors. "Young man. I have a few questions regarding what type of suit you want while I measure your size." Harper said as he began his measuring of William''s body. "What color do you want your suit to be?" "ck and dark blue" "Good. How much room do you want? Enough to dance or enough to swing a sword?" "... Enough to use a sword." "I see. Do you want to be the center of attention or blend in with the crowd?" "Center of attention since I won''t be able to blend in with the crowd. But I do not want anything outrageous like decorations or extra stuff within clothes." "Ok, ok, don''t worry about havingrge flowers on your clothes as decorations. I will make sure you have something fitting to your stature. Last question, do you want your suit to be easy to put on or moreplex? Complex means it will be significantly more fancy looking to others." "Easy to put one since I don''t want to feel suffocated," William answers thest question which ends the measuring session. Harper, receiving the notes from the assistant and reviewing the numbers, the head tailor-made a few notes and gave them to his assistant. "That will be all, I will have your suit by tonight and send someone to retrieve you before tonight''s feast." With that, William left the tailor''s chamber and decided to go to the kitchen since it is now past lunchtime. The kitchens are well supplied with ingredients since Prince Benton, former noble Bullen and Duchess brought plenty of food for everyone to eat well. Because they are in former vampire''s territory, there aren''t many wild animals but thanks torge supplies from the capital soldiers from three armies have the opportunity to eat decent meals and withrge meat once a week. As two armies are leaving and returning to the capital in a few days, the feast will increase soldiers'' morale as the prince allows the distribution of ales and foods tonight. Sitting on the table outside from the kitchen, William received a decent portion of meal which consisted of beef stew, butter loaves of bread, steamed potatoes and arge cup of ale. For William, this isn''t much as it is only an appetizer for the feast and he could technically survive without eating or drinking water for a few days while fighting non-stop. Still, William loves the vor and warmth of the food as he can learn more things by just eating ingredients from the food. By the time William finished his lunch, a kitchen staff came to retrieve the empty dishes from him which got William''s attention. After thanking the staff for cleaning his table, William decided to ask the staff if they need any help. With few words and persuasion, William obtained a few side quests to help move heavy supplies from the storages, move fresh water from the well and cut firewoods. Feeling nostalgia for chore quests from his old D&D campaign, William dly helps out with heavy lifting and difficult workload. By the time he was done, William managed to move enough supplies tost a few weeks and firewoods for months. It was around this time when a young boy approached William to let him know that the suit is ready and the head tailor is waiting for him. "Lead the way, boy. I can''t wait to see what kind of clothes they made," William said to the kid after putting down two barrels of freshwater. When William and the kid arrived at the tailor chamber, Prince Benton was also there as he was nearly done putting his formal clothes on. "William, your suit over there. Mr. Harper will help you with the final touch of the suit." Prince Benton said as he put his red jacket on. Prince is wearing red formal clothes with gold lines while a jacket has a royal crest on the chest pocket. "Thank you for the clothes, but I have a question. Why do you have so many tailors with you? Not just them but it seems you bring with you a lot of staff from the capital." William asked the prince which princeughed slightly and exined his reasoning. "Well, that is because these tailors aren''t just clothes tailors. They are also skilled in armor repairs such as chain armors and leather armors. If our cksmiths need more help, Mr. Harper''s tailor teams will help with various repairs and even crafting armors given enough time." Prince exins to William as Harper approaches William. "Enough with exnation, we need to fit this giant for an uing battle. Those nobles will butcher him if he attends a feast like this," Harper points out William''s casual clothes as he leads Space Marine to another room to show his new suit. "This is what we got for you. Now, put it on," Harper disyed the new formal suit on the wall which got William''s full attention. The formal suit is big andrge to fit William''s unnatural size. The suit''s top is ck but the pants and suit jacket is dark blue with a crest of a white cross in his chest pocket, the same as William''s power armor shoulder symbol. The one unique thing about is that there is a shoulder te on the jacket which isn''t much heavy looking but a decent size to protect William from blunt weapons. "Am I expecting some kind of duel during the feast? I mean I know it is more of a banquet but it won''t be likest time when we had to fight Bullen''s men." William asked Harper as a head tailor to bring out a pair of ck boots, matching the clothes. "Young man, in the noble''s world the formal banquet or feast of celebration is a battlefield. It''s the ce where alliances are made and where enemies are identified. I know this because I make clothes for those asions. Trust me, this tells other nobles that you are a formidable warrior and you are ready for anything. Also, your shoulder tes can be used as small blunt gauntlets, if you ever need to punch your way out." With a small chuckle, Harper instructs three people to help William put on his suit and ready for tonight''s feast as noble sons from many houses and influential people from the capital will soon attend the main yard of the city castle. Chapter 28: The Victory Feast Chapter 28: The Victory Feast The feast started with the 8 loud rang from the city bells (8 pm) as three armies celebrated the sess of the campaign against the vampire faction. While normal soldiers eat and drink to their heart''s content around the city, many young nobles from the three armies gather in the banquet hall of the city castle. Many of the young nobles are from minor and middle nobles'' houses who aren''t the first line to the family hierarchy. For this reason, many of these young nobles picked military careers as they don''t have a chance to inherit the family wealth. Growing up from the influence of the noble families, these young men still have certain characteristics of the nobility such as tradition, aristocratic and political behavior. This means, their real battle is in the political field such as campaign feast and other celebratory events where anything can happen which could shake the future event. In the Banquet Hall of the Deron Castle, William entered the banquet hall ahead of Crown Prince Benton as the most important person supposed to enter the partyte. ording to the prince, the reason why royals attend the partyte is that they want the rest of the people to feel less pressured by the royals and let them enjoy the rare events where many nobles gather to meet. When William entered the hall, everyone including servants all turned around to see the giant hero as musicians paused their instruments. With the entire banquet hall staying silent, William didn''t know what to do until the old knightmander pped his hands which everyone did the same, giving a round of apuse to the hero of the campaign. "From destroying three enemy armies to defeating the daemons, you are the key yer of this campaign and no one is going to ignore that. Still, I didn''t expect you toe in with a new suit, especially since I assume you didn''t n to attend this kind of event during the expedition." Sir Dolven said to William with curiosity while looking at William''s new ck and dark blue suit. "Well, the Duchess told me to get one so I asked Prince Benton to help me acquire one for tonight. Still, I prefer my armor since it is much morefortable than this suit. I mean, this suit is alsofortable but you know what I mean," William tried to exin to the old knight as one of the servants brought a drink which William quickly grabbed one to drink. The alcohol didn''t do anything but it gave William a few seconds to think while Sir Dolvenughed after seeing giant pdin struggling to fit in with the environment. "Don''t think too much about it, just be yourself and don''t try to impress anyone by being something you''re not. You already earned everyone''s respect and admiration with your action on the battlefield. I will teach you how to handle nobles in the capital during our trip there." Sir Dolven said to William which made the giant man ease up since he was an awkward person at a party back in his world. With that, William finally rxed and began to look around to see many young nobles looking at William as if he is a celebrity. Just as William was about to grab the whole te of food, a heavy double door opened again and a small group of young women entered the hall. The leader of this group is the Duchess of Argus, who is wearing a white dress with gold flowers that represent her family crest and light red lines that indicate the connection to the royal family. Rana Basslio Beckett immediately saw William and Sir Dolven and approached them while dismissing her followers to do freely as they wish. As the Duchess approached two men, Sir Dolven bowed his head to wee the lioness but William just froze where he stood since the moment he saw her enter the hall. "Sir Dolve, William. It is good to see you both. William, I see you took my advice and got yourself a nice formal suit, I guess there is hope for you after all." Duchess Beckett said to William with a smile as Sir Dolven chuckled silently. William finally returns to reality and quickly toss the te to the side to wee thedy properly. "Sorry about that. Yes, I decided to get one, just that I didn''t know how formal this feast would be tonight." William quickly said to the Duchess and tried to be formal which the Duchess gave a small smile. "Don''t worry about putting an act of nobleman at the party here. We all are friends and there is no need for you to strain yourself as someone else." The Duchess ensures William and grabs arge mug of alcohol from the table to chug the whole thing in one swing. After finishing the mug, the Duchess grabs the second mug from the table and raises it to signal an announcement. "We, the proud soldiers of the Alderim began this expedition to recapture the lost city of Deron and the infamous Fort Stormfist. During this campaign, we lost fellow soldiers and faced impossible odds against supernatural enemies. But, we also found a friend who we can rely upon on the battlefield and survive to return to our families in the end. To you Sir William, the ck Pdin of the God-Emperor and a new friend to the Kingdom of Alderim." The Duchess gave a victory speech in which everyone in the banquet hall cheers and raises their drinks to honor William. William, who is now a center of attention again raises his right hand to ept the cheer from everyone. With a short celebration speech done, the Duchess grabbed another drink and gave it to William which two of them drank their mugs. "Sorry if I put you on the spot, but you are the one who deserves the recognition." The Duchess gave a quick wink to William which made him blush a little bit, but before he could reply, there was a sound of a throat clearing behind William which Duchess, William and Sir Dolven turned around to see who it was. "Cousin, I was going to give that speech but of course you stole my thunder," Prince Benton said to the Duchess as he looked a little upset and turned red as if he drank a few alcohols before entering the party. "Oh dear, I didn''t know you were even there at the banquet hall, prince. There should have been an announcement when you entered the hall." The Duchess said to the prince in the most outrageous way as she gave little gasp for the extra. "I was about to enter the hall when a group ofdies cut in front of me and burst through the door as if they did see me at all. So when they entered the room, I got mixed with them to which no one realized I was here." Prince Benton exins his misfortune of missing the entrance as the Duchess covers her mouth with a fan to hide giggle and Sir Dolven just sighs due to mischief of twomanders of the elite armies. "Well, at least you are here to celebrate the victory of your expedition. You faced undead armies, vampires, the Blood Duke and daemons to earn significant support from the noble families when we return to the capital. Also, you have a new blueprint for the weapons to which we can start producing them for every army in the future." William reminds the prince''s original goal as he raises his drink. Hearing this, Prince Benton thought for a second before returning to a bright mood as he grabbed his drink and joined the celebration. The party continues and reached thete phase, in which many of the young nobles retire to their rooms. The only people who are still in the banquet hall are a few older nobles from Sir Dolven''s army, Duchess''s entourage, and four VIPs. When the city bell rang once indicating it was 1 am, Sir Dolven was the first from the four to excuse himself to retire for the night. "Well, it looks like time for this old man to go to bed. This was a great feast, Prince Benton. See you tomorrow after lunch and start nning for returning to the capital." With that Sir Dolven and his followers of older nobles left the banquet hall. "I guess I will head back to my room as well. Please, enjoy but make sure you two get enough rest as well." Prince Benton said to the Duchess and William which afterward followed Sir Dolven''s example to retire for the night. "I guess it''s just you and me, Rana. Maybe we should call it a night and continue our conversation again tomorrow." William said to the Duchess but to his surprise, the youngmander was rather energetic than usual. "What! But I was having a nice time talking to you. How about this, let''s go to the training field to enjoy the night sky with more wines. Hey! You guys can go back for the night, I will be with Sir William for more¡­ discussion on politics and military strategies," Rana, who is now red as apple said to her followers which many of them refuse as theirmander is very drunk. "Mydy, you shoulde with us. You had enough drinks tonight," One of the youngdies said to Rana, to which she refused and gave the same order to dismiss all of her officers. "I will be fine as long as William is here with me. Now, to the field!" The young lioness said out loud and grabbed four wine bottles to which she began to walk towards the main door. Seeing this, William did the only thing he could do, follow the stubborndy with her followers following a few feet behind him. "Sorry mydies, I guess we have to follow her until she passes out, hopefully soon." William apologizes to the group ofdies as both of them start walking faster to catch up with the Duchess. When everyone arrived at the training field, the Duchess was sitting on the bench drinking directly from the wine bottle. When she saw William, she jumped up and approached him in an unbnced way to show how drunk she was. "William, when I arrived at this city to help my cousin and Sir Dolven and saw you for the first time, do you know what I wanted to do to you in person?" The Duchess quietly said to the Space Marine as she pointed him to get closer. William, who is now nervous to hear what kind of answer he would get from drunken beauty, followed her instruction and took a knee to get closer to hear the Duchess''s words. As he got closer, he smells sweet flower perfume from her and saw the bright red colored expression on thedy''s face which made his two hearts beat faster than usual. "What was it that you wanted to do when we first met?" William asked the youngdy and waited for her answer. What came next surprised him as Rana Basslio Beckett, the young pridefuldy of the hero from thest war gave her answer to the giant ck Temr and Emperor''s Champion. "I want to have mockbat with you! You and me, no fancy armor or weapons but with training weapons, right here, right now. The loser of the fight owes a favor to the winner." The Duchess challenged William to the duel to which all of herdy followers facepalms as if they saw thising. "... Ok, I guess I will ept your challenge, mydy." Chapter 29: Second in Command Chapter 29: Second in Command William took his jacket off and ced it on the bench as one of the Duchess''sdies came to him with a concerned face. Meanwhile, the Duchess removed her long skirts to reveal that she was already wearing pants under the dress. The same type of pants that knights wear under their armor as it gives decent defense against small knives or sharp objects. "I''m so sorry, Sir William. When the Duchess getsfortable with people she trusts, she gets out of control with alcohol. Please bear with her and try to knock her down as quickly as possible." Thedy said to William which got him curious about the Duchess''s motive to challenge William. "I kinda get the idea why she wants to fight me since she exined to me just now, but does she challenge every strong opponent in a duel?" William asked thedy which expression changed from concern to depression as she sighed and closed her eyes for a second as if it was painful memories. "Your guess is right. The Duchess tends to challenge anyone she believed to be a strong opponent. So far, two people managed to win against her. They are her father and Sir Dolven as him who taught her how to fight since she was a youngdy. Few people got close to winning but unfortunately, they all lost including few nobles who proposed to her." Thedy once again sighs after exining the Duchess''s history as William realized how battle crazy the Duchess is. "She will have a third loss tonight. I''ll make sure she won''t get hurt during this match," William assured thedy and proceeded to enter the duel arena as the Duchess did the same from the opposite side. "You took your time," Rana said to William as her face remained red and the smell of alcohol could be smelled from her. Still, she took her fighting stance and showed no ws as she wielded wooden staff as her weapon. For William, he picked a wooden greatsword since it was big enough for William to wield it as a regr sword. "Now, let us begin," William said to Rana while the samedy who talked to William earlier signaled the beginning of the duel. When the duel began, two fighters didn''t initiate the first strike as both of them waited and observed each other. After a few seconds, Rana began her attack as she charged forward with her weapon ready to strike. When the attack came, William blocked Rana''s weapon with his own and pushed her with his brute force which made the Duchess push backward significantly. Returning to her original spot, Rana once again charged at William but changed her pattern to confuse William which direction she wasing from. From left to right and shuffling the direction at each step, Rana''s speed increased and made people who were tracking her unable to follow but for William, it was a different story. This time, William made his move before the Duchess could attack first as his wide swing from wooden greatsword generated a powerful force of the wind which staggered his opponent. Rana, who had to fight against the wind, was stopped for a second which was enough time for William to attack again. With a powerful blow from the practice weapon, William struck from the above. Seeing the attack, Rana used her weapon to block it but her weapon wasn''t strong enough to stay intact as her staff broke in half. Still, thanks to her weapon, Rana managed to escape without receiving any fatal damage except her arms felt heavy vibration from William''s attack. With a broken weapon in her hand, the Duchess changed her fighting stance to dual wielding and circle around William. Having enough, William decided to finish this fight and start pressuring Rana''s defense. With multiple quick attacks, William made sure he wasn''t going to hurt the Duchess but use enough force to push her into the edge of the arena. Unfortunately, the Duchess expected this from William and dodged the majority of his attack and proceeded to use her agility to fight against William''s strength. The Duchess''s counter-attack came right after William''s wide swing as she rolled between William''s legs and immediately attacked William from the back. With quick strikes, Rana made sure she aimed her attacks on critical points such as knees, shoulder, hip, and elbows. The fast but powerful attacks turn William to take a defensive stance to which Rana continues her strike. In the end, William got into his knee while Rana stood in front of him with a heavy breath and her stamina exhausted. Seeing William receive damage in the critical areas and his knee, Rana was about to give her final strike but to her surprise, William stopped her attack by grabbing both of her hands. William lifts his head and moves to stand up which Rana ends up dangling in the air as a giant of a man uses his strength to lift her like a doll. Still, Rana did her best to fight back with her kicks but it wasn''t enough as William let go of her right arm and flick her forehead with his free hand. The powerful flick from William''s finger was enough to faint Rana in one shot as the Duchess lost her consciousness. This concluded the duel between Rana and William as the Duchess''s followers came to assist theirdy. "Well, I think you should call the healer to check her head. I didn''t use my full strength but you never know," William said to one of thedies as he looked over to make sure Rana''s forehead wasn''t bleeding. Thankfully, there was no blood but her entire forehead is now bruised with dark purple which will give her a big headache tomorrow morning. "One of us is a healer so don''t worry, Sir William. Thank you for ending this quickly as you did but I''m afraid she won''t remember due to alcohol and her injuries." The samedy said to William with little concern came from her voice but there was relief at the same time. "That is good to hear. I believe gals got this and I will head to my quarter. Thank you and let''s keep this between us since Rana won''t remember what happened tonight," With that William left the training field and returned to his room. As Ladies heal and carry theirdy inmand back to her room, a shadowy figure stepped back from the upper level as he saw the entire event from beginning to the end. "This is going to be interesting, I can''t wait to let everyone know when we arrive back in the capital." The mysterious person said to himself and disappeared as he is thest person to leave the scene. ------------------------- Next Day, The day startedte as everyone began their meal with lunch. When William entered the main hall where meals were served, he saw most of the people recovering from the hangover. Especially for Prince Benton, he has dark under eyes as if he stayed upte and had a few hours of sleep. "You look like you''re about to join the undead. What happened? I thought you went to sleep after leaving the party." William said to the prince as he ced his tray of food on the table. Before the prince could answer the question, an old knightmander joined the table with his lunch. "The Crown Prince had a few more drinks after he went to his room and somehow escaped through the window. This is what happens when I allow young royalty to roam free without supervision." Sir Dolven said to William and Prince Benton which made Williamugh while the prince covered his ears to ease his headache. "It was worth it. I was able to enjoy the night sky here since I can''t see any stars in the capital night sky." Prince exined his reason why he took a night stroll as William simply shrugged his shoulder as it was nothing significant. "For royalty to walk alone at night isn''t allowed especially during military campaigns. This is why you have royal knights following you wherever you go. Even the Duchess has bodyguards as she is a member of royal blood even if she is a branch family member. By the way, where is she? It''s not like her to struggle with a few drinks fromst night." Sir Dolven''s question made William freeze for a second as he might be the reason why Rana isn''t here having lunch with two othermanders. After all, today is the prep day before returning to the capital tomorrow morning. As Prince Benton left half of his army at Fort Stormfist, the Duchess will leave her troops as a security force on Deron. After receiving a decree from the king, the two military forces will be relieved by the new lord of this region and go back home. As for Sir Dolven''s force, they will escort William, Rana and Prince Benton back to the capital and head back home while Sir Dolven stays behind to give a full report. "I''m sure she iste because of William," Prince said to Sir Dolven with a questionable remark and left William in a difficult situation. "Did something happen, William?" The old knight asked William and gave him a serious face which put William on the defensive. "Well¡­ After you two left, Rana and I had a little duel. Don''t worry, no one is dead or anything but I might have given her a bad headache during our match." After listening to William''s exnation, Prince Bentonughed hard and Sir Dolven fell silent as he began to feel a headache. "Ok, that exins everything, I''m guessing she is in her bed and she will send her second inmand to handle today''s preparation. William, you are going to visit the Duchess and help her out." Sir Dolven gave an order to William which forced the Space Marine to follow through. After lunch, William went to the Duchess''s quarter to visit her and get additional instruction on how to help her army. When he arrived, he was weed by the same group ofdies fromst night and told to wait in the main room. After a few minutester, the Duchess came in with one person William is familiar with, the samedy who asked him to knock Rana out cold before the duel began. "Sir William, my apologies for not meeting you and others earlier. It seems I couldn''t handle the alcohol fromst night. I don''t know what happened but it seems I cked out halfway to the party." The Duchess gave her sincere apologies to William which made him turn his eyes to thedy in the back. Seeing William''s eyes, thedy ced her index finger at her lips to signal William to keep it a secret. Realizing the situation, William decided to go with it since it will create more problems if he tells the Duchess the truth. "Oh, yea. You were drinking nonstop, I had to admit you impressed me and others with your drinking ability." William gave a big smile and continued to exin his reason to visit her. "I came here to confirm that you are alive but I''m also here because I was told by Sir Dolven to help you with tomorrow''s return trip. Since you are not feeling well, who do I report to help?" William asks the Duchess to which she dly epts William''s help and turns around to introduce her second inmand. "This is Silvi Greenheart, my second inmand and best friend since I was a little girl." After the quick introduction, Lady Greenheart, the same person who asked William to beat up the Duchess, gave a small smile to William. "Hello Pdin, it is nice to finally meet you. My name is Silvi Greenheart and I will be in your debt from now on." Chapter 30: Road to the Capital Chapter 30: Road to the Capital Captain Silvi Greenheart is a young woman around her early 20''s and of an average height of 5.5 feet (170cm). She has tan skin texture with chestnut brown hair and wears the same military white uniform just like the Duchess. Examining the uniform, unlike the Duchess''s gold and red, Silvi has green to represent her family line and silver to represent her rank as captain. Overall, William can tell that Silvi Greenheart presents herself as a reliable second inmand and calcting person. After leaving the Duchess''s room, William and Captain Silvi walked towards the city wall where the Duchess''s forces are stationed. On their way, William realized that Silvi wasn''t carrying a sword or shield but an old oak staff and standard dagger as a backup weapon. Remembering that this is a world of D&D, William guessed Silvi could be a magic-user ss like wizard or druid. "I can see that you are wondering why I carry staff instead of a sword, Pdin. Unlike Duchess Beckett who is a purebat warrior, I''m a wielder of magic. More specifically, I''m a druid, focused on support and healing using magic from nature itself." Silvi exined to William while showing her staff to William. Receiving the wooden staff, William used his appraisal skill, it disyed the information to his helmet with much more detail. [Heart of Emerald Oak: Staff made from the ancient oak tree with properties received from nature itself. Gives the user wisdom and dexterity boosts while grant ability ''Conjure Woond Beings: Red-Tailed Hawk'' 1 per day]. ALERT! UNKNOWN WARP-LIKE PRESENCE DETECTED! CONTACT NEARBY INQUISITOR TO PURGE THIS HERESY! After finishing reading the detailed information about the magic staff, William''s helmet gave an alert to him as sensors detected unknown magic from the staff. This never happened to William''s original helmet before but currently, he is equipped with the Emperor''s Champion set of armor which is much older but advanced war gear. Because of this, William''s helmet went out of control the moment he used his appraisal skill as it was somehow linked to the helmet. ''Ok, this needs to be turned off for now. I guess I need to reduce the sound since it went off like a fire rm,'' With that thought, William returned the staff to Silvi and continued their conversation as they reached the city wall. When William and Silvi arrived, many of the soldiers and knights weed the twomanders as they continued their work. Some were carrying bundles of arrows to the storage while some were unloading boxes of supplies such as dried food and repair tools for the weapons. Overall, it was routine tasks for many of the soldiers as they are always ready forbat. For the knights, some took care of their horses and equipment even though they have squires to manage them. In a sense, the Duchess''s knights were more direct with their equipment than Prince Benton''s knights. After a few hours of supervising and giving helping hands, Captain Silvi was satisfied with the transition of the city defense as most of the hard work was already finished by Sir Dolven''s men weeks ago. Today was mostly recing Sir Dolven''s men and resupplying the wall defense as old knight''s troops will leave the city tomorrow with Crown Prince and Duchess Beckett. "So, since you are now officially the defender of Deron, what will you be doing until the king sends the recement?" William asks the captain as he removes his helmet and ces it next to him on the table. Currently, they are standing on the top of the gate wall where themand station is with a heavy roof and arge table. "I will be securing both Deron and Fort Stormfist, so I will be sending a messenger every three days to the fort to make sure it is secured. As for potential enemies, there is not much as the main fighting force was undead but I will be sending a few groups to handle local wildlife such as wolves and other monsters. It is important to control the poption of the monsters so they won''t go out of control." Captain Silvi exined her mission to William and ced her finger at the map on the table. On the map, the city was surrounded by the forest and natural barrier of the mountain which only ways for enemies to reach from the other side are through Fort Stormfist. With satisfaction, William knew these two ces were in good hands as Captain Silvi is more of the support and military strategist. This unusualmand structure was created because the Duchess never bothered to stay back and coordinate the militarymand during battle. So, as second inmand, Captain Silvi decided to handle the troop movement while the Duchess charged first with her shock cavalry. "That sounds boring, I don''t think you will receive the king''s new order and troops for a few weeks at least. Are you ok with that?" William asks the young captain to which she shows no sign of concern at all. For her and everyone else, this was standard military procedure taught at military school. Also, they will be more of a peacekeeper and security as the enemy was defeated just a few days ago, so there is nothing to worry about the new enemy armying to take the fort. "We will be fine, for us this is considered a vocation rather than a military mission. We have enough food and supplies tost the whole year, not to mention local wildlife and nts to extend it to one more year. I''m more worried about you and others since you will have to exin the situation regarding traitor nobles and their crimes. Even though the king gave the order for their executions, many of the nobles will pressure the crown for an official investigation." The words from Captain Silvi made William realize what he has to face in the capital when they arrive there. For now, his identity won''t be questioned as he is currently an adventurer from the guild but many will ask questions about his weapons and armor due to their pride as noble and jealous. "I guess I will face them when I get there. For now, let''s worry about today and move to tomorrow''s problem," William gave a smile and waved his hand to dodge the problem since this will be future William''s problem (We all do this). "I understand. For now, we are done for the day so please return to the city castle for your travel for tomorrow. I will handle the rest here," Silvi said to William as this concluded the transition of the Duchess''s force taking over Deron and Fort Stormfist''s defense. Before William left the druid, he gave her a message to pass to his battle brother. "Tell Brother Reduriel that I will return after meeting the king. Also, tell him I will bring more battle-brothers with me." ------------------------- Next Day, William was waiting for everyone to get ready to depart as he was sitting on the assault bike. When everyone got to their horses, Sir Dolven''s army and the rest of themanders left Deron around 9 am in the morning. The pace was slow due to the size of the army, carriages and troops on their feet, it will take at least four days to get to Greenhill. The same town where William registered as an adventurer and received a special mission to go on an expedition with the military. Looking back, it felt like years ago when William came to this world as a Space Marine and killed the first goblins with his hands. Now, he is a formidable warrior without equal and received enough recognition to move to the upper-rank multiple times. With his dual-mounted bolters and fully fueled tank, William took the lead as a scout since his assault bike is much better armored to handle an ambush from arge group of bandits or monsters. The first two days weren''t much eventful as there were no monsters, enemy ambush, or any signs of chaos pawns. By the third day, William who is 2 miles away from the main army got to do something as he sawrge dust clouds in the distance ahead of him. Using his helmet''s scope, William got to see what was causing the cloud of dust. To his surprise, it was a small army of orcs marching without any coordination or formation while arge number of people were in chains and following in the back. ''Oh, thank the Emperor. it''s just an Orcs, not the Orks.'' Chapter 31: Ork or Orc? Chapter 31: Ork or Orc? "Ere We Go, ''Ere We Go, ''Ere We Go!" This is the standard Ork chant during "WAAAGH!" as the unstoppable force of Green Tide has the potential to wipe the entire gxy. The Orks or known as Greenskins are warmongers, savage and barbaric species in the 40K universe. Created by the Old Ones for the ''War in Heaven'', Orks can reproduce through spores and grow like a mushroom as they only focus on fighting. When the Ork poption on the reaches the critical mass and the strongest Warboss unleashes ''WAAAGH,'' the physic level in unimaginable level singles the beginning of carnage on the gctic scale. As the Ork war campaign and migration move from to and system to system, the Orks increase their numbers to the point that even the Imperium fears for the extinction of the human race. One thing for certain, Orks'' ''WAAAGH'' is also a religious tribute to their gods Gork and Mork as Orks build Gargant and Stompas to honor their deities. In short, the Ork from the 40k universe is the most sessful race and destructive force to reckon with. But for MC, he is about to face standard fantasy orcs which are about 6 to 7 feet tall, primitive and possess lesser tier equipment such as iron swords and shields. In other words, MC is about to destroy those orcs like how Master Chief from the Halo series beat the living crap out of grunts with a pistol. ------------------------ William saw from the distance a small army of orcs around 80 to 90 of them headed his way. Behind, about 40 humans in shackles follow them while few orcs whip them to move faster. Because they are still far away, William couldn''t identify the people but he is certainly most of them are women and children. ''Where are the men? Don''t tell me those orcs ate the men and took the rest as ves.'' William thought his theory while changing his scope to the approaching army. The small army of orcs doesn''t have any sense of organization as there is no formation at all. The only thing William could identify is the leader of the army as the biggest and toughest looking orc is leading in front. Currently, William on top of the hill and orcs are on the in which gives a great advantage because of William''s assault bike. With no natural obstacles on the grass field, William can attack just like how White Scars (Different Space Marine Chapter) initiate hit and run tactics using an assault bike while shooting bolter rounds. ''I better attack from the side and turn around to hit them on the back. This way, I don''t have to worry about hitting the civilians with the twin-linked bolters rounds.'' William moves his bike and prepares himself tounch a surprise attack on orc vers. ------------------------ In Orcish, "How long before we reach the next settlement? We are just one more raid away from huge profits." Orc said to the orc leader as they have been walking at a slow pace non-stop for two days straight. Three days ago, 84 orc ve raiders attacked the human settlement called ''Greenhill'' and captured arge number of humans to sell them as ves. After the sessful raid, orcs feasted on the fallen human warriors and men as they didn''t have enough force to push back the orc raiders. By the time the entire Greenhill burn to the ground and skeleton remains to scatter around, the orcs chained the remaining humans and dragged them out from their homes. Because orcs walked non-stop, many of the human ves are now dead tired, hungry and thirsty which forces orcs to drag them on the dirt, injuring many. "We are moving up north soon. The human leader (Baron Sternagel the Greenhill noble from Chapter 5) told me there is more human settlement and they are defenseless since they are fighting undead in the east." The Orc leader said to his lieutenant and continued to walk which made the orc ask another question. "What if the human leader lied to us? I didn''t see any human man in the back," This question from the orc made the orc leader smile wickedly. "He told me the truth after I ate one of his legs. Hahaha, you should have seen his face when I chopped the rest of body parts after he spilled everything to me." This made a few of the orcs nearbyugh as it created a chain reaction of waves ofughter. While this was going on, few of the orcs realized the approaching assault bike at high speed. VROOOOOM! "What is that noise? Is that a wild boar?" One of the lesser orcs asked his fellow buddy as they heard unfamiliar noise from the distance. "No, too loud for a wild boar. It sounds bigger and meaner." "It could be a bear, it''s been a while since I had a bear meat," "Nope, I think it''s bigger than that. I think¡­" Before the lesser orc could finish his sentence, his lower half of the body exploded. Other orcs around them couldn''t respond in time as they also died right after. Soon, a source of unknown deaths finally revealed itself as William ran over the horde of orcs with an assault bike. Immediately, William makes arge right turn to run over another group of orcs. By repeating this, William made donuts and forced arge number of orcs to gather around closely. After making thest circle, William made a short turn and changed his direction towards the back end of the orc army. Just as William is about to reach the back end of the orc army, the vers position themselves to fight the ck Temr. Their effort was useless as their shields didn''t do anything against bolter rounds. With orc vers dead and human civilians in his back, William positioned his bike towards the remaining orc army with twin-linked bolters pointing at them. "EAT BOLT ROUNDS, YOU DIRTY ORCS!" William pulls the triggers and unloads the remaining bolter rounds from his bike. As the majority of the orcs are closer together, the bolter rounds prated multiple orcs and shredding body parts. By the time William devastated most of the orcs, few orcs managed to survive including the orc leader who was in front. Through the helmet''s visor, William identified the surviving orcs and got off from his bike with a heavy mer equipped. With heavy mer armed and orcs to burn, William unleashes a firestorm which consumes all living and dead orcs. After a good three minutes of turning bodies into ash, William removed his finger from the trigger and put away the heavy mer back to his inventory. After another scanning and making sure there are no survivors, William turns his attention to human ves who are terrified and fear for their lives. William couldn''t me them for fearing for their lives as a single giant lone ck knight wiped out 80 orc hordes single-handedly. Just as William was about to ask who he could talk to he heard a familiar voice in the back. "Is that you, William? It''s me, Mia. The receptionist from the adventurer''s guild," Mia came out from the crowd with a tattered receptionist uniform and shackles on her hands and feet. "Mia? What happened to Greenhill after I left?" William said with shock and removed his helmet as he started to recognize a few familiar faces from the first town he ever knew. Chapter 32: Raid on Greenhill Chapter 32: Raid on Greenhill Three Days Ago, Mia starts her day with a simple breakfast as she opens the guild''s reception window as other staff members get ready to open the main door. It was the same routine as yesterday and days before as adventurers entered the guild building to ept quests based on their ranking. All this was interrupted when Greenhill''s security bell rang every three times continually, signaling the town''s invasion from foreign intruders. Mia and many others in the guild building went full alert as they went outside to witness many civilians running away from the southern gate while guards ran towards them. Before Mia could stop one of the civilians to ask a question, one of the town guards came running, acting as a messenger. "We need every avable adventurer in the southern gate now. The orc raiders areing and it seems they somehow evaded border guards," The messenger exined the situation and moved on to report to northern guards. After learning the dire situation they are in, the entire guild staff members stop their daily duties and begin coordination to defend their home. Most of the Greenhill adventurers aren''t high-level since they are D and E ranks. The reason is that Greenhill is a lumber town located close to a heavily fortified outpost. With the military presence and routine patrols, the region doesn''t experience high-level monster threats. Greenhill experiences low-level monster threats, which the military considers pests and does not move their force unless they encounter them during patrols. For this reason, the kingdom utilizes adventurers to handle goblins, wild beast, or low-level bandits. Unfortunately, Greenhill is about to experience disaster known as orc raiders as somehow they evaded military patrols and about to attack a small town with a poption of 230. "Gather everyone; I don''t care if they join the guild today. I will personally lead the adventurers and defend with guards. Meanwhile, I want everyone to bring supplies from the storage and send emergency messages to the nearest city to send additional force." The Guildmaster instructed everyone on their new tasks and left the guild building with 30 adventurers following him. Mia and others follow the guildmaster''s order and secure various health potions to spare weapons from the storage. It seems everything was going to be ok until everyone saw arge explosioning south gate. BOOM! The shockwave knocked down everyone while a ck cloud appeared in the distance. Before anyone could realize what just happened, wooden debris from the explosion hit the houses and streets as the sound of battle once again can be heard. Unknown to everyone, including Mia, the orcs brought a one-of-a-kind weapon to a mysterious supplier to the raid given to them. The reserved item was arge two barrels with a fuse that connected to the top. The supplier gave the orc leader simple instructions in themon tongue, "Light the fuse with fire and ce it on the wall." The Orc leader, who previously received new weapons and armor supplies, didn''t question the supplier when he saw this new product. The Orc leader knew this supplier is human but didn''t understand why he is doing business with orcs just like him. As long as orcs have enough gold to pay for it, they received everything they needed for the next raid. Imagine his surprise when simple barrels destroyed the town wall and killed the majority of the human defenders. The orc raiders continued their attack by the dust cleared and killed the remaining human defenders, including adventurers, without much of a resistance. The Greenhill fell byte afternoon as many civilians were either captured or killed by the orc raiders. When the raiders left the town with captured human ves, they razed the vige to the ground, leaving nothing but ashes and human remains. ------------------------ William retrieved three months'' worth of food supplies from his inventory he purchased a few weeks ago. It was enough for 40 people to eat and regain their energy while William listened to Mia''s story and waited for Sir Dolven''s army. Soon, a group of knight cavalry led by Sir Dolven arrived at the orc massacre and saw who was responsible. Not surprised, Sir Dolven ordered his men to secure the area and send a single knight to deliver a message to the approaching army and twomanders. "The moment I heard explosions from a distance, I knew it was your doing. So, who are these people? Some of them look familiar." Sir Dolven said to William after getting off his horse and saw Mia. Seeing her metal crude shackle, Sir Dolven got a general idea of what happened and who those people are as he recognized Mia''s guild uniform. "They are from Greenhill and I''m not sure where to take them since the town is no more," William said to Sir Dolven with great concern as they can''t take them to the capital. At best, they could drop these people off at different regions run by other high nobles, but this idea didn''t agree with William. "That decision has to be made by Prince Benton. They will be here soon and I will make sure healers and engineers take care of them. What worries me is how orcs managed to reach all the way here without encountering patrols." Sir Dolven asks essential regional security questions since this region previously belonged to a fallen noble who betrayed them two weeks ago. Following the king''s order, someone from the capital would rece the traitor and maintain the region until official recement received the king''s edict. "That is a good question and I think we should investigate when we reach Greenhill," William said to the old knightmander and looked beyond to see the approaching army with two othermanders leading them. It seems the young prince and the Duchess decided to see what exactly happened and make proper decisions with former townspeople of lumber town. When the army arrived, Sir Dolven gave instructions to provide the best care to civilians and make sure they record the incident. Mia volunteered to help with the report since she can work closely with townsfolk. Sir Dolven will eventually report to the capital bureaucracy and determine what to do with the destroyed town. "William, I believe our best course of action is to send these people to Deron. I will have knights escort them and we will continue our way to the capital." Prince Benton said to William and othermanders as he had other obligations to reach the capital in time. It seems callous, but with three armies spread thin with new territories from the expedition, the prince made the only choice he had with a sudden raid done by orcs. "I agree, but it will take six days for knights to return here and catch up with us. I don''t know how much we can spare, not to mention we also have to check the outpost to find out how this incident happened." The Duchess added the additional issue after Prince Benton exined his n. Hearing this, William steps forward to solve the first solution. "I will escort the townsfolk to Deron and return fast as possible. With my ride, I''m sure I can make it back here on the fourth day and meet you all at the outpost the next day." ------------------------ Meanwhile, The Southern Border Outpost of Alderim, Arge man with a crude battleax slowly walks over countless bodies in the hallway as his armor and weapon drip trails of blood. When a man exited the hallway and stood at the edge of the watchtower''s top, he saw a crimson sunset. Therge warrior smiled behind his hamlet and tossed the enemymander''s head, which hit the ground below him and bounced off. The mighty warrior raised his right hand, still holding a bloody ax, signaling the victory over their enemy with absolute ughter. On the ground floor, witnessing the blood ax raised, a high,rge band of warriors (115 men) howled and raised their weapons high. Therge man shouted out with all his might, giving everyone below him the thrilling sensation on the ground level. "BLOOD FOR THE BLOOD GOD! SKULL FOR THE SKULL THRONE!" ------------------------ [M36 Kantrael Pattern Lasgun x 50: The standard issue weapon of the Imperial Guard and most reliable weapon against enemies of the Imperium. Thisser rifle can be modified a thousand different ways and can withstand harsh weather. While powerful and effective against other humans, it is the weakest weapon against other race factions including chaos.] [Unit Summon (Astra Militarum: Catachan Jungle Fighters) x 30: From the deadly home from Catachan, Catachan Jungle Fighters are known for jungle warfare and heavily developed physiques. Each fighter is equipped with k armor, Catachan knives, explosives and Mark IV Lascarbine.] [Support Order (Valkyrie Deployment) x1: Call air support of three Valkyrie assault carriers armed with multiser, hellstrike missiles and door-mounted heavy bolters. After the bombardment, all three Valkyries drop a total of 30 standard Imperial Guardsmen.] Chapter 33: Purge Chapter 33: Purge "So yea, that is how we took back the city and fort from the Blood Duke." William finished his exnation to Mia while they sat around the campfire and watched the sunset in the distance. Mia, listening to William''s tale and adventure, stayed silent, which made the giant man nervous. "Ah, Mia? Are you listening?" William asks the former guild receptionist and looks at her, to which she suddenly returns to reality after finishing processing all the information. "Yea, sorry. I couldn''t believe you experienced such a crazy adventure. From destroying undead army to ying dragon and daemon is just beyond what we asked you to do." Mia said to William and expressed shame that she failed to assess William''s unique quest properly. Even though it was the guild master who rmended William to the expedition, Mia signed his quest contract andst to see him go on that Day. After hearing what he aplished in a few weeks, Mia is amazed and regrets sending William to the higher tier than his signed adventurer rank. "Don''t worry about feeling bad about the guild sending me to war. After all, I decided to go there and fight the vampire for my curiosity." William reassured Mia and her guilty feeling since there is no point in regretting it. After exchanging a few stories, William got called by Sir Dolven to discuss the next n since William will begin his escort mission tomorrow morning. "Ah, William. Thanks foring. After talking to the prince, we decided to investigate Greenhill for any survivors and determine what happened to the south region''s outpost. I''m sure we will find our answer by the time you return from Deron." Sir Dolven shows the map to William and exins the next destination. William agreed with the first part but was concerned with the second, checking up the outpost that somehow allowed orc raiders to pass their security. "Are you sure about checking the outpost without me? I have a bad feeling about this." William said his reasoning, which gave Sir Dolven second thoughts on checking the outpost. But since he is the seniormander, he has an obligation and duty to review the military border. "I know what you mean, but I still have to check if there is a problem within the outpost." Sir Dolven said to William and ced his finger at the map where Greenhill''s name is marked. "We will be here for four days and wait for you. When you return from the escorting survivors to the city, we will go together and check the status of the outpost." The oldmander informed William that William agreed since he could make it back in three days using his bike. ----------------------------- Next Day, After breakfast, William and 40 survivors of the Greenhill said their goodbyes to Sir Dolven and the rest to begin their march. With little help from the Duchess, William''s small band received enough supplies and arge wagon to take weak refugees. Their destination to Deron was uneventful but slow since all 40 survivors were women and children, but they made enough progress to arrive in the city of Deron on the third Day in thete afternoon. "Hello again, captain druid, we had a situation, so Sir Dolven sent me back, but I will be heading back soon," William said to Captain Silvi when her soldiers opened the city gate to wee the refugees. "I received a message from the Duchess two days ago through messenger bird, so I know the situation. I had my troops prepare the buildings for the citizens and food for them from the long walk." Captain Silvi said to William and instructed her soldiers to take in the survivors. With his job done, William prepares for his return trip by refueling his bike and checking his equipment. As he was about to finish his maintenance, Mia came to William with a new request of her own. "William, I want to join you on the trip to the capital. I have to let the main guild know what happened to the Greenhill branch, not to mention I think it is better to establish a guild branch in Deron since this ce will be busy with new business in the future." Mia exins to William that he didn''t mind having apanion and it will be better for the guild to know the situation regarding Greenhill and Deron. "I don''t mind, but we have to let Captain Silvi know I will be returning to the main force with an additional person." With everything ready to go, William and Mia went to where Captain Silvi is. When they finally found the captain, William realized something was off as he saw Silvi''s distress before he got to talk to her. "Silvi, is there a problem?" William directly asks the young druid, to which Captain Silvi turns to face the giant man. "Remember how I said I received the message from the Duchess through messenger bird? That was thest message, and I haven''t received any other messages from her or Sir Dolven. I''m afraid something must have happened if they didn''t send a second messenger bird after the first one." Silvi exined as she told William that there is always a second messenger bird around the third Day. But now, it was overdue after receiving the first message. If the main force couldn''t send messenger birds, they would have sent an emergency magic message to notify her. There is no messenger bird nor the magic message that tells her that something must happen to the main force. "I see what you mean, Sir Dolven told me they would wait for me in Greenhill until tomorrow, but if they couldn''t send the message, that must mean something must have happened to them. I will head out right now; also, I will be taking Mia with me to the capital since she will personally inform the main guild about this incident." William afterward grabbed Mia and went straight to his bike without hearing Silvi''s reply or Mia''s. With the engine revving like thunder, William and Mia left Deron with the max speed, making Mia scream due to the suddenly increased speed she never experienced before. Because of Space Marine''s body, William didn''t require any sleep or rest as he rode for 7 hours to reach the location where he met the orc raiders. Using his helmet, William scans the area to find the sign of the main force''s track and heads towards where Greenhill is. As this is going on, Mia finally got used to the bike after fainting four times while holding William''s back. "They indeed left the campsite after we left. I''m sure they are at Greenhill waiting for us, or at least I hope they are waiting," William then revved his engine and followed the path which led to the ruins of Greenhill. After riding for another 8 hours on the road, William and Mia arrived at Greenhill but what he saw was his feare to real life. Sir Dolven''s force made it to Greenhill and set their basecamp at the same location where they made camp before outside the town. But that same ce where William met other adventurers was no more as the base camp of the Order of the ck mes was destroyed, and corpses of the knights are everywhere. The knights'' bodies are impaled to the wooden stake with their heads missing. Not to mention the wagons holding volley cannons were utterly destroyed, including the weapons. Using his helmet, William saw the casualties but couldn''t find threemanders or any survivors from this massacre. That was until he found arge monument made out of human heads andrge metal in the shape of a unique mark. The maker was colored with the soldiers'' blood and flesh, but what got William''s attention was the head ced on top of the marker. The Mark of Khorne, the very symbol of the Chaos God of Blood and Skulls, has the enemymander''s head to add onto Khorne''s skull throne. The head of Sir Dolven was on top with a smaller marker carved onto his forehead. Seeing this, Mia copsed to her knees while William stood with his hands shaking with rage overwhelming his body. The same source fuels the Chaos God engulfs William''s emotion, to which he pulls out a power sword to cut the marker in half. With the marker destroyed, William picks up his friend''s head and covers it with a clean cloth. "Mia, I need you to take Sir Dolven and hide until I take care of the people who did this." William gives Mia the head of the formermander and summons the new unit to begin his first purge. Chapter 34: Vengeance Not Revenge Chapter 34: Vengeance Not Revenge "Kill, kill, kill!" Arge number of warriors shout as they surround the makeshift fighting arena while eating and drinking ales. Kharak quickly kills four out of five prisoners with nothing but an ax in his hand. Thest man, equipped with ck armor and sword, kept his distance with fear in his eyes. Kharak, the leader of his Warband known as ''Khorne''s Ravagers,'' wasn''t wearing his armor as he knew he had all the advantages and upper hand against native people in this world. His face is animal-like with sharp teeth, multiple scars and metal tes attached to his back head. The mere sight of his face would make even seasoned warriors second guess their survival or ability to fight. Seeing how hisst prey is retreating slowly, Kharak grabbed his ax with both hands and threw it, decapitating thest prisoner in half, including his ck armor. Crushing the corpse''s head with his metal boots, Kharak exits the arena where his throne and power armor are. Next to the throne, Kharak''s wargear is ced,posed of a bolter, chain ax and several frag grenades, but one thing that gets everyone''s attention is his power armor. The armor color is red and gold, while the shoulder te is painted with the World Eater''s symbol, rifying that Kharak is a berserker of the World Eater. As a Chaos Space Marine, Kharak made his God proud as he ughtered the weak and recruited the strongest warriors in this new world after breaking their sanity. His Warband is 100 men strong, all of themposed of natives of this world. Few of his men have died during thest raid, but this only strengthened his force as only the strong survive. Kharak has 35 prisoners, including two leaders who will be the main entertainment as he would enjoy converting them or ughter them. After putting back the power armor with help from his ves, Kharak took his favorite skull cup and drank from it. With straight victories and growing numbers of most formidable warriors under hismand, the World Eater Space Marine found new glorious ways to kill and gain favor from the Blood God. If Kharak could deliver this world to Khorne, he could be rewarded with the possible ascension to Daemonhood. "Bring out ten prisoners from their cages. Let us see if they have the potential to serve our God." Kharak gave the order to which several warriors followed hismand to bring out seven knights and 3-foot soldiers. After cing them in the fighting arena, four chaos warriors threw ten weapons in front of the prisoners, which made prisoners confused but stayed quiet. "Take your weapons and show us who you are. Kill your brothers in arms and bring their head; if you aplish this, I will let you live and have a fighting chance to join us in the end." Kharak''s words shocked the prisoners, but they immediately took the weapon from the ground and ughtered people close to them. The blood bath continued until only five stood in front, with each holding a severed head in their hands. Satisfied by this, Kharak signals five chaos followers to go down and collect the new trophies and give them a drink to quench their thirst. The five survivors were given five skull cups with ale mixed with the Blood of the victims the survivors just killed. "Drink from the cup and you will receive blessing from our God who will only ask for blood and skulls in return." Hearing this, five prisoners hesitated to drink but eventually drank, which gave them supernatural strength but the thirst of murder and ughter that could never be satisfied. With a new chaos warrior in hismand, he repeats this, to his disappointment, all ten prisoners refuse to kill each other. This time, his followers killed 30 of his warriors butchered all ten prisoners without mercy. Finally, the main event approaches as twomanders and royal Blood are ced in the Blood soaked arena with their weapons in front of them. "Prince Benton, the crown prince of this small country andmander of the royal military. Rana Bassilo Beckett, the Duchess of Agrus and champion of the previous war. You two will fight each other and offer the loser''s head to me; by doing so, you will win your life back." Hearing this, the badly beaten Crown Prince and the Duchess look at each other but stay silent. Twomanders take their weapons and stand up without talking to each other, but to Kharak''s surprise, they take back to back and point their weapons towards their enemies. "You want the head of a loser? Come and I will give you your head," The Duchess said to Kharak with fire in her eyes as her fighting spirit once again lit with a new me. "I don''t know who you are, but I will make sure to take as many as possible before I fall. I''m the future king of my people and you shall not see me beg or betray my subjects." Prince Benton dered his loyalty and took an arm next to his cousin, smiling and proud of the young prince. "This disappoints me, but this isn''t my first time seeing foolish acts of courage from the young royals. I will grant your deaths and bring your heads for the world to see when I ce them on the top of the capital." Kharak jumped down from the throne and entered the arena as a fully equipped Chaos Space Marine. With the roaring sound from the chain ax in his left hand and battle-ax in his right, Kharak slowly approached the twomanders. The Duchess made the first move against Kharak as she thrust her sword at the throat area. The attack hit the armor, but it didn''t do much as her de didn''t even scratch Kharak''s power armor. Receiving the first attack, Kharak attempted to strike the Duchess, but prince Benton charged in with his sword at World Eater''s right arm before he could. The strike was decisive and urate, but it was useless as it merely bounced back. Kharak, who is now irritated, ms the prince with his right arm without using a battle-ax as he didn''t have enough space to swing it. Prince used his sword to block the attack, which he seeded but unfortunately pushed to the other side of the arena and lost his consciousness for a second. Meanwhile, the Duchess continued her attacks and aimed at possible weak areas of the armor. Without any concern, Kharak struck the Duchess with a chain ax to which she sessfully dodged, but at the moment she avoided, the Chaos Space Marine hit her with his knee, which made her cough blood. "You think you could win against me? I''m the one you all should fear and despair of as I''m someone you have never experienced before!" Kharak yelled with rage and bloodthirst at the Duchess, but he heard something he was very familiar with and impossible in this world before he could. Kharak listened to a sound of a sound barrier-breaking as a singlerge ck drop poding right on top of his men. "Impossible!" A single word came from the Chaos Space Marine as he saw a drop poding down from the sky. When the drop pod hit the ground and crushed 20 chaos warriors, the pod''s heavy tes opened. Immediately, 10 Loyalist Space Marine and 2 Techmarines from the ck Temr came out with bolters hot as they fired their weapons without hesitation. The rush of battle began as Kharak witnessed his mortal enemies in the new world. With a new purpose, Kharak ignored the twomanders and started ordering his chaos warriors to fight back. Even though he took themand, his men weren''t ready as more enemies appeared from the Astartes'' opposite side. 50 Stormtroopers of Tempestus Scions began to strike the rear side with their advancedsgun, blocking the exit. "How is this possible? My watch guards would have alerted the camp if 50 Storm Troopers wereing!" Kharak shouted and began to fire his bolter at Astartes, but it was useless as he was being pushed back. He received his answer to camp guards as 30 Catachan Jungle Fighters appear from the shadow, with one particr ck Temr leading the charge. Armed with a ck sword and bolter in his hands, William unleashed the Imperium''s best of the best at the servant of the Chaos. There is no room for Kharak to escape or survive this as William is not the embodiment of revenge but vengeance for the fallen and messenger of the Emperor''s will. Chapter 35: Traitor vs Loyalist Chapter 35: Traitor vs Loyalist "Blood for the¡­" The chaos warrior didn''t get to finish his warcry as his head got sniped by one of the Storm Trooper''ssgun. 50 Storm Troopers from the left side slowly approach the enemy as they fire their weapons urately, while 12 ck Temrs from the right bulldozer the warriors of Chaos without restraint. Meanwhile, 30 Catachan Jungle Fighters led by the Emperor''s Champion quickly cut anyone attempting to fight back as William decapitated with a single swing of his ck sword. Soon, Kharak realized that he was cornered like a rat as his followers fell to the ground left and right. Still, he is a World Eater Space Marine as he would not fall without killing at least a few royal Astartes, including Champion. Pulling out two grenades, Kharak threw both of them at the ck Temrs, but before the grenades could hit the ground and detonate, sharpshooters from the Storm Troopers hit the grenades in the midair, destroying them. At this point, Prince Benton and the Duchess recovered from the injuries and gathered their strength to escape. Just as they were about to get out of the fighting pit, three chaos warriors jumped in to kill them as Kharak gave the order of executing the remaining prisoners. "We will collect your heads for our lord and god," The chaos warriors attack twomanders with their crude weapons. Seeing the attack, Prince Benton counters all three with his sword while the Duchess appears from the side and delivers a killing blow at one of the warriors in the neck. Now, with two opponents in front of him, the prince attempts to hold them where they stand, but one of the warriors kicks the prince, and the second turns around to face the Duchess head-on. Prince Benton quickly recovered and dodged the attack from his enemy. This angered the warrior as he expected this to be an easy kill, but to his surprise, the young prince managed to avoid each attack as if a chaos warrior is a simpleton. With rage clouding his judgment, the warrior swung his weapon wildly, which made him open wide for the prince to stab him. On the other hand, the Duchess single-handedly killed her opponent with her de without any problem, even though her previous injuries decreased her fighting ability. With their executioner taken care of, twomanders finally escape from the fighting pit and manage to keep their distance away from their dreaded captors. Dragging his feet, Prince Benton was supported by the Duchess as she didn''t stop her pace even a second, even though she had a few broken ribs. Meanwhile, the battlefield is in Chaos as two different military factions are killing each other (More of a one-sided carnage), and sounds of thundering bolter rounds andsguns could be heard loudly. Just as twomanders are about to copse due to exhaustion, 6 Stormtroopers appear out of nowhere and grab them to escape the danger. Stormtroopers quickly escort the two VIPs to safety with incredible strength and speed and have the medic check their injuries. Baffled by effectiveness and unusual fighting style, the Duchess couldn''t speak or ask the right question but realized that she was safe. On the other hand, Prince lost his consciousness once again due to pain and injuries, but thanks to the advance medical skills from the Stormtroopers medic, he will fully recover in a few days. "Did William send you? Where is yourmander?" Rana asked with hope in her voice which one of the Scion pointed his finger toward the battlefield. Focusing her eyes, the Duchess saw a giant ck-armored knight fighting her captor in meleebat. Each time their weapons sh, the spark can be seen, and the sound of metal grinding can be heard. The duel between loyalist and traitor Astartes began with the intent to kill, and only one wille out as the victor. ----------------------- "I never expected to meet you here, cousin, still serving that corpse Emperor of yours?" Kharak, who is holding a chainaxe strike at the Champion of the Emperor. William, who anticipated the attack, managed to block with his chainsword, which in contact generated a spark. A few minutes ago, William reinforcementpletely devastated Kharak''s Warband, which made Kharak a sole enemy on the battlefield. Kharak fired his bolter at Jungle Fighters with rage, but to his surprise, a single ck Temr blocked the rounds with a storm shield. The battle turned into a duel between two Astartes as William challenged Kharak the Berserker. Kharak is equipped with a chainaxe and battle-ax while his bolter hangs from the side while William is equipped with chainsword and storm shield. Both fighters are wearing their respective power armor as William''s ck armor, and Kharak''s red blood armor is the center of the attention. "Your appearance itself shows the corruption of Chaos, traitor. I know all about your legion and how Angron forced the butcher''s nails on his sons'' heads. That exins your stupidity and ignorance of believing you will win this fight." William insults the World Eater and pushes him to have little distance to use the move he learned from a movie he saw not long ago. With the storm shield''s gravitic energy field activities, William''ss shield bash Kharak''s head which had a powerful impact that staggered the traitor but only for a second. Still, this was enough for William to attack a second time and strike his chainsword at Kharak. The chainsword of loyalists struck the traitor''s right arm, which began to rip the armor te and flesh. The agonizing pain made Kharak''s butcher''s nail generate more chemicals to the wearer, which boost physical strength and aggression to the next level, even for Space Marines. Kharak quickly kicked William and prevented theplete loss of his right arm, which is now dangling from his shoulder. With imnts blocking his pain and other emotions, the World Eater Astartes charge in full force while wildly swinging chainaxe. Seeing Kharak gone entirely berserk, William ced his shield in front while quickly switching his chainsword with a ck power sword. The sh between two Astartes shook the ground around them while William''s small army watched in the distance with weapons still hot, ready to kill with no hesitation. William, who received the full-blown strike of chainaxe, was pushed to the corner while Kharak increased his attack speed. The storm shield started to lose its charge due to multiple attacks, but William maintained his position and waited for a perfect moment to counter. When Kharak was about to strike a heavy attack, William quickly dropped his shield and shifted his position low to strike while dodging the iing attack. With William sliding his feet and barely dodging Kharak''s weapon, William shes Kharak''s stomach with his ck sword activated. The ck sword cut through the World Eater''s power armor and his gut, which he immediately began to bleed and internal organs spilled out. Without any hesitation, William stood up behind and cut Kharak''s backside with a full strike. The sh diagonal cut the power armor''s backpack and its power source; this forced the Chaos Space Marine to his knees as the weight of the power armor and injuries weighed him down. "I''m not¡­ I''m not done. I will not lose to you who never witness what I have seen. I''m Kharak the Blood Axe, I will ascend just like Primarch, I will¡­" Kharak didn''t finish his sentence as William had enough with Chaos Space Marine. William switches his ck sword to a thunder hammer and smashes Kharak''s head and entire upper body. The thunder hammer''s fearsome impact crushed everything from the bones to the former World Eater Astartes'' power armor. "The Emperor protects, but not you because you are a jackass," William said to the body of the traitor Space Marine and smashed it again with a thunder hammer for good measure. With the death of Kharak, the chaos Warband was destroyed, and William''s force quickly moves to the next step of the operation, which is to burn and purge all of the chaos corruption within enemy corpses and everything else. Guardsmen gather the bodies while ck Temrs pull out their mers from their inventory, simr to William''s as they also received new weapons. ----------------------- [Missile Launcher x1: Imperial Guard heavy weapon which could destroy heavy vehicles and even tanks. Ites with ten missiles and can be assigned to one guardsman under the yer''smand.] [Summon Order (Cadian Shock Troopers) x1: Summon the full infantrypany of the Cadian''s best of the best as they stand between Eye of Terror and Cadian Gate for ten of thousands of years. Thepanyes with 150 troops and ten troop transport vehicles.] [Land Raider Crusader x1: Armed with heavy bolters,scannons, and havoc missileunchers, this battle tank/troop transport vehicle is the primary vehicle of the Imperium. Note: Comes with 3 Tech-Priests for repair and to perform Machine Spirit ceremony] Chapter 36: City of Colors Chapter 36: City of Colors Three days passed since William''s force defeated Kharak''s Warband and rescued two royal family members from converting the chaos. With the death of Sir Dolven and his order of knights, William stepped forward and took charge on an escort mission to the capital. Before leaving the ruin of Greenhill, William summoned additional troops and left a small group of 50 Cadian Shock Troopers, 10 Catachan Jungle Fighter, and three ck Temr Space Marine with one happens to be Techmarine. William''s forcesprise 50 Stormtroopers, 100 Cadian Shock Troopers, 20 Catachan Jungle Fighters, 8 Balck Temrs and one Techmarine from the ck Temrs. The food wasn''t much of an issue since they managed to regain their supplies from the Kharak''s storage after purging remains and corrupted equipment. Unfortunately, Prince Benton''s guns and volley cannons weren''t recoverable, but William managed to bury fallen knights and soldiers, including Sir Dolven''s body. Four Space Marines led the formation on the road while the rest of the troops followed and the remaining four Space Marines covered the nk. All 20 Catachan Jungle Fighters went on scouting missions since they are the master of stealth and jungle warfare. Sometimes, some jungle fighters return to the army with big games such as wild boars, giant red deers and bears. These were processed by the same soldiers and ced on supply wagons William''s force managed to repair before departure. "With our current speed, we will arrive in the first city by this evening. The city is called Draphia and governed by Viscount Zachary Lindver, a strong supporter of my father and the royal family. They were expecting us two days ago, but I''m sure they will wee us and we will have an opportunity to send a message to my father about what happened to Sir Dolven." Prince Benton informed William that Duchess and Mia were riding on the back of a wagon while William walked next to it. "The viscount will have one hell of a shock when he sees this much unknown military force entering his doorstep. I rmend encamping outside of the city while us three and few selected soldiers enter the city." The Duchess adds information to William as she is somewhat familiar with Draphia. Hearing this, William agrees to it as he tries to avoid potential conflict between his military force and Viscount Lindver''s defense force. "I will have one of my battle-brothers take charge when we arrive in Draphina. Please make sure viscount doesn''t get any idea when we stay in his city since I don''t want to have the second city burn to the ground." William said to Prince Benton with a bit of joke added, which made twomanders scorn William for dark humor. "You have to tell us how in the world your fellow brothers and small army end up appearing right when we need them." The Duchess said to William, to which he gave a simple answer. "Miracle from the God-Emperor," William said to the Duchess and Prince Benton, which two immediately gave a dirty look at William as if they didn''t believe William at all. This only made William chuckle silently as he told the truth, not to mention William himself doesn''t know where all these game itemse from. William was also d Prince Benton and Duchess are back to their old selves as they were somewhat depressed and shocked by the death of Sir Dolven and the experience they went through with Kharak, the Chaos Marine. After burying the dead in the Greenhill, Prince Benton and Duchess weren''t doing well mentally. The loss of a teacher and old friend to the family was too much, not to mention the harrowing experience they had to go through with Chaos Marine''s Warband. Physically, both of them are fine as medics gave proper treatment and enough medication to knock them out for most of the day. When they woke up from the well-rested sleep, they were already on the road to the capital with Mia staying next to them on the wagon. It took the whole day and a half for the Duchess to regain her posture back to warriormander, but for the Crown Prince, it took near the end of the second day, where he finally epted the loss. William was d they were strong-minded as facing brutal acts from the follower of chaos will only bring either death or eternal suffering as a follower of the Chaos. For now, William will make sure there is no sign of corruption and maintain his awareness of chaos''s influence. From hounds of Khorne, Greater Daemon of anesh to World Eater in this world concerned William as he believed this is just a beginning of the invasion of chaos force. ''I have to build and grow enough fighting force to counter them. I hope there is enough time before those Chaos Gods send their main force,'' William once again made his mind and prepared for future events that could bring destruction to this world. For one thing, there are no other factions such as Orks, Tau, Elder, or Tyranids, but that doesn''t mean they won''t end up finding this ce through warp or interference from the Tzeentch''s eternal schemes. By early evening, William''s force made it to the Draphia. The city is famous for its production of clothing goods such as clothes, dyes of all colors, and even the finest craftsmanship of armors in the entire kingdom. For this reason, Draphia is also known as City of Colors for its unique products and specialty when ites to clothing. Prince''s tailors are from this city as many skilled people practice their craftsmanship in this city (Prince left most of his nobat personal back on Deron to provide support to two armies). As William''s army approaches the city wall, many defense forces from Draphia position themselves to defend potential invaders. But they didn''t attack and began opening the main gate when they saw one of the banners William''s army was carrying. The royal family''s g, the Crown Prince''s, ease the tension of the Draphia as they realized the military was part of the Crown Prince''s escort. "Crown Prince, we expected your arrival with Sir Dolven and Duchess Beckett two days ago. May I ask where Sir Dolven is and who are those men escorting you?" Viscount Lindver weed Prince Benton and the rest as he came out of the city wall to greet members of the royal family. "There are many things we have to discuss regarding my dys, but for now, let me introduce you to a man who helped us. This is William, Pdin of the God-Emperor andmander of the finest army. William, this is Viscount Zachary Lindver; he governed Draphia and four other towns as his family did for many generations." Prince Benton introduced Viscount Lindver to William. But to the prince''s and other''s surprise, the viscount wasn''t fazed but weed William as if he already knew who he was. "Ah yes, William the Giant. I heard of your achievement through my uncle, Tom Lindver. You saved my uncle from the bandit''s ambush and escorted his entire merchant convoy to Greenhill. You have my thanks, and I wee you as my guest of honor, including Crown Prince and the Duchess. Wee to Draphia, the City of Colors." Viscount Lindver weed William and everyone as citizens of Draphia gave heroes'' wee with cheers and flower petals in the air. Chapter 37: Last Dinner Guest Chapter 37: Last Dinner Guest The Draphia, City of Colors, wees the Crown Prince and the rest of the heroes as they march through the main street with cheers. Prince Benton and the Duchess rode their horses since Viscount Lindver provided the mount after realizing VIPs were in rough shape. Meanwhile, William and his two personal guards (One Space Marine and one Tech Marine) follow the VIPs on foot. There was no need to ride a horse since their superhuman physical traits allow them to match the pace or outrun them; no horse could carry a fully equipped Space Marine due to their weight. Keeping his promise and following the city''s protocol, William left his army outside the city with Sergeant Space Marine in charge until William returned. Thanks to the helmet''s short-range radio, William canmunicate with his army and his bodyguards if it is needed. As for the army, they immediately set up the camps and guard positions, making sure there was no weakness from possible attack. Half of the Catachan Jungle Fighters disappeared into the forest to which no one was able to find out what they are up to as they merged into shadow. When the group arrived at the Viscount''s castle, they were wee again with many servants and minor nobles. A particr group of servants caught William''s attention as he recognized the Crown Prince''s servants and head butler, Mr. Jon. William was already aware that Prince Benton left most workers back at Deron but retained his servants when they left the city a few days ago. Sir Dolven and his knights bought enough time for nonbatants to escape when Kharak''s Warband ambushed them. "Mr. Jon and the rest of the servants arrived this morning. They were tired and exhausted, but Mr. Jon managed to inform me of the ambush, which I immediately began gathering forces to send tomorrow morning. Imagine my surprise when city guards alert the entire city for a possible siege after hearing the news." Viscount Lindver exins to Prince Benton as Crown Prince''s face brightens up after seeing his close friends survived the ambush. The reunion was tearful as Mr. Jon, and the rest of the servants cried with joy and swore never to leave Prince Benton ever again. Even Mia and the Duchess wipe a small tear from their eyes while servants of other nobles admire Prince''s servants'' will and noble strength. On the other hand, William and his two battle-brothers were stone faces as they didn''t felt any emotion. This realization was a bit weird for William as he knows the circumstance of the situation, but his mind refuses to express any sad emotion for some reason. ''Strange, I''m not feeling any sad emotions at all. This also happened when I found about the destruction of Greenhill and the death of Sir Dolven. Am I losing my humanity?'' William thought to himself while he hides his face behind the helmet. One thing for sure, William has more questions than answers as he stays in this world. A few minutester, the reunion ended with Mr. Jon, and other servants reposition themselves as personal servants of Crown Prince with professionalism andposure. The residents of the castle and minor nobles wee the Crown Prince and hispanions as they entered the castle with Viscount''s servants taking each VIP into their rooms. When it is William''s turn, the servants assumed he was one of the knights of Crown Prince since William and two Space Marines were fully armored from top to bottom. For this reason, they were escorted to a lesser room suitable for lesser nobles or knights. William didn''t mind the downgrade since he preferred privacy so he could think about the current situation. The two battle-brothers simply refused the room and stood guard in front of the door, making sure no one could disturb the Emperor''s Champion. Thanks to two ck Temrs, William has peace and quiet to organize his thoughts, including Sir Dolven''s loss. William considered Sir Dolven a friend and mentor to this world''s knowledge. The death of a significant person such as him is painful and a massive loss as Sir Dolven was a prominent ally of William in this kingdom. The loss of Sir Dolven would mean a power vacuum within the nobility, including an investigation and possible me game which could result in death. William now has to start ying the political game of this world if he wants to start building forces for the uing Chaos. Of course, William could take over the kingdom with the force he has and subjugate the people, but this would only waste his time which he doesn''t have. The support from Crown Prince and the Duchess are essential to have as they have the heart of the people and influences to move nobles loyal to the crown. Suppose William does obtain the Deron and the Fort Stormfist. In that case, William can focus on building more forces and firepower from defending the region from the remaining vampire factions and Orc raiders from the southern border. William''s thoughts were interrupted when he heard the knock from his door. William stands up and opens the door to see a very nervous man with fancy blue clothes standing between two ck Temrs giving death stares through their helmets. "Sir William, Viscount Zachary Lindver request your presence in the main dining hall to attend dinner with Crown Prince and the Duchess." The messenger delivers the message to William best he could while nearly wetting his pants as two ck Temrs stay silent and continue to unleash the presence of death itself onto poor fellow. "I ept and will be there shortly. Please wait outside for few minutes." William said and closed the door to change his into formal clothes. After a quick change of clothes (Thanks to inventory and equipt ability), William left his room with a messenger, quickly leading the giant man and two other giant kights following them to the diner hall. William and his battle-brothers arrive at the dining hall entrance, to which a messenger knocks on the door to announce William''s entrance. When the door open, William entered the hall while two dozen nobles and servants silently watch the giant man walk past them, breaking all types of protocols and etiquette in front of Crown Prince, Viscount, and the Duchess. William passed everyone at the long table and took the seat next to the Duchess seated across Viscount Lindver. Meanwhile, two ck Temrs follow William and stand few feet behind him while scanning the room for potential assassins. Crown Prince and the Duchess smiled in silence but decided to help William with awkward room silence. "William, you have to introduce yourself to Crown Prince," Duchess Beckett whisper to William so the dinner can officially begin. "Oh, ok," William whisper back to the Duchess and turn his head to Crown Prince, and spoke out loud. "Hey, kid. Sorry foring inte. It looks like I was holding everyone from their dinner tes." The entire room gasps with shock except for the Crown Prince and the Duchess as they couldn''t hold back theirugh anymore, confusing every noble even more. Chapter 38: The Neighboring Kingdom Chapter 38: The Neighboring Kingdom "You uncivilized barbarian. How dare you speak vulgarly in front of Crown Prince and Duchess of Agrus! How can you present yourself as a noble?" One of the nobles in the table a few seats away shouts at William after recovering from the initial shock. Many guests, including servants (Except for Crown Prince''s), whispers to each other as they just witnessed the rude behavior towards Crown Prince. William was supposed to introduce himself to Prince Benton and request permission to take a seat. Also, bringing fully armed followers is considered an act of rebellion, especially in the same room with the royal family. It makes sense if William thinks about it for a second, but to him, it doesn''t matter as he was sitting next to two friends, not high-ranking nobles or royal family members. "Sorry if I was rude and all, but I''m not a noble. I''m an adventurer hired to help them out with vampire problem." William exins the misunderstanding and quickly signals two battle-brothers to remain still. The two ck Temrs were ready to draw their bolter pistols and unleash the punishment, but after seeing the signal from their Champion, they remain where they are. "An adventurer? My lord, how can we have a mere peasant be present in this hall? Guards, remove them at once!" A second noble gave an order to make the entire situation much worse as William''s battle-brothers are about to end their tiny lives. Before blood could be spilled, Prince Benton halts the guards and stands up from his seat to announce. Crown Prince''s action silence everyone in the room once again. As for two ck temrs paused their action thanks to William once again signaling them to stand by for further instruction. "Lords anddies of Draphia. I''m aware that mypanion William doesn''t hold noble titles simr to you all. But, I have to remind you all that he saved my life multiple times during the military campaign and earned my trust as a friend." Crown Prince spoke with emphasis and firmly, which surprised everyone. For the nobles of Draphia, there was no arrogance or ignorance of the next heir of the crown, but rather the presence of veteran warriors in front of them. "Of course, your highness, it seems some of us made a mistake due tock of information. William, please forgive our rudeness. I will personally take responsibility for their actions as highest lord in Draphia." Viscount Lindver apologizes to William, which he quickly epts to reduce the tension, especially two very murder-hungry ck Temrs standing behind him. With the end of ''misunderstanding,'' the head butler of Viscount ps his hands to begin dinner. Many maids serve various dishes while footmen pour drinks to empty cups of each guest. William is aware of multiple dishes served during dinner but not familiar with how to conduct himself to eat different types of food. Thankfully, Rana (Duchess Beckett) quickly takes the initiative on each meal so William can copy her second after. There were eight-course meals that started with soup and ended with sweet desserts such as puddings and fruits. William had no problem finishing each meal and drinks as he receives new information from each meal and immune to alcohol (Space Marines are can easily consume poison and obtain knowledge from the food). When dinner is finally over, and most of the nobles excuse themselves to retire. The leading group William, Crown Prince, the Duchess, and Viscount, also left the dining hall to the Viscount''s study to continue their tales of the previous war and the vampire campaign. As for the two battle-brothers, William ces them outside of the door to continue their ''guard'' duty. "William, I know you are an adventurer, but I''m still boggled by how you became amander of personal military force. The giant ck knights, high-quality equipment, and men under yourmand, I need to know the truth. Who are you?" Viscount Lindver asked William with curiosity as he wants to know William''s true identity. Prince Benton and the Duchess already know William''s answer to the question but open their ears to learn new information. "Well, as you know, I''m William and an adventurer of Greenhill, but I''m also a servant of God-Emperor, the Master of Mankind. I''m his Champion which I believe is equal or greater to the Pdin. For the men under mymand, they are also servants of God-Emperor, and ck knights are my battle-brothers who sworn same oath just like me." William carefully exins his background and avoids the potential spread of chaos or misunderstanding. For these reasons, William decided to pursue the religious path since it is easier for natives of this world to understand (The Emperor''s Champion = Pdin). "I see. Prince Benton already told me about your achievements and how you stopped the daemons during the Battle of Stormfist. As I trust his highness''s words, I will believe you. I hope you will do the same when the timees." Viscount Lindver easily epts the legitimacy of the religion and William. For many generations, Lindver noble family followed the royal family and supported them. A single word from Crown Prince was enough for the nobleman to believe William''s tale and his aplishments andpare the story from his uncle, who was saved by a giant man with ck armor many weeks ago. The conversation continued with Prince Benton''s tale of battles, victory dinner after the campaign, and new guns that could be a potential new weapons project for him when hees back home. The Duchess also agrees with the young prince''s desire to start a new weapon project as she saw the effectiveness of the rifles and Vollet Cannons. If the Kingdom of Alderim could manufacture the new weapons and train the soldiers to be efficient, neighboring kingdoms will think twice before invading Alderim again. When Prince Benton mentions the capital city, Viscount Lindver''s facial expression changed as if he has bad news to deliver. With her sharp perception, the Duchess of Agrus was the first to saw the sudden change of emotion from the host nobleman. "Is there something you want to tell us? I can tell you have great weight on your shoulder," Rana asked the host, to which William and Prince Benton turn their attention to the Viscount. After a quick second of silence, Viscount decided to spill the bean right after taking a quick sip of his drink. With heavy breath Zachary Lindver, the Master of the Draphia exins his concern to the Crown Prince of Alderim. "Your highness, before the beginning of tonight''s dinner, I received the message from the Royal Court that emissary of Legen arrived today. They will meet with your father tomorrow and discuss a possible alliance with Alderim." Viscount exined to Prince Benton and gave a piece of paper he received to prove he was telling the truth. Reading what was written in the paper, Prince Benton crushes the message and throws his drink at the firece. The alcohol sets the fire and brightens the study for a second before it calms down. William, who is confused by the Crown Prince''s reaction, turns to ask Rana. But when he did, he saw the same bitterness and anger from the Duchess, just like Prince Benton. Seeing there is no way to get an answer from twomanders, William turns to Viscount, to which he quietly exins the situation. "Three years ago, Alderim was invaded by the neighboring kingdom, Legen. We won the war, but it was costly, and we lost several towns from the invading forces. Just a day before the Legen deration of war, they publicly executed our ambassador and former Crown Prince, who was visiting the embassy. They killed our first prince, Prince Benton''s older brother, for the false usation of the assassination attempt of King of Legen''s life." Viscount''s exnation helped William understand the situation as he foresaw a new problem when they make it to the capital city. Chapter 39: It must be Tzeentch Chapter 39: It must be Tzeentch Since MC received various items, summons, and abilities, I made aplete list. I will also put ''Used'' next to the items to show that MC used that item currently. ''Items'' [Combat Knife x1] [Bolter Pistol x1] [Bolter Rifle x1] [Heavy Bolter x1] [mer x1] [Heavy mer x1] [sma Rifle x1] [Missile Launcher x1] [Chainsword x1] [Powersword x1] [Thunder Hammer x1] [Retractable Lighting w x1] [Storm Shield x1] [Jump Pack x1] [Assult Bike x1] [Champion''s Armor with ck Sword x1] [Frag Grenade x Many] [Prometheus Gernade x Many] [Purity Seal: Oath of Loyalty x1] [Purity Seal: Champion of Living x1] [Purity Seal: Bane of Chaos x1] [Aegis Terminator Armour x1] [Gene Seed of Grey Knight x1] [Spark of Astronomican x1] ''Summon Items'' [Artillery Bombardment x1] Used [Penitent Engines x1] Used [Militarum Tempestus Scions x50] Used [Adaptus Astartes: ck Temr x12] Used [Dreadnought x1] Used [Catachan Jungle Fighters x30] Used [Cadian Shock Troopers x150 with 10 Trucks] Used [Valkyrie Deployment x3 with 30 Imperial Guardsmen] [Land Raiders Crusader x1] Note: Please let me know if I missed anything else. ------------------------------------------------- "I will not ept this!" Prince Benton shouts with rage in his voice while the Duchess remains silent to process the information. Meanwhile, William and Viscount stand in the side and watch twomanders'' very different reactions. "I will personally meet the emissary of the Legen and show them who was the victor of the war three years ago!" Crown Prince made his mind at the moment of the rage to which the Duchess got up from her chair and approached the prince. "Smack!" The Duchess''s hand p the Crown Prince''s face, which stunned and stopped the prince''s rage tantrum. The room went silent, to which Prince Benton tries to recover from sudden pain in his right face. "As I understand your pain and suffering, we need to know more before barging into capital and go murder happy. If Legen sent an emissary to talk of peace and alliance, then we have to find out what their intention is." The Duchess said true to her words, but William can tell she was holding her emotion back. The sudden burst of rage and destroying isn''t something royalty should do as it will show only the weakness of unable to control themselves and the situation. That is William''s job. "Let us return to our rooms and continue our conversation tomorrow with a fresh mind," William said to both Prince Benton and the Duchess, which both agree in silence while Viscount opens the door to show exist. When the door opened, and two ck Temrs move to the side to make a path, both Prince Benton and the Duchess left the study room and went to their rooms separately without saying anything. William, who saw and felt the tension still looming around two youngmanders. Before he heads out to his old room, Viscount summons a single footman by ringing a small bell. "William, please ept my apology for tonight''s dinner. It was uneptable to treat Crown Prince''s gust the way minor nobles did tonight. Please follow the footman and he will show you your new room. Of course, your bodyguards will have their own next to yours." Viscount gave his sincere apologies to William and went separate ways to return to his room. As for William and his battle-brothers, follow the footman to his new room, which thankfully was the first floor and ample room. After showing William''s room, the footman tried to show two intimidating ck Temrs to their rooms next to William''s. That didn''t work well as two ck Temrs stood still in front of William''s room, guarding against any unwanted introducers and potential assassins from the Chaos faction. To the ck Temrs, Emperor''s Champion isn''t just an honorary position within ranks of the Space Marine but also highly esteemed through millennia of endless war and conflicts. Of course, it doesn''t mean Emperor''s Champion can outrank the Chapter Master of the ck Temr or other Space Marine chapters when ites to chain ofmand. But as of now, William is themanding battle brother due to his unique position and blessed one by the Emperor himself. After exploring the room, William didn''t sleep that night. Even though he saw the finest bed since he came to this world, he didn''t botherying there as he has multiple things in his mind and requires his attention. The introduction of Chaos gods and their puppets entering this world became more frequent. One after another, the Chaos gods are sending a small number of army and agents to test this world and how they will react. Worst, this could be happening globally, and William can''t stop all of them without any intel or base of operation. Thankfully, William is receiving small items such as summons and weapons to fight the local Chaos, but it is not enough. He needs a way to speed things up fast, and this means there will be a lot of bloodshed in the possible future. The more enemies William kills, the more loots he will acquire, and his army does the same, making them stronger and much more deadly. This means one thing for the Champion, and he needs to start a war, knowing exactly where to look for. ------------------------------------------------- Next day, William watches the sun rises from the window while consuming a tiny snack he got from his inventory. He found few possible paths to begin his war, and all of them are equivalent to war crime and crimes against humanity (Current UN standard). First, William could form a mercenarypany with his current forces to wage war which sounds reasonable. After all, who wouldn''t pay at full price for a 100% victory guarantee? Second is taking a noble position within Crown Prince Benton''s kingdom and hold a region ofnds while building number and influences. This path is more diplomatic and suitable for administrators and old nobles who want to rule and retire. This could mean William has to kneel to the local king, which is a big no to him and his battle-brothers. Sure, he is an average human in Space Marine''s body, but his perception of reality changed when he ends up possessing a body of Space Marine he created the night beforeing to D&D world. Something is changing him, including his humanity and sympathy, and his personality starts to act somewhat of a military veteran. Lastly, the third option for William is to wage a crusade in this world. Like how Emperor united the Old Terra with his Thunder Warriors and embark on the Unification War, William can do what the Emperor did, just like in the novel. The problem is resistance from the local humans, other races, monsters, and the possibility of native deities interfering with William''s work. All three options are on the table and only require William to pick one at the end. Path of bing soldiers of fortune, go native and serve the mortals of this world as one of them. Finally, bing a conqueror of the new and old world just like how Emperor did. All these choices are very different, but the result will ensure and increase William''s fight against the Chaos faction. The question is how he will aplish this without making serious mistakes or making the situation much worse. (Example such as Emperor failed his sons as theyter failed him, William''s interference could expand the influence of the Chaos or the possibility that William is ying a dangerous game between gods of this world and Chaos) ''Well, for now, I have to wait and see how Alderim and Legen will resolve their political matters. If anything goes wrong, I will jump in to help my friends, and if it gets worse then I will start shooting my bolter and see who stands afterward.'' With a light joke at the end, William turned around and left his room to meet his friends. He is sure their anger is now subsided by now, and they will have a much clear mindpare tost night. When they arrive at the capital, it will be a game of political mind and house of cards. Both Crown Prince and the Duchess will need to make ns to be one step ahead of Legen''s emissary. After all, there is a possibility that this could be a game and schemes from Tzeentch himself. Tzeentch is a pain in the ass Chaos god. He is the equivalent of a child asking never-ending questions while knowing the answer before another person could answer them. As Choas god, Tzeentch represents change, fate, ambition, schemes, lies, sorcery, and knowledge. This means he is aplete nerd when ites to destiny and every possible path the future will take. Image Marvel movie''s Doctor Strange with his time stone exploring infinite possibilities while irritating everyone else by asking them questions such as "What is destiny and how do we know all of us are alive?" or "How do we know we are not just a fish dying and thinking what the world is like?" Tzeentch is aplete mind blender and irritation to other Chaos gods and all mortals. Like how anesh''s rival is Khorne, Tzeentch''s is Nurgle, the gue god, the master of decay, death, despair, and destruction. William knows he will soon face either Tzeentch or Nurgle, and by the sound of the situation he is about to face in the capital, he is sure it will be Tzeentch. For this reason, William is determined not to get mixed with Tzeentch''s twisted mind game and solve the issue with good old fashion chainsword and bolter rounds. William arrived at Prince Benton''s door. However, instead of knocking on the door, William burst through the room and shout with authority. "Wake up, you fool! Youcked disciplinest night, and this means you need more training. I''m going to make you a formidable warrior by the time we make it to the capital!" Chapter 40: The Crown Prince’s Trial Chapter 40: The Crown Prince¡¯s Trial Viscount Lindver was generous enough to give his carriage and additional supplies to William, so the Duchess and Mia coils travel at ease. The Duchess and Mia became close friends during the trip ever since Mia cared for them after the rescue from the Chaos Marine. William''s party left the City of Colors the day after the dinner party as dire news from the capital elerated the schedule. It takes five days to travel from Draphia to the capital city. There are few small towns and guideposts on the road, but this doesn''t mean it is safe to travel alone as dangers roam most at night. The number of bandits and monster activities has increased since the war between Alderim and Legen three years ago. Deserters of Legen who couldn''t return home turned into bandits, while unchecked monsters during the war continued to raid and increase their numbers. With all these unknown dangers and rough roads ahead, for five days, Crown Prince of Alderim went through the toughest training in his lifetime. Ever since William burst through his chamber door, Prince Benton''s life went from internal suffering into physical and psychological devastation. Last time William was focused on training and preparing the army of the Alderim for the siege, but this time it is different. The Crown Prince is the sole focus of William, and he isn''t alone in training the little prince to be a warrior king. Day One: Sergeant from the Cadian Shock Troopers drilled Prince Benton''s body and mind the whole day. The goal of the infamous Cadian training wasn''t to break the physical body of the trainee but to demolish the current mindset and rebuild it like a fortress worthy of the name Cadia. Of course, this takes time when ites to making a perfect Cadian soldier, but William''s goal wasn''t to make a Cadian soldier but a warrior strong enough to withstand potential danger from the Chaos. Day Two: Prince Benton''s next instructor is a lieutenant of the Tempestus Scions who taught Sch Progenium''s Art of War and Espionage. This not only helped the Crown Prince''s ability to lead andunch sessful military ns but necessary to have a calm mind during dire situations. For this reason, five other Tempestus Scions attempt to ambush and assassinate Prince Benton for his final trial (With four medics ready to bring the Crown Prince back to the world of the living when he fails.) Day Three: For two days, Prince Benton went through survival and escaped training from the infamous Imperial Guardsmen known for Death World of Catachan and the deadliest jungle warfare in the gxy. Sergeant of the Catachan Jungle fighters dragged the poor prince and disappeared entirely after a few words with William. Catachan Jungle Fighters are known for many things, and being a weakling isn''t one of them as each jungle fighter went through a baptism of fire by surviving one night on their. Another thing the Catachan are known for is their master-crafted Catachan Fighting Knives, to which Orks of the 40k seek them as prized weapons from the ''Humies.'' Day four: Somewhere in the woods, surviving. Day Five: Prince Benton and Sergeant return before breakfast with multiple minor cuts and dirty uniforms but show dramatic changes, especially his eyes. After breakfast, William gathered everyone to announce Prince Benton''s final test before entering the capital region. With a makeshift fighting pit, Crown Prince and single ck Temr entered the pit with no weapons or armor. The two fighters began their fight with the sound of asgun shot in the air. ck Temr (No power armor or weapons) initiated the first attack by throwing the first punch at the prince. With a quick jab, the punch went for the opponent''s face which the prince blocked with both of his arms but the power and strength of the ck Temr pushed him to the edge of the pit on his knee. Enduring the first attack, Prince Benton raises his head to see a giant warrior about to m his two fists at him like a hammer. Without thinking but reacting based on his survival instinct, Prince Benton rolls to the side while grabbing a handful of sands. "Ahhhh!" Shouting in all his might, the prince kicked his right leg at ck Temr''s face as the Space Marine didn''t return to his stance from the previous attack. The kick made contact with ck Temr''s face, but it barely did anything as the prince felt pain and electricity running down on his leg. "Good kick but not enough," The giant warrior grabs the prince''s leg and lifts him as if the prince was made out of twigs. ck Temr ms the prince''s entire body onto the ground with no effort, making him facent. When lifted again, Prince Benton''s face was bloodied and barely recognizable due to his injuries. Just as ck Temr was about to repeat his previous attack, the prince who was still conscious opened his one eye and threw the sand from his closed fist at ck Temr''s eyes. The sand hit the ck Temr''s eyes and blinded him, but he endured the sharp pain while not letting the leg go. Still dangling upside down, the prince kicked the ck Temr''s face with a free leg and freed himself while the opponent staggered back. Now freed from the opponent''s grasp, Prince Benton charged head-on, intending to bring down the giant warrior by attacking one of the knees. But with all the effort and nning, the prince failed to achieve this as ck Temr quickly recovered from the sand ssh and caught a glimpse of the prince''s location. With his superior speed and reach, ck Temr punched the prince''s stomach at the right moment, instantly knocking him out from the fight. Immediately, two Cadian medics and one Tempestus Scions medic jump into action to check on the prince while ck Temr exits from the pit and regroup with the rest of the battle-brothers. "Sir, the prince is dead," One of the medics said to William while the Duchess, Mia, and the rest of the prince''s attendants began to panic. The Crown Prince died just outside of the capital region and it wasn''t to protect the innocents but from the training done by William. Many of the attendants, including a head butler and Mia began to cry in sorrow, but William remained silent. "Very well, bring him back," William gave his order in which two medics inject a serum and restart the prince''s heart. After a few shocks and patching the wounds, the prince returned to life as he took his first breath. "What¡­" Prince Benton couldn''t finish his sentence as medics continued their work. While this is happening, the Duchess wipes her tears and res at William. After all, the prince''s death gave her her own version of heart attack and she didn''t expect William to go this far on training. "William, exin what just happened," The Duchess demanded the exnation from William, which he gave. "I already knew the prince''s chance of winning was near zero, but I had to see his result of the training. Of course, I also knew he could die from the fight, especially facing one of my battle-brothers in hand-to-handbat. That is why I had the healers (Medic) ready the moment the prince fell and had enough resources to bring him back from the dead. Don''t worry since medics of the Cadia and Tempestus Scions are known for reviving the dead recruits from the dead multiple times during their training." William reassures angry lionesses and the rest of the attendants with an exnation of the prince''s ''resurrection.'' "But this means he failed your trial. Isn''t it? Mia asks William as she also wipes her tears. This question interested everyone as Prince Benton failed to win the fight against one of William''s finest warriors. "Failed? No, this trial wasn''t to see if the prince can win the fight against my battle-brother. The purpose of this trial was to see if he had what it takes to face death and survive. Well, he needs to work on ''surviving,'' but overall, he passed the trial." William said to everyone and joined the medics to see how the prince was doing. Others join the Emperor''s Champion to see the prince''s well-being, which to their surprise, he was able to stand up from the ground with two medics supporting him. "I failed you, William. I''m ready to redo the whole training once I recover from the injuries. I will not disappoint you again." Prince Benton swore with no hints of doubts as he said to William. Seeing the newfound testament from Prince Benton made William happy as the current prince is very different from the arrogant person he first met many days ago. "You didn''t fail anyone, Prince Benton, but you pass the trial and every training I throw at you. My troops and I recognize your tenacity and will to fight even in death. Your training isn''t over yet, but from now on, ck Temrs will assist you in your time of need and won''t be alone on the battlefield. The Emperor protects!" "The Emperor protects!" All of William''s troops repeat hisst sentence as they all stand tall with the determination that could demolish any foe''s will. With that, Prince Benton''s training ended for now, and everyone began to make overnight camp. Tomorrow, William''s army will enter the capital city, and the battle of politics between Alderim and Legen will begin. "Rest up tonight. You deserve a good night''s sleep," William said to the Crown Prince and pped his back to cheer him up, but because William was wearing his power armor, Prince Benton received the full impact. It didn''t take much as Prince Benton, who is still barely alive, fell to the ground and stopped breathing. "He died again! Reviving once again, clear!" ------------------------------------------- ck Temr who won the fight: [sma Rifle x1 and Heavy Bolter x1] William: [Summon Order (Commissar Ciaphas Cain) x1: One of the greatest heroes of the Imperium and rare individual who survived multiple conflicts with various Xenos races. Ciaphas Cain usually charges ahead with his troops to fight the enemy, earning great respect from many Imperial Guardsmen. However, unlike most Imperialmissars, Commissar Cain doesn''t readily sacrifice soldiers and shows a savage level of discipline for which manymissars were known for. Ciaphas Cain is responsible for countless sessful campaigns during his military service and known for surviving multiple deadly conflicts that Imperium permanently marked him as ''Missing In Action.'' Commissar Ciaphas Cain equipped with arge chainsword andspistol.] Chapter 41: Relationship Problem Chapter 41: Rtionship Problem "I understand what you are trying to do, but I disagree with yourst approach with my cousin. You killed him twice for the kingdom''s sake. What would you have done if he didn''te back from death itself? Did you take a chance with his life?" The Duchess of Agrus ask William as both of them took a little walk away from the main camp to have a private conversation. William understands why Rana is distraught after witnessing the Crown Prince''s trial. After all, Rana has a close rtionship with her cousin as both of them had the same teacher and mentor, Sir Dolven. Also, there is the fact that Prince Benton is the next future king of her county, and William did kill him more than once. "You are right, I did take my chance with his training from the beginning, and the result was what I had hope for. Of course, I didn''t do all this without taking extra measures to make sure Prince Benton survives each training. But at the end of all this, Prince Benton persevered every obstacle and proven his might not just to me but everyone else, including my brothers." William exined his reasoning and the chance he took to ensure Crown Prince''s survival. After all, William was preparing the Crown Prince for potential Chaos invasion in case William fails. "I know this isn''t just proving his worth to you and your men. You have an ulterior motive for a while, and I waited enough. I want answers, NOW!" Rana, who now ran out of her patience, demands an answer and wants to hear an answer from the man she started to trust. Without any doubt, this time, Rana will get straight answers from William without his puzzling answer of ''It is Emperor''s will.'' Ever since joining the vampire campaign and meeting William, she experienced new things and supernatural events past month than her entire life. Especially when they were attacked by barbarians led by an armored man who has simr weapons and armor just like William. William takes the helmet off and holds it to his side. She directly looks at Rana as she red back at him without any hint of backing out. William''s mind ran light-years as he asks himself multiple questions. Should he exin to her what is toe? The invasion that is beyond any mortal''s imagination and terror. William, a mear mortal from the ''real world'', is doing his best to prepare for an invasion that no one knows. These questions weigh him heavily more than his power armor. "There are forces, supernatural entities that are trying toe to this world. I can''t tell you their true names as they will have an anchor to this world but what I can tell you is that they are the eternal enemy of God-Emperor and the Imperium of Mankind." William did his best to exin what kind of force he and his army is facing. No names, no true nature of their existence, and any information that could give them the opportunity to grow roots like a weed. To minimize the influence on this world is, to say the least, an amount of information to natives. But William also knows this is how Emperor did to his sons by hiding the truth, which backfired, literally in his face. "Is that it? Enemies of your god areing to my world, and that is your best exnation to me?" Rana was furious about William''s simple answer to her questions. How can she defend her country and her people from unknown enemies when a single person who has direct answers to defeat them isn''t telling jack shit? "I can''t say more. As I said, they will have the anchor to this world if I tell you who they are. If that happens, there will be no ways to remove their grips from this world and everyone you know." William''s exnation didn''t help much as Rana understood it differently. After all, her world has multiple deities, and some of them previously caused problems before, so supernatural invasion isn''t something new for Rana''s knowledge. "What about your god? The God-Emperor? Why doesn''t he directly handle his enemies like a true warrior you im him to be? Isn''t he a god?" Rana asks William with frustration after hearing William''s stonewall answer. With everything, William told her about God-Emperor is true, then Emperor must be doing something to stop his enemies. "He is, and you are looking at it. I''m here to protect you, but Emperor can''t directly take action just like his enemies can''t. This fight is my burden, and it isn''t yours to be part of." Thest sentence from Emperor''s Champion ends the discussion as William doesn''t want to push any further. The war between Chaos and Imperium indeed came to this world, but it doesn''t mean this has to stay here forever. William will find a way to push the Chaos and close every gap of warp that leads to this world, the only problem being if there is a way to seal the gaps. The Duchess didn''t say right away after William finish hisst sentence. From her perspective, William deres that her help isn''t needed as she isn''t part of his religion. The religious movements are something Rana heard and saw plenty as various deities exist in this world. Some are gods or goddesses of something and tend to cause problems once every hundred years to which group of heroes or adventurers usually stops it. Still, those people need help from local lords, king or queen as logistics of the holy campaign are needed. William declines that significant help on his holy campaign to defeat some unknown evil gods and even told Rana to ''Backoff.'' Once again, there was a silence between William and Rana as both just stare at each other and wait for one of them to speak. William is doing his best to protect people who were kind to him in his known world. Rana is willing to help the Pdin of the Emperor on a holy mission to defeat evil gods. Finally, Rana spoke first, breaking the silence. "Then add me to your group. I don''t belong to any particr religion, so if I convert to your religion, then I will have all my questions answered, and you will have my help, problem solved." Rana''s answer surprised even William as he didn''t expect to hear the change of religion from her. Yes, this will somewhat solve the current problem, but it doesn''t mean it won''te back to haunt William in some ways. What if Rana goesplete Sisters of Battle against Chaos and ends up getting killed? Or worse, what if she joins the Chaos after learning Emperor''s lore and history of Imperium? If Tzeentch is genuinely messing with William, this is it for sure. "I¡­ I will think about it. For now, I will hold your request for religious conversion until further notice. Until you be a full-pledged member, you won''t get any answers to your questions. Please be patient and let us handle local political problems first." William somehow redirected the topic of the sudden religious recruit and put on his helmet back on. While Rana is somewhat satisfied with the temporary solution, William has more questions on what will happen if a native of this world gains knowledge of apletely different world''s religion. William sends the Duchess back to the camp first with the excuse of wanting to be alone to think further. When the Duchess finally went away, William stands alone as the calm wind blew away gently. Turning his head to his left and right, William finally said to himself through his helmet. "You maye out," Secondter, two Tempestus Scions came out from the shadows of the trees. Living up to their elite status, they killed their presence and guarded William against any potential enemy, even from an internal one. "The area is secured, and everyone is ready to move them the moment you give themand. I sent two others to follow the Duchess back to camp in case anything happens to her, including a sudden change of heart," One of the Scion reported to William, including sending escorts to the Duchess, which William wasn''t aware of. ''Damn, there were four of them? I didn''t saw the other two from my helmet sensor.'' "Good, we will be arriving at Prince Benton''s home tomorrow, but I want to make sure there isn''t any surprise for us. Pass the order to Catachan Jungle Fighters to send 5 of their best scouts to check areas, including the border between Alderim and Legen. I have a feeling there is more to this alliance of two kingdoms." William gave his order to which the second Scion immediately went on radio to pass the order. With new order given and William had enough for the night, he and two Scions return to camp. The silence wees William, but he knows at least a dozen eyes are watching the perimeter for any unwee guests. Knowing theing of tomorrow''s political game, William went to his spot to rx, which is arge tree big enough to support his back. The night continues without any incident as William closed his eyes and forced himself to sleep. The darkness quickly consumed his mind, and William fell asleep. But to his surprise, he was standing in a garden with two chairs and a table in the middle, sitting on one of the chairs, a mysterious entity covered in the light signals William to take a seat. "William,e and sit with me. I wanted to meet you ever since the other one met you." The mysterious figure happily wees William as it prepares snacks on the table. "Who are you? What do you mean the other one?" William asks the mysterious figure as he takes the chair to sit. There was no sense of bad intenting from the figure, and William can tell he was in a safe ce for some reason. "Sorry, it''s been ages since I talk to anyone new. You can call me Numen, but you know me as Star Child, the soul of the Emperor of Mankind, and I''m here to help you with your rtionship problem." Chapter 42: The Talk Chapter 42: The Talk "Just bang her already," Numen (Star Child) said to William with both hands raised to express his frustration. After hearing a simple sentence from Numen, William was shocked and confused as he didn''t expect to hear this from the soul fragment of the Emperor. "...What?" William asked with a simple word after processing what he just heard, which took him half a minute to respond. "Did I stutter? I said bang her. You know, lock and load your bolter so you can do the dirty deeds. I mean, I can''t be more clear on cementing two people who are attracted to each other. What are you expecting? An Inquisitor suddenly appears out of nowhere and use of heresy?" Numen exins again to William with an expression of disappointment. Even though his face is shiny with light, William could tell Star Child was making a face of looking at the simpleton. Once again, William was shocked and baffled by what he is experiencing as a fan of Warhammer 40k. "Are you sure you are not some schemes from Tzeentch or anesh''s trick? Because I didn''t expect to hear sex advice from you." William is now suspicious of this encounter. After all, thest time he talked to a higher being was when he died and was almost dragged into the 40k universe by four Chaos Gods. "Don''tpare me to those foolish beings called ''Gods.'' Tzeentch is nothing but a disturber of the universe with his tentacle fingers, and anesh is overpriced STDs with extra steps. I mean, who in the right mind within the celestial world would touch that? Not even Tyranids would eat her after actually thinking what they are about to consume." Numen''s voice shows a great expression of disgust and strong disapproval. Comparing the entities of exaggerated emotions from the Warp or Immaterium to Emperor (His soul) is just insulting. "Ok, ok, sorry. I just didn''t expect to hear that from the soul of the Emperor to Space Marine about birds and the bees," ck Temr Champion said to Star Child with an apologetic voice. "I understand what you mean, but you are not truly Adeptus Astartes, are you?" This shocked William, and he went defensive as he got up from his chair. "What do you mean not a true Space Marine? I''m a member of the ck Temr Chapter." William did his best to act like a ck Temr he knows of from the books and lore. If his true identity is discovered, there is no telling how gods of this world or 40k would react. Not to mention limits they will go to obtain information from William''s head. "I knew you were not who you appear to be the moment I saw you. If a real ck Temr saw me, he would either go for his bolter pistol and shot me or bow down depending on if he knew who I am." Numen''s exnation and reasoning made sense to William. He was too rxed with his act as Astartes since natives of D&D don''t know what Astartes is. "Does the other four knows who I''m? I already met them twice, and I''m not sure if they can read my mind or see through my soul." William asks Star Child if he already gave his true identity away. Next time he meets them, and if they know who he is, the intel they could gain from his mind could change everything, not just the 40k universe but the world of D&D as well. "They can''t read your mind or see the soul from your body. You are an anomaly even for my standard. You arepletely cut away from the road of fate, from this (D&D) or the other world (40k). Tzeentch himself can''t foresee who you really are or able to manipte your destiny, not to mention finding where you are. Of course, this means they will do everything in their power to kill you or, worse, bring you to their side." Numen answered one of William''s major questions ever since he encountered Chaos Gods from the lumberjack camp. ording to Numen''s information, William is under the Chaos Gods'' radar, but this doesn''t mean he is immune to their powers or influences. At least Tzeentch won''t be able to mess with William''s natural fate or change them to his advantage. Still, it won''t hurt to have a few bolters rounds to solve his problems when they send their servants at him in the short future. "This only applies to you and only you. So, they won''t find you if you travel alone, but if you have apany, that is a different story entirely." Numen made clear that William is invisible but only if he is alone. Since William is traveling with many people from both worlds, Chaos Gods are certainly tracking William and scheming for the next move to screw him over. "Is that mean they know I''m talking to you right now? After all, they are tracking me right now." William points the obvious question to the Star Child, but Numen shakes his head. "No. For one, I''m not an amateur. Do you really think I would let those parasites listen to our conversation? They also have the problem of ying an away game, to a certain point of view." This answer confused William, which is understandable for Numen since it is beyond the knowledge of mortals. "Let me exin the way you can understand. Those four idiots can''t fully use their powers in this world or interact properly due to different rules already established before them. In the Realm of Chaos, those four parasites ce themselves as rulers of certain emotions when they gain enormous psychic powers from the material universe. But here, those emotions and positions are already taken by the gods of this world, and there isn''t enough to go around for invasive species." Numen exined best he could to William simply as possible. To a certain level, William understands Chaos Gods'' situation and how much they struggle to invade this world. D&D already has three dozen of deities from lesser to greater, not to mention Ao, the Overgod of all gods. The source of their power are natives of this world, so for the Ruinous Powers to draw the strength, they need to also draw from natives or bring it from their home turf (which takes great effort and is limited). It is a New World for Chaos Gods, and the New World already has nations, rulers, andws established long ago. It is an invasion in celestial proportion, and for once, Chaos Gods are at a disadvantage even with theirbined effort. "I''m already aware of their goal ever since I met their forces. I faced the forces of anesh and Khorne and won. I''m already halfway from victory against Ruinous Powers." William put his right fist on his chest proudly as he can. But this only made Numenugh uncontrobly as he bangs the table with his hand. "Hahahaha, you think you made a difference by winning against a few scouts? Until now, you fought nothing but a few daemons and one Chaos Marine. The main forces of Chaos wille and eventually establish a stronghold unless you get your head out of your ass." Numen said to William with a serious look and gave a dire warning which made William rethink his cocky attitude. Numen continues without giving William a chance to defend himself. "Ruinous Powers are sending their forces through multiple warp tears in this world. Eventually, all of them will heal themselves like small cuts except one. Thest one is big that it requires surgical hands to close it. You need to exterminate everyst influence of the Chaos and close the warp tear that connects the two worlds. Like Eye of Terror and Cadia, except you can''t fail." Thest one really put pressure on William. He knew he has to stop the uing invasion, but the size and consequence of the final conflict are beyond his imagination. The faith of the two worlds depends on him, and he just realized he had bitten more than he could chew. William paused himself from speaking his mind, to which Numen understood what was going through fake Space Marine''s mind. Star Child isn''t sure who indeed possesses ck Temr''s mind and body, but he knows he could be a great asset against the war on Ruinous Powers. That is if he can endure the struggles and roadblocks ahead of him in the short future. "I think I know what I need to do. You gave me enough clues as to what to do against Chaos. I will do what I can and find the tear between reality; I hope I can figure out how to close the damn thing by then." William assures the Star Child and puts his helmet back on (It is rude to have a civilized conversation with his helmet). Witnessing strong will from William, Numen smiled as if he knew he could trust the anomaly in front of him. After all, this is an unusual situation and it requires very unique tools to fix the problem. Not to mention there is something familiar about this one. The way William presents himself and talks reminded Numen of the Old Era before the Age of Technology. Needless to say, Star Child is d to have refreshing conversations ever since he separated from his main body all those millennia ago. "Well, you convinced me from possessing your body for a ride. I''m sure you will be able to push against Chaos itself in the end. Also, take this for yourdy friend. Don''t worry, it''s safe¡­ for a human," Star Child summon a single golden feather out of his hand and gave it to William. William examines the feather carefully before storing it in his inventory. The golden feather gave off illumination simr to when he was resurrected as Emperor''s Champion. "Now, with everything in order, it is time for you to go back. Just make sure you don''t show that feather to a certain living saint if you ever meet her. She will kill me for taking one of her feathers." Star Child giggles menacingly and sends away William with the snap of his finger. When the ck Temr disappears from the higher ne to the material world, Star Child took a small sip from his drink and sighs, releasing stress from his shoulder. "If Ruinous Powers nor other me didn''t send him, then who could have done this? Who in the right mind and motives would ce mortal soul into one of my Adeptus Astartes?" Star Child said to himself as he prepares for the uing event that will shake the two worlds. The result of the celestial war will change the bnce of both Immaterium and the material world, just like how War in Heaven did eons ago. Chapter 43: The Gift Chapter 43: The Gift [Feather of Saint Celestine x1: A small feather from one of the Saint Celestine''s wings. This legendary item generates a blinding light that can harm the minor creatures of Chaos when they are near. The Feather of Saint Celestine can grant a miracle to whoever possesses this item as long as the user''s intention is genuine and willing. Note: This item can only grant one single miracle and will disappear] ''Shit, you got to be kidding me,'' William said to himself after checking his inventory to check if his minor dimensional meeting with Star Child actually happen. Aside from learning new revtion of multiple warp tears and his invisibilities from four Chaos Gods, William is more shocked by what he received from Soul of the Emperor. ''A freaking miracle and area damage to minor Chaos creatures? Damn, I kinda a wish I could keep this instead of giving it to an angry lioness.'' The thought of powerful wishes and potential advantages came to William. He could wish for Imperator-ss Titan that has enough firepower to st the entire fortress to the crater or an Emperor-ss Battleship, a gigantic spaceship that could lunchary bombardment from the orbit and have enough ordinates to execute Exterminatus on the. ''It is so tempting¡­ but I have a feeling this is a trick. Numen told me to give this to her, knowing that he knows what I can do with this. That means either Numen is testing me or knows this feather will help Rana in the future. Damn, I really really want titan under mymand.'' William thought to himself and went over the cons and pros of his options. Ultimately, he decided to go with the flows and make the ''right choice.'' ''Fuck it. After this whole political shit is done, I''m going to hunt down giants and see if I can get at least Warhound-ss Titan.'' With the final decision made, William closes his inventory to see the surrounding environment. The sky is still dark, and nothing is changed as most people were still sleeping (Except for guards). William checked the time from his helmet to find out that only a minute passed before he went to sleep. This means his entire conversation with Star Child, whichsted one hour, was less than 60 seconds in the real world. Seeing no changes, William decided to go back to sleep with no interruption from higher beings bothering him. ----------------------------- Five Hours Later, William didn''t need to have a five-hour sleep as his body is built to require only an hour or two and couldst weeks without any sleep duringbat. But as a normal human being, William loves the peaceful sleep process and waking up full of energy which reminds him of his old life. The morning began with loud noise as many of the troops move around the camp. Some of them start making breakfast while others began packing tents and sleeping bags. Few of the soldiers check the vehicles for maintenance checks, including fuel levels. With soldiers doing everything like a well-oiled machine, William got up from his tree and joined the group after quick washing from the nearest water bucket. The breakfast was uneventful, and everyone native to this world was eager to arrive at the capital. Meanwhile, most of William''s troops weren''t excited as they rather be on the battlefield than mix with some small political game. But this allows them to have more leisure personal time and enjoy decent meals provided by Catachan Jungle Fighters. Before convoys resume the final trip to the capital, William decided to have a private talk with the Duchess. William doesn''t know if he will have another chance to have a one-on-one moment with her when they make it to the capital. After all, she is royalty, and there won''t be any room to have an honest discussion with all the court rules and stuff. "William, did you decided to have me as one of you? If my cousin can pass your test, you know I can pass it as well." Rana is the one who starts the conversation the moment they have some privacy. William didn''t answer immediately but once again remove his helmet to have face to face. "I''m sure you could, but I didn''t bring you to talk about that. I want to give you this since you mentioned my godst night. I hope you will ept this and reconsider what you saidst night. Let me do what I must do while you handle the situation in the capital and other nations." William said to Rana and pull out the Feather of Saint Celestine from his inventory (While pretending to pull it out from one of his belt pouches). The feather didn''t glow any light, but pure white and golden feather were enough to dazzle anyone, including the Duchess. "Where did you get this? It''s beautiful," Rana covers her mouth and is about to take the feather from William but stops herself as she paused to admire the beauty. "Well, let''s just say I had a little visit from homest night," William exined it to the Duchess and quickly gave the feather. He isn''t used to giving gifts to a girl, especially a girl who expresses herself freely and can duke it out with daemons on the battlefield. "You sure I can have this? This feather gives me a strange but present feeling. It''s like I can fight non-stop and enjoy the beauty of life itself." Rana gave a small protest but showed great appreciation for a gift she received from William. Ever since she reached ''of age'', many suitors approach her and her father for hands in marriage with various gifts as a tribute. Many tried but failed, from treasures chests to beautiful clothes as those didn''t attract Rana''s attention. But this single feather from William was different. It is remarkable and important to William, and he gave it to her as a gift that touched Rana''s heart a little bit (More than little, as Rana, doesn''t want to admit yet). "Yes, I want you to have this feather. Just remember not to lose it or give to anyone as it have a special property." William quickly said to Rana and didn''t give much description of the feather. When the timees, William will tell her the wish ability, but he will only tell her about protection against minor daemons of Chaos. "What kind of special property? Is this mean something for your culture?" Rana asks with curiosity the moment she heard what William said. She doesn''t know much about William when ites to culture and how things work in his world, but it seems feather has importance behind it. "Well¡­" William was about to tell her about the first property within Feather of Saint Celestine, that was until he heard radio chatter and the sound ofsguns fired in the distance. William immediately put on his helmet to find out what is going on as he didn''t expect any trouble so close to the capital. "Status report, what is going on?" Wim didn''t immediately receive the report, but after four seconds of silence, someone reports back through the vox-caster (Imperial radio transceiver). "Brother Champion, we encountered moderate size of Orks in the distance. The guardsmen are handling the situation as they don''t seem to be much of a challenge. The convoy will be ready the moment you return back to camp." One of the ck Temr report back to William regarding of situation. William turns around to tell Rana about the orc attack on the convoy when suddenly a band of orcs appear out of nowhere and surround William and the Duchess. [Alert, Xenos teleportation detected.] ''No shit.'' William thought to himself as he pulls out his power sword and bolter pistol while Rana draws her sword to fight orc ambush. ----------------------------- "Since when did orcs use teleportation magic?" The Duchess said to William as she ys one of the orcs who blindly attacks her. Even though these are standard fantasy orcs, they still are dangerous and deadly to normal humans. "I have no idea, but I believe this isn''t some random orc attack. I think someone sent them to wipe us out before reaching the capital." William said to the Duchess as he cleve two orcs'' heads in one swing and immediately turn around to fire his bolter pistol to put down three other orcs. A total of 15 orcs appeared out of nowhere and ambushed two humans. But, unknown to these foolish orcs, they end up doing the opposite of the very thing they were sent to do, killing. Quickly the number of orcs decreases as William and the Duchess y one after another. Just about four orcs remind in the field, William saw a single life form detected from his radar in the distance. Without giving a second thought, William shot three orcs and swiftly change his weapon. With a bolter rifle in his hand, William changes his direction and aim; half a secondter, he fired his weapon and hit the target, so he thought. With the Duchess killing thest orc, William rush to the location where the target was. When he arrived, there was nobody except the destroyed tree from the bolter round. Rana catches up to William and looks around to see what William was looking for. "Did you saw another orc here?" Rana asks giant ck Temr as he stares at the ground. "No. Whatever it was, it escaped before I could hit it. It seems this one managed to escape using the same method as to how orcs appeared out of nowhere." William said to Rana as he went to his knee to check the ground. "How do you know he or she escaped using the same method of magic?" "Because the ground is scorched with burned grass and dirt as if something scalding suddenly hit the ground." William shows the hand full of ck burned dirt to Rana. "It seems someone doesn''t like us very much, not to mention taking extreme measures to use orcs as a tool of assassination. This changes things." William said to the Duchess as he got up and radioed his troops to start the convoy. After giving the order, William summons his assault bike and signals the Duchess to hop on. "The assassin will try again before we make it to the capital. So we are going fast, fast enough to give the assassin no chance at all." Chapter 44: Knight Lord of the Metal Chapter 44: Knight Lord of the Metal Beforeing to the New World, William never drove a motorcycle or owned one before. The closest thing to riding anything on his own was his bicycle, which he used until his college year. There was no reason to have personal transportation as a city kid unless traveling outside the city limit or having enough money to buy one for a personal hobby. William is currently going near the max speed as he is speeding through the vast field on his assault bike while the Duchess hugs William in the back. William already radios his troops to follow and eliminate anyone or anything until they regroup at the capital. That is after the Crown Prince fails to convince anyone who blocks their way to the city. "Are we sure it''s a good idea to leave them ande to the capital first?" The Duchess finally asks William after he slows down his bike after an hour of pure speed. "They are fine. I pity anyone who goes against my brothers and soldiers. You can''t imagine how bored they are and eager to fight something to have a good day." William points out the obvious thing about his troops which the Duchess believes to be very urate after witnessing what they were capable of. "By the way, I think we are here," William stops his bike as they reach the top of the hill to see therge city with high walls and traffic of people going in and out. The capital city wasn''t as grand as William thought, but it was big and wide enough to house tens of thousands of people. The main wall is as immense as the walls of Fort Stormfist, and from the top of the hill, William could see various types of buildings from houses to fancy buildings that look important. At the edge of the west side, another section of the wall protects a unique tower which William guessed to be a wizard''s tower of sorts as his helmet gave off warning of unknown energy signature. "That is the Schr''s Pir where wise wizards and mages conduct research and experiments. They also teach many of the children of high nobles and members of the royal family." The Duchess saw the direction William was staring, so she exined the tower he was looking at. The Schr''s Pir and its researchers made a few history-changing breakthroughs such as new ways to imbue runes, the discovery of celestial bodies, research of ancient civilization, and of course, the discovery of the first ck powder (Gunpowder). "I see, so they are the teachers and schrs of the ivory tower. I would like to meet the one who invented the ck powder," William said to Rana and quietly scanned the city once more. After finishing the ''admiration'' of the view of the city, William and the Duchess descended from the hill and went back on the road, heading towards the main city gate. When the assault bike approaches the main road, many of the people move to the side of the road and stare at the approaching ''ck Metal Horse.'' Many show great fear as they saw William as some sort of evil knight while few young folks saw with envy and admired William''s war gear. "I think you are attracting too much attention," Rana whispered to William as she saw how many eyes were focused on them. She is a bit embarrassed as she is riding in the back, sitting in a weird position. "You sure it''s me they are looking at? Not the beautiful warrior maiden I''m being apanied by?" William teases the Duchess which responded with a small punch on William''s back which didn''t bother him. "The guards from the main gate will definitely stop us for sure. Let me handle them before you start sting with your strange gun." Rana said to William with a mix of seriousness and a bit of joke. She is very familiar with how deadly William can be inbat, and it wouldn''t surprise her if her uncle, King Benton, might acknowledge William and bestow him the honor of bing the knight or starting his own noble house. "Sure thing, just make sure they don''t start demanding my stuff for no reason," William said to Rana as he stopped his bike and disembarked as they reached the main gate of the capital city. -------------------------------- Captain of the Guard''s POV It was another day in the capital city as people came and went to conduct business. Most of the people I''m familiar with, but there are always new people visiting the city and few start trouble which it is my job to stop them before they have the chance. So imagine my surprise when a fully armored ck knight approaches the gate riding a ck metal horse (Without the horse''s head attached). I served the crown for almost two decades, and I have seen it all, from a drunken fistfight between two nobles to the explosive demonstration of a new invention from the schrs. A ck knight riding a ck mount without a horse is something new and terrifying even for me. ''Either he is a very important adventurer from the guild, or he is the fearsome evil knight of the children''s bedtime story.'' I thought to myself as I watched my men ready their weapons and prepare to move the moment I give themand. Still, I could tell they are shaking in fear due to the sheer presence of the armored giant. As a captain of the gate, I have the duty to the crown and his people. So I step forward instead of sending my guards as I have to handle the situation carefully. With my left hand on my sword handle to show a sign of caution but no intention to arm myself, I approach the ck knight. "Halt in the name of King Benton. I''m Captain Morin of the Capital guard, and I need to know whom I''m speaking to." I said with authority and confidence as I did thousands of times before. It shoulde naturally by now, but this time it took a decent amount of effort to maintain the appearance without making a fool of myself. After finishing giving mymand, I saw precise detail and decoration of the armor itself. From a distance, I only saw the in ck color of the armor and white shoulder te with the cross symbol, but after having a closer look, the edge of the armor line was decorated with pure gold and various wax seals with thin paper attached to it. From the civilian''s point of view, the very presence itself could cause fear even for fully grown adults. As a military man, I could only admire the master craftsmanship of the armor fit only to legends of the bard''s tale. "I''m William, an adventurer from Greenhill, escorting Rana Bassilo Beckett, the Duchess of Argus to the capital. My brothers in arms will arrive shortly with Crown Prince Benton and his entourage." The ck knight''s voice was unnatural and very strange as his helmet doesn''t seem to have any opening, but somehow, I could still hear his voice without any trouble. When I heard Rana Bassilo Beckett''s name, I hesitated for a second as I clearly remember seeing her and her army leaving the capital a few months ago. There was no way she would travel with a single knight on a strange mount. Not to mention I don''t see her except for the giant in front of me. "If you are the escort, then where is the¡­." Before I could finish my sentence, a youngdy with white armor steps out from the giant''s back and shows herself to me. I didn''t have to ask for her identification as I already knew the moment I saw her face. She is the Duchess of the Argus, the famous lioness whounched the counter-attack against invading forces from Legen three years ago. I immediately got into attention and saluted the war hero who saved the nation. "Captain Morin, I need you to notify the royal family and the Prime Minister that the Crown Prince is returning to the capital with a private military force as an escort. William and I will stay here to wait for his arrival. Also, make sure capital guards are notified as well with this information. We will have a hero''s parade today" The Duchess gave hermand to me, which I guarantee she will follow every instruction she gives me. With that, I rushed back to my men and gave the exact instructions to the teeth. It was a sudden change of tension now as every man, including me, turned from fear of death to fear of death by failing our duty to the crown. Another day in the capital turned into a once in a lifetime event as the Crown Prince and the Duchess return from the deadly expansion campaign with a terrifying ally by their side. Their new ally and ''friend''ter would be known to all as ''Knight Lord of the Metal'', who embarks the spearhead campaign against the daemons of Legen. Chapter 45: One Side Alliance Chapter 45: One Side Alliance The capital city''s weing of the Crown Prince is much grander than Draphia''s. Many of the young maidens cheered for the prince''s name, and some threw flower petals from the second floor of the building window. The men, young and old, also cheer for the prince''s name on how he brought back a sessful campaign against dreadful vampires. Meanwhile, Prince Benton rides his horse in front of the marching army as he waves his hands and gives a big smile back to his people (He still has a few bruises, but this only shows his participation during vampires). The Duchess rides right behind the prince while William leads his battle brothers and the rest of the guardsmen march in formation, showing power and fear against the enemy of humankind. They moved from themon district and main market area, the noble district (The inner area of the capital city), which was grander (Expensive) than before. At the end of the district, before entering the royal castle, the royal guards and elite knights waited in formation, giving a salute to the hero of the hour. Before entering the pce, William stopped his main force and signaled three battle brothers (Two Space Marine and one Tech Marine) to follow him. Of course, the main force will be taken to more open areas of the city to make camp and settle until the end of the political drama. When the party entered the royal pce''s main yard, many of the nobles from low to high and royal family members waited for the prince toe and meet them. Everything seems normal except that the King of the Alderim is missing between his Queen and Prime Minister. From William''s scan, the King isn''t present at the weing party, giving William a bad feeling. "Rana, I don''t see the King from the weingmittee. Does he have any condition that prevents him from meeting his son?" William asks the Duchess in a whisper as he scans the area once again, to which he finds no signs of the King of the kingdom. William''sment made the Duchess realize who was missing from the weingmittee and was confused as well. "When I left the capital, King Benton personally saw me leave with my troops weeks ago, and he was perfectly fine." The Duchess said to William as she and William followed Prince Benton in the back as he approached the Prime Minister and Queen, his mother. "Son, wee back home," Queen herself weed Prince Benton with sweet words and a hug. William could tell the Queen of the Alderim is a very protective mother, but this can be understandable since the previous Crown Prince was killed more than three years ago. "Crown Prince, wee home, and congrattions on your sessful expansion campaign." The Prime Minister of the Alderim joins the heartful meeting as he happily wees Prince Benton. While this is happening, William looks around to see divided emotions between nobles around them. Half of the nobles were expressing a weing and positive mood as they cheered and pped their hands. The other half of the nobles indeed pped their hands, but they showed negative and some hostile emotions. William clearly saw divided ranks among nobles as one side supported the royal family and one didn''t. "Thank you, mother and Prime Minister Waylon, for the warm wee, but where is father? Did something happen to him while we were gone?" Prince Benton asks about his father''s absence, to which both the Queen and Prime Minister''s faces turn dark. William, Rana, and Prince Benton saw a sudden change of facial expressions, which gave warning of bad news. "Let us talk in the private inside," Prime Minister Waylon said to Prince Benton quietly as he didn''t want to give clues to the absent King in front of opposition nobles. Prince Benton clearly saw the Prime Minister''s intention, so he decided to enter the pce with William and the Duchess following him. William''s three battle brothers follow their champion as their massive bodies and armors make thumping noises each time they step forward. There was a small protest from royal guards as William and his brothers were potential threats to the royal family, but the Crown Prince immediately turned this down. The group finally made it to the audience room withfortable furniture such as sofas, chairs, tables, and portraits hanging on the wall. Everyone except four Space Marines sat down, and Queen''s maids brought cartloads of snacks and tea sets. As for William and his brothers, they stood behind the sofa where Rana and Prince Benton sat. This was countered by seven royal guards standing each corner of the room with the hands-on hilt of their swords but not drawn out. The Prime Minister spoke first after the maids left the room, "Would you care to introduce us to your new friends?" Prime Minister Waylon''s eyes went to William''s direction as he grabbed a cup of tea from the table. "Ah, yea. This is William. He is an adventurer we hired to help us with the expansion campaign. Of course, he is more than just a simple adventurer as he represents his deity the ''God-Emperor'' andmands a very effective military force." Prince Benton introduces William to his mother and Prime Minister, to which William takes his helmet to show his face. "It is nice to meet you. As the Crown Prince said, my name is William and Emperor''s Champion." William didn''t know how to interact with royals, so he introduced himself short and straightforward. After hearing William''s words, both the Queen and Prime Minister show weing expressions as they somewhat understood (Or in this case misunderstood) William''s status. "I see. You must be the one that Sir Dolven mentioned in his report. I must say, I thought that the old knight must be pulling out legs when his report said a giant man in ck armor with great power was helping the Crown Prince with training." Prime Minister Waylon said with astonishment as he examined William''s and three Space Marine''s ck armors. Just by looking at them, the Prime Minister saw master-crafted armors and perfect decoration of symbols that gave off some authority and status. "Talking about Sir Dolven, it is a shame what happened to him and his knight order. After all those years of service to the crown, the royal family lost a great supporter and close friend. Your father will be saddened when he hears the news." The Queen said to everyone as she remembered the report they received from Draphia. The death of Sir Dolven is much more than a loss to the military might of the Alderim. Sir Dolven was one of the senior members of the nobles who were supporters of the crown, and with his military force, he secured the kingdom from domestic threats from monsters to rebellious minor nobles (Noble rebellion is rare, but it does happen). "He fought bravely and to thest breath. He gave Jon and the rest of the servants enough time to escape from the barbarian Warband as he and his knight charged head-on, giving no room to pursue them." The Duchess recounted Sir Dolven''s act of heroism as she exined more in detail how William''s forceter rescued her and Prince Benton. By the time Rana''s story ended, Prime Minister Waylon and Queen were speechless and shaking in horror as they couldn''t believe the terrible experience of bing a prisoner of the Chaos Marine. "You have our thanks, William. I won''t forget your service to my son and niece for the rest of my life." The Queen said to William as she expressed gratitude and thanked the Emperor''s Champion. The Prime Minister also joined her as he personally bowed his head to thank William. "You save the next bloodline and generation of the Alderim. I can''t thank you enough for what you did," Prime Minister Waylon said to William, to which William quickly epted but showed no emotions for his battle-brothers who were standing behind him in silence. "Talking about the next generation, where is father? Did something happen to him while I was gone?" Prince Benton asked with concern, to which both the Prime Minister and the Queen went silent. Finally, the Queen spoke as motherly as possible to break the news to her son. "Your father, the King, sumbed to illness. This unknown illness took his body and mind. We don''t know what it is or what caused it, as none of the healers couldn''t figure it out. This illness made him unreasonable and unstable, to which many of the nobles question his condition to lead." The Queen said to her son as she wiped tears from her face. The bad news continues as Prime Minister Waylon continues as the Queen couldn''t due to her sadness. "King Benton was silent and weakened to the point he barely moved, but when the emissary of Legen came to form an alliance, he simply agreed to their terms without consulting with me or any other advisers." The Prime Minister exined the situation and struggle they went through to change the King''s mind, but it was pointless as the King''s entire personality had changed ever since the emissary came a few days ago. "What exactly did they want from us?" The Duchess asks to find out what her former enemies want from making peace with her country. Thest time they sent an emissary, it was to dere war and send mocking news of the death of the eldest prince, which didn''t go well for themst time. "By forming an alliance, the emissary wants you, Rana. They want you toe to Legen for some reason and join ''Holy White Mountain'', their new religion, as a priestess." The Prime Minister said to Rana as he shook his head in regret as he and others couldn''t stop the King''s decision. Chapter 46: Archbishop Chapter 46: Archbishop "sphemy!" "Heresy!" "By the name of Omnissiah!" ck Temr TechMarine and two other Space Marines yelled with rage and disgust after hearing the new religion. The level of need to purge the heretic went from 9 to 10 (Max) the moment they learn of a new religion just existing. "I see your men are furious as we are." The Prime Minister misunderstood the reaction of ck Temrs as his own and said to William with somewhat agreement. Prime Minister Waylon has known and was a former Alderim ambassador in the Legen diplomacy for almost 30 years. That was until Legen invaded three years ago with a false usation of an assassination attempt on their king''s life and unjustified execution of Alderim''s Crown Prince (Prince Benton''s older brother). ording to emissaries of the Legen, the religion ''Holy White Mountain'' emerged almost three years ago after the war and gained a massive following through food distribution and medical supplies. Within two years, Legen fully recovered from post-war economic downfall and re-established themselves with a new type of government by recing the monarchy with theocracy (A country ruled by religion). Legen decided to expand their religion and recognition as a new nation with their newly founded leadership by re-establishing a rtionship with Alder. Typically, Alderim didn''t recognize the legitimacy of the Legen''s new government at first, but that all changed a few weeks ago when Legen officially sent a gift. Among many gifts, one particr was sent with an explicit name of the receiver, King Benton''s name. The gift was a master-crafted ring with wless amethyst attached to it. At first, King Benton was hesitant to wear it since the gift came from the country that killed his firstborn son. But this all changed the next day as the king wore the ring in his central finger for all to see and decided to give Legen a second chance to form non-aggression between the two nations. It was this day that King Benton''s personality slowly changed, and his health began to wither. King Benton is a politician and in excellent health as he asionally participates in swordsmanship and other physical activities to stay healthy, both body and mind. Now, he appears to be more of an old man and long past his prime as his appearance looks doubled his current age. Prime Minister Waylon and Queen, who work closely with King Benton, recognized the change but couldn''t figure out what caused it. All gifts, including the ring King Benton is currently wearing, passed every check for the potential curse, hex, or spells by the royal court wizards. So, it was a mystery and puzzling why King Benton decided to make peace with the enemy who caused him painful loss (Both personal and in general overall). "Why in the nineyers of hell do they want me to be their priestess? Do I have to go back to Legen and burn it down to the ground again?" The Duchess is irritated and angry after hearing of the alliance terms. Emissaries from the Legen had the audacity to demand Rana''s corporation, which she is considering ughtering them right now. "I understand your frustration. I was the first to object to this the moment the king agreed to this in public but unfortunately, he did even regard any protest and shut me and others with irond." The Queen''s exnation shocked Prince Benton and the Duchess as they know King Benton to be a wise and careful leader when making essential judgments. From dering war to the well-being of his people, King Benton listens to others and weighs the consequence of his action. "I have to see my father NOW!" Prince Benton stood up from his seat and proceeded to walk towards the door, but the Prime Minister stopped him before the prince could go any further. "You can''t. Your father forbids anyone from seeing him in his room. The only time anyone can see him is during a public appearance that is happening tomorrow. The Legens will be there as well since it will be theirst day before returning to their country¡­ with Rana." Prime Minister Waylon finished his sentence powerless as he couldn''t ept the situation they were in. "Tomorrow? Ok, we will meet everyone at once and take care of this once and for all." Prince Bentonposed himself and went back to his seat where the Duchess, his mother, and William were. "Is there something I''m missing? Why can''t Prince Benton meet his father even if he forbids it?" William asks with curiosity because he would immediately kick down the door to talk to King Benton if it was him. "It may sound like a weird outsider''s point of view, but no one is allowed to meet the king without his invitation or permission. This is one of the royal procedures, and everyone must follow no matter who they are, even if that person is his own blood." Rana exins to William as she knows he isn''t very familiar with royal court rules. For this reason, she made sure William will follow him closely until they leave the capital with a recement army for the Deron and Fort Stromfist. William and his force are deadly and dangerous to anyone who dares to challenge him. The longer they stay in the capital, the higher the chance a river of blood could flood the city as nobles with their mighty high attitude will be their death warrant. Individually, a single noble family has a small military force, but if they form a decent coalition size, it will be big enough to challenge the royal army. The only reason this doesn''t happen is because half of the nobles are loyal to the crown, but this all changes when William and Sir Dolven unearth the conspiracy of traitor nobles within and possible clues after William captured a runaway soldier during the event ''Red Dinner'' (Ch 15-16). The soldier who William captured spilled everything he knew and few names. To no one''s surprise, all the names were minor nobles who weren''t supporters of the crown and have held a grudge since the war with Legen. Losing a trade agreement with Legen on precious metals could get bad terms with the royal family. This is why King Benton approved the expansion campaign towards the vampirends since Deron has mines and forests to ease the nobles'' tension. "Just follow my lead and make sure you don''t do anything harsh like crushing skulls." Rana said to William, but this message didn''t go well with William''s battle-brothers as they protested the part ''not crushing skulls''. "But heretics. They must be purged with holy fire." "With a holy sword." "What about making them servitors?" TechnoMarine attempts to find alternative ways to purge the traitors, but Wim immediately sends them outside of the room due to their ''creativity.'' "Sorry about that. They can be very dedicated to their mission." Wim apologized to everyone and went back to his spot, but this didn''t end anything as 5 minutester, loud noise can be heard outside with louder voices that happen to be ck Temrs''. "Excuse me," William walked as fast as possible to the door and opened it. In front of him, three ck Temrs drew their weapons from chainsword to TechMarine''s mechadendrite holding sma pistol (Mechadendrite = robotic arms). "A filthy Xeno dares to approach this room? We swore to Champion not to spill the blood in this castle, but disintegrations don''t count in that subject." With a sma rifle, ck Temr points at his weapon at the person who attempted to enter the door without permission. In front of three ck Temrs, a male elf with noble clothing stood tall with no worries even though weapons were pointed at him. Behind the elf, three men with simr clothing stand as eight fully armed soldiers with different armor draw their swords, ready to fight the ck Temrs. "What in the hell is going on?" William demanded an exnation from one of his battle-brothers, but the answer didn''te from them. Instead, Prime Minister Waylon spoke behind William. "They are the emissaries from the Legen. William, let me introduce you to Archbishop shor Herydark. Legen''s most recently appointed archbishop of the Holy White Mountain and first elf to join their religion." Chapter 47: Modern Art Sculpture Chapter 47: Modern Art Sculpture "Heard that our future priestess arrived today, and we came to greet her. After all, she will join us to dedicate herself to Mother, the goddess of the Holy White Mountain." The male elf known as shor Herydark said to everyone normally while tension between two sides was high and ready to kill each other. The Archbishop has a slim body, green eyes, white skin, and golden hair of an elf race. His clothes were a long white robe with gold lines decoration showing his status as a high-ranking religious group member. Around his neck, he wore a golden ne with a white mountain symbol in the middle made out of silver. In his hand, he holds a gold staff with a small green emerald in the middle with four different rare gem orbs around the middle piece, showing rainbow color. As for the three men, they wore simr white robes but without the fancy coloring of gold but had the same golden nes just like Archbishop Herydark''s. Unlike the Archbishop, the three men show terrified faces as they see four giant warriors d with full armor and strange devices glowing in blue. But unfortunately, the moment three men saw Prime Minister Waylon behind William, they regained their postures, for they misunderstood William and his battle-brothers as members of the Order of ck me, elite knights loyal to the crown. "You¡­ you should control your dogs, Prime Minister Waylon. If one of us gets injured by your knights, it will spark another war with our goddess and her holy crusaders." One of the three men said with an ignorant and condescending tone to the Prime Minister as they have diplomatic immunity as members of the Legen representative. William didn''t say anything or do anything as he waited patiently. If this happened outside of the capital city, William would dly crush all their skulls with his bare hands for insulting him and his battle brothers. The only reason he isn''t doing this is because of a promise and deal he made with the Duchess for bringing his three battle brothers to the pce. "I''m sorry, but William isn''t¡­." Prime Minister Waylon couldn''t finish his sentence as the same man stepped forward from the Archbishop and pointed his finger, pressing it at William''s chest armor (More like his stomach area). "You, so-called Knights from the ck me, are nothing but hypocrites and cowards. How dare you show your presence in front of us while we are trying to retrieve that murderous whore of a¡­." The man didn''t finish his words, more likely couldn''t, as his neck and entire body were snatched from the ground by a giant hand and lifted in the air with a single motion. No one couldn''t stop this, for it was beyond a mortal''s ability to stop or even react as Space Marine''s superhuman strength and reflex can''t be matched. William''s face was all to see, for he left his helmet in the audience room previously. His eyes are burning with a raging fire equal to the surface of the sun and emitting death itself as if the wrath of God Emperor himself wasing out from him. The moment William grabbed the foolish mortal''s neck, his three battle-brothers sted their weapons, disintegrating all eight soldiers of the Legen in a second. As for the rest of the Holy White Mountain representatives, two men fell to their rear, for they instantly saw their bodyguards'' death. As for the Archbishop, he didn''t flinch or show any sign of emotion. If he did feel it, he has great willpower to hold himself from showing it. William pushed the mortal''s entire body to the wall and ced him at his eye level so the man could see William''s face and eyes. The Emperor''s Champion could have easily crushed the windpipe, but he wanted to deliver a personal message for the insult he said without thinking first. "You, a nameless mortal, dares to insult the follower of the God-Emperor? The pure insolence and audacity to demand her presence is nothing but a mockery to my brothers and me. Be grateful that I will spare your life at this moment, but that will be all as I only made a promise not to kill." At the end of his sentence, William pulled the man''s body and shoved it to the wall, leaving a small crater and nting the mortal in the wall as if he was a modern art sculpture. William''s hand left the man''s body and turned around to see the four men from the Legen. He knew he broke the promise and was in big trouble for his action, but what was done was done, for he must either pull back or push to cement his responsibility. "You will not see the Duchess of Argus or take her for your false religion. I, the Emperor''s Champion, won''t allow this even if you bring an army." William drew his ck sword and ced the edge at the Archbishop''s face. William''s action itself is a deration of war, and it will spark the war between Legen and Alder. Prime Minister Waylon''s face is pale as white snow, for he understood what just happened. This was the same for Prince Benton, Rana, Queen of the Alderim, and the rest of the royal guards, as they just witnessed the damage William caused. The two priests of the Holy White Mountain were both blue and pale as they couldn''t believe how a simple knight demolished the diplomatic rtion between two nations and killed one of the senior religious figures in front of the Archbishop. Compared to two simple mortals, the Archbishop showed apletely different reaction. His emotionless facial expression is gone, and his smile can be seen as if he just found lost treasure or excitement that was gone long ago. Moving the edge of William''s ck sword with his left hand, the Archbishop Herydark faced the giant ck Temr with no show of fear or anger. "You said you are an Emperor''s Champion? I''m not familiar with this title, but I assume you are not a member of Alderim''s knight order nor serve them whatsoever. More like a religious mercenary, if I have to guess." Archbishop Herydark guessed it with 100% uracy, for hisposure didn''t show a single sign of doubt. This revtion shocked the two men, for they realized their mistake of misunderstanding William for a member of ck me. But their fear disappeared as William, and his battle-brothersmitted murder in the royal pce, which many of the royal guards were summoned due to sma weapons fire. "I serve only the God-Emperor and his will. I do not present Alderim or their crown. This means I just dered war against your Legen and so-called ''Mother of Holy White Mountain.'' This is between you and me, not Alderim." William said out loud to deliver his intention and current situation. For one thing, this was true as William doesn''t serve anyone from Alderim as he holds no title or position within Alderim (If he was given one more day, he would have held a small title from the crown for his achievement). From a political point of view, a mercenary leader just dered a separate war against Legen without any backing from the host country, Alderim. In the history of both two nations, this kind of ridiculous scenario never happened or was thought of by no one. If Legen wants to, they could request military assistance from the Alderim to crush William and his forces since they previously formed an alliance with the crown. This is possible as no monarchy would allow presents to be armed and overthrow the official government, even if it''s from a foreign nation. "I see, but someone invited you here. Someone who has enough authority to invite you and three armed soldiers to the royal capital. I will personally demand reparation from King Benton for your action today, and I look forward to our war on the battlefield." Archbishop Herydark said to William and waved his hand to pull out his man from the wall using magic. A nearly dead mortal levitates in the air, three ck Temrs once again ready their weapons to full charge and about to purge the psyker and his warcraft. Unfortunately, they couldn''tmit their action to the fullest as William blocked them with his ck sword. "Save it for the battlefield. We broke enough promises, for we shouldn''t tarnish the Holy Throne''s name for our action." The ck Temrs obey William''s order, for which if it were a normal situation, they would have ended the war right here right now. The only time they ever restrained their tradition was during Celestinian Crusade, where they had to use their full willpower to stop themselves from purging the Aeldari faction known as Ynnari and Xenos witch Yvraine. "As the Emperor''s Championmands." The ck Temrs stand down and power down their energy weapons, to which everyone finally draws their breath after holding for the Emperor knows how long. "Killing their bodyguards should be enough warning for them and will take my deration seriously, for if they want to take Rana, they have to go through me." William turned around and said to the main group in front of him as if it was nothing. The only thing he received from the group is a single punch to his faceing from Lioness of Argus. Chapter 48: Assassin of Horror and Pain Chapter 48: Assassin of Horror and Pain Never in his life did Prince Benton expect to see the Duchess jump high up and deliver a punch right at the giant''s face. Not only is she still wearing her armor which weighed around 33 pounds (15kg), but she managed toplete this with a single motion as if she was moving with the river current. Prince Benton was confident William didn''t mind or felt the punch since he was the most formidable warrior prince have ever met, but the situation became much drier and moreplex than before. Honesty, everyone saw and heard the insult from one of the priests about Rana being a ''Murderous whore'' and how they came to retrieve her as if she was something they could walk in and take her away. Worst of all, that same priest said that in front of William, which is equivalent to provoking an ancient dragon while desecrating the creature''s treasures. From Prince Benton''s point of view, William''s action was justified. William was protecting Rana''s honor which his father and many other nobles failed to do. Because those priests were representatives of the foreign nation, even the Crown Prince couldn''t do much unless he wanted to start the war, this time marking Alderim as an aggressor. Prince Benton and others who were present at that time can vouch for William''s action and how noble it was to defend Rana''s name and honor. As Rana was the previous hero of the war against Legen, many of the loyal nobles will back William, but the problem lies with arge group of minor nobles who were more concerned with maintaining their current power and positions instead of supporting Alderim and the royal family. Minor nobles were a headache for the royal family long before Prince Benton was born. Their hold on citizens of Alderim using their private military has been a mockery to the noble titles and jab on the side, slowing bleeding the Alderim from uniting as one nation. The royal family and high nobles didn''t crush the minor nobles because of theirrge numbers (Estimated 4 to 1 against loyal nobles) and control of the citizens within their territory. Even if the crown could remove all minor nobles from their power, there is no way the crown can rece that many nobles and maintain the stability of all of the territories. But now, with William in the picture, the problem could be solved even if Prince Benton doesn''t know it right now. After the Duchess punches William''s face because he just caused an international incident by killing eight guards, assaulting one of the representatives to near death, and dering war against Legen, everyone returns back to the meeting room to discuss what to do next. After hours of intense conversation between the Duchess, Prince Benton, Prime Minister Waylon, and the Queen, it is decided that William has to officially dere his war against Legen tomorrow in front of everyone, including King Benton. The Queen and Prime Minister did their best to change William''s mind, but it was useless since William was still angry with the priests, especially that elf priest. As for Prince Benton and the Duchess, they didn''t even bother to try William''s mind since they knew it would be pointless to attempt it. The best they can do now is prepare for the worst-case scenario and have entire royal knights ready for an all-out blood bath tomorrow. Near the end of the discussion, the Duchess decided that William can''t stay at the pce since representatives of the Legen and William in one location is a bad idea. So, William will be staying at a separate building within pcend with dozens of guards guarding the building for one night. The three ck Temrs are to be sent back to where the rest of the troops are as punishment for disintegrating the eight Legen guards. Obviously, all three ck Temrs strongly refused to follow that demand, with Tech Marine willing to rece eight dead guards with eight servitors (As long as Alderim supplied him with eight criminals). William eventually stepped in and ordered his battle brothers to return to camp, ensuring he will be fine and it will allow him to clear his head for tomorrow. This didn''t go well with the three ck Temrs, but they followed William''s order and returned to camp as the championmanded. Both body and mind exhausted, the meeting ended with William leaving the pce with five royal guards escorting him to a separate building at the edge of the pcend. William didn''t go alone since Rana followed him to make sure William wasn''t up to no good (Also mixed feeling of punching him). The building was an old royal knightmander''s office with aplete training field. Even though it is an old building, the royal family''snd caretakers kept it maintained with a fully working kitchen and bathroom. After checking the entire building, William was satisfied andfortable with his new housing location. Meanwhile, Rana already had servants bring cartloads of food and drinks to the building. When William asked Rana why she ordered so much food just for him, she answered his question by sitting down at the table as maids and butlers prepared the dinner table. That night, William had a rare opportunity to have dinner with the Duchess as both enjoyed each other''spany and shared wine untilte at night. ----------------------------------------- After the Duchess left the building, William turned the light off and went to bed. Unknown to William, a dark figure emerges from the shadow and approaches the building silently with deadly weapons on both hands. The guards who were guarding William''s ce didn''t notice the dark figure approaching as they fell one by one without making a noise. The deadly needle filled with poison massacred the guards as one little jab from the assassin quietly ended their life. With all guards eliminated, the assassin quietly entered the building and ready his weapons to kill the Space Marine. As the assassin passes the window, the moonlight reveals the dark figure''s identity, bringing terror with him. The assassin is fully equipped with deadly weapons and dark suits, allowing him to blend in with the dark. The assassin is holding a bolt pistol equipped with a Needler that can deliver a toxic dart filled with neurotoxins from his right hand. His hand is equipped with a neuro gauntlet that can inject deadly poisons through needle fingers on the left hand. A single touch from this gauntlet can end the man''s life, as this already ended a dozen guards'' lives tonight. Lastly, the assassin''s suit was equipped with two additional arsenals, a powerful sword that was strong enough to cut his victim in atomic level and a melta bomb powerful enough to destroy armored vehicles and buildings. This bomb is only used as ast resort to kill the targets and the assassin''s life in extreme circumstances. Wearing a skeleton helmet, the Eversor Temple Assassin quietly entered William''s room with his bolter pistol aimed at the bed. The room was dark, but the Eversor saw clear as day and observed the surroundings using his helmet. The assassin''s target was sleeping in the bed with a nket covering it, and the armor of the Emperor''s Champion was standing next to the bed with a ck sword on both hands pointing down as if it was protecting the target sleeping in the bed. Without any hesitation, the Eversor assassin fired multiple toxic darts, enough to put Space Marine in aa. The toxic darts filled with neurotoxin hit the target, sleeping in the bed but before Eversor had a chance to approach the bed and see his target, the armor of the Emperor''s Champion moved with a sword striking the assassin''s head. Eversor quickly dodges backward before the ck sword could remove his head. Unfortunately for the assassin, his bolter pistol got destroyed during his escape as he was still aiming at the bed. With the assassin''s pistol done, the Eversor drew his power sword to face the Emperor''s champion as the Dark Temr Champion stepped forward and flipped the bed with one hand, making room for their duel. "I knew someone was aiming for my life, but I didn''t expect to meet one of the Imperial Assassin to do the deed. Who is your master? Did that elf send you? How ironic that Eversor Assassin is doing Xenos''s bidding." William asks with curiosity since he knows Eversor Assassins are known for their insane method to kill multiple targets. One thing for sure, they do NOT sneak around and be subtle during their assassination as they are filled with all kinds ofbat drugs, chemicals, and psychotic rage enough to ughter everyone, including friendly. The only way Imperium managed to utilize Eversor is to freeze them and drop a drop pod directly at the target, all drugged up and filled with rage. For their insane reputation, this Eversor approached very differently to kill William. Lucky for the Emperor''s Champion, he nted a decoy on the bed using a mountain of pillows and stayed alert inside of his armor, expecting one of the priests to seek revenge. The appearance of Imperium Assassin was one thing, but to aim for his life was unexpected beyond his imagination. Once again, William thought, ''It must be Tzeentch'' as he prepared his de. The Eversor didn''t answer William, but instead, he screeched and attacked William like a mad man. With incredible speed and reflex, the assassin swung his power sword aiming at William''s head while using his left hand to strike needle fingers at gaps between the shoulder and main body of the power armor. Already expecting a berserker attack, William deflected the power sword with his ck sword and immediately countered the neuro gauntlet needles by hitting the assassin with the pommel of the sword. The decisive strike from the pommel didn''t stop the assassin for a second as he quickly recovered and moved to the side to hit William''s blind side with his power sword. The Eversor''s power sword was much more potent as the assassin''s enhanced body, and strength carried the strike more deadly. Sensing the deadly strike once more, William moves quickly and pulls out his storm shield from the inventory. The storm shield''s gravitic energy field generator made Eversor''s sword ineffective as it bounced back before it could touch the shield surface. Seeing the perfect opportunity to counter, William charged at the assassin using a storm shield as a battering ram. The superhuman speed and strength of the Space Marine rammed the Eversor like a ragdoll as William pushed through multiple walls and furniture as they ended up outside of the building. Now, standing in the middle of the training field, William returns to his battle stance while Eversor quickly gets back up even though half of his body, including his right arm and skeleton helmet, is broken. Filled withbat drugs and countless unknown chemicals, the Eversor didn''t seem bothered or feel any pain, but after realizing his power sword is missing from his hand, he immediately pulled out a melta bomb to activate self-destruction. Seeing Eversor going full Predator, William rushed forward with incredible speed and shed Eversor''s arm before it could detonate. At the exact moment, the ck sword decapitated the assassin''s hand, and William dropped his shield and pulled out his chainsword from his inventory, and stabbed the assassin. The chainsword''s engine cranked up as the weapon''s cutter teeth mutted the assassin''s internal organ painfully and bloody. William immediately finishes the assassin''s life by cutting his head using a ck sword and goes to where the melta bomb is to retrieve it before it goes off prematurely. Luckily, the assassin couldn''t activate the bomb in time so William put it away into his inventory for safety''s sake. ''Now, who sent you?'' William thought to himself as he grabbed the dead man''s head and the body to examine it. To his surprise, he found his answer as a piece of broken machinery dropped from the assassin''s back of the head. Guessing the impact of his shield push damaged the machine, William picked it up to scan it using his helmet. Before the helmetpletes its scan, William realizes the true identity of the machinery as he once saw a simr type before in his previous life. The only one word came out from the Emperor''s Champion''s mouth as he realized who sent the Eversor. "Fuck." Chapter 49: The Preserver Chapter 49: The Preserver Next day, The death of a dozen guards caused more tension in the royal pce. The nobles tighten their groups as they leer at each other suspiciously while royal guards and knights of the capital city lockdown the pce. William, the only survivor of the massacre, told the captain of the knight what happenedst night but left the part about how he killed the assassin. After all, the Eversor''s body vanished after William retrieved the loot from the dead assassin''s body and piece of machinery that caused William to panic for a short time. "After arming myself with my sword, I fought the assassin, but before I could deliver the killing blow, the assassin escaped through the window and disappeared into the night. The room was dark, so I didn''t see much except the assassin''s de (This is a lie as a Space Marine can see in near darkness almost as daylight)." William ''gave'' his side of the story to the knight captain and his two other knights as he recreated thest night incident. The story is believable and makes sense since there is no trace of blood or body, not to mention this incident brought shame to the royal guards'' reputation for they failed to guard the Crown Prince''s guest. "Thank you. I will have this report to the Prime Minister. I''ll leave a few of my knights to guard you since you are the target, and I''m sure Legen is up to no good for what you did yesterday. Personally, when I heard the news, I felt little satisfaction since they need to be reminded of what they did three years ago." The captain said to William and was about to leave his knights to William when Rana and three ck Temrs entered the building. "That won''t be necessary, captain. I believe William prefers his brothers beside him before meeting the King today." Rana said to the captain and sent them away while she and three ck Temrs closed the door to have some privacy. "So, 12 more dead, and we don''t know who sent the assassin. What is going on, William?" Rana asks William with great concern on her face as she starts to believe William''s enemy once again appeared in her front door. At first, Rana thought Legen sent one of their assassins to handle William for his action against one of their priests. But once she heard that the assassin escaped from William''s grasp, she knew it was something else and more deadly. This is why she called back William''s three battle brothers to protect William once again, for they are much more lethal than anyone she has ever met. "I think I know what is going on, and I have a n, but you are not going to like it," William said to the Duchess as he put his helmet on his head. He told Rana about what happenedst night, including the identity of the assassin. That one of his faction''s assassins went for his life and how he handled the problem with his swords. The problem now is how to handle the situation since representatives of Legen might be rted tost night''s incident. "Ok, so what is your n?" --------------------------------- "Your majesty, may I present to you William the Giant, the Pdin of the God-Emperor." The royal court officer announced William''s presence to the central court as the door opened, and a giant man, fully armored with a helmet in his left hand, entered the room with a fearsome presence. Many noblemen watched William pass by them as many tried to hide fear, and some admired his armor and the very presence of confidence. Many noblewomen were more focused on William''s height and appearance as they hid their giggles and blush behind their fan. The representatives of the Legen can be seen not far away from the throne on the right side. The priests'' leader, Archbishop shor Herydark, stood tall with a slight smile on his face as he watched William approach closer and closer. Meanwhile, his followers show smirks on their faces, for they are filled with revenge and overconfidence. They are ready to present their defense and put William in the corner using diplomacy and politics, just like what politicians do. Behind William, three of his battle-brothers followed him a few steps away as they kept their hamlet on but maintained their weapons on the holster. Meanwhile, Prince Benton and Rana stood near the left side of the throne while the Prime Minister stood next to the King and the Queen sat next to her husband. As for the King, his appearance was a mess. The King of the Alderim sat on his throne with a hunch on his back while his clothes resembled a dark bedgown than what the King of the country should be wearing. His hair and beard are white and messy as if he didn''t wash for many days, while his skin is pale as if he''s been sick from bad flu or something. The only thing that shows the appearance of the King is the fancy gold crown and metallic green emerald ring on his right finger. William stopped a few paces away from the throne and stood still. Few seconds passed, and many nobles started to whisper to each other as William was supposed to kneel before the King to present himself in a royal court tradition. William''s ill manners against the royal court angered a few nobles, including the royalist faction. Finally, one nobleman steps forward to teach William a proper manner if he must force William to kneel. "You uneducated fool! Kneel before the King and swear your loyalty and thanks." The young nobleman shouted with anger as he stepped forward from the sideline. Many nobles nod their heads and agree with a young nobleman as their fear vanishes, and confidence in nobility starts to grow once again. Before the entire courtroom gets out of control, William turns his head towards the young noble and says something unimaginable. "I do not kneel to mere mortals. I serve the God-Emperor and only him, for I''m his champion and his weapon. Your words are nothing but squeals from the mouse, so return to your corner and silence your mouth." William''s words silenced the entire room as both minor and major nobles of all ranks were too shocked to process what they just heard. Meanwhile, Ranaughs silently while Prince Benton covers his face with one hand as he knew this would happen. As for both the Prime Minister and the Queen, their reaction was the same as yesterday when William''s men disintegrated eight Legen guards. "Now, back to business. King Benton, aren''t you a sore sight for your eyes. I expected more from the father of the Crown Prince, but there is no help if you are under mind control." William''sst word once again shocked the courtroom, including Rana and Prince Benton, as they didn''t know about this information from William beforehand. "What do you mean mind control? Who is doing this to my father?" Prince Benton asked William for an answer and fear for his father, but before he could get his answer, William drew his bolter pistol and fired the weapon at Archbishop shor Herydark. The bullet from William''s bolter pistol hit Archbishop''s head as the leading representative of the Legen fell to the ground. The courtroom turned to chaos as nobles ran for their lives while three ck Temrs and royal guards drew their weapons, but the royal guards didn''t draw their weapons at William instead towards the remaining Legen priests. "What is the meaning of this? We have an alliance agreement!" One of the Legen priests said with a fearful voice while guards surrounded him and his colleagues to the corner. "That doesn''t count if the King was under mind control. After all, Mindshackle Scarab from the Necron Overlord should be foul for proper diplomacy." William said to the priest as he approached the dead elf''s body to see if it transforms into Necron. To William''s surprise, he saw no changeing from the headless Archbishop''s body as his body remained the same while red blood spewed where the head used to be. "Any minute now¡­." William said to himself, but he started to doubt as the Archbishop didn''t change into an undead robotic skeleton after a few seconds. Before William can turn around to face Rana, William gets hit with a green st in the side, but thanks to his personal iron halo, it shields William from deadly disintegration. Everyone turned around to see who fired the weapon, and to their surprise, the green st came from Prime Minister Waylon as he levitated from the floor with green energy surrounding him. "You were correct on mind control but mistaken in who is controlling who," Prime Minister Waylon''s voice changed from regr humanoid to unnatural machine as an advanced hologram changed his appearance from top to bottom. The flesh turns to a living metal known as Necrodermis as Waylon''s entire body turns into a robotic skeleton, and his clothes are reced with simr metal materials with various symbols of unknownnguage while glowing in green light. The metal hood covers the head while the cape res behind him as if the wind blew it gently. With his secret revealed, the Necron reaches out with his left hand, and Archbishop''s staff levitates from the ground and returns to its true owner, with appearance also changing into Necron origin. Trazyn the Infinite, Overlord of Solemnace, master of the Prismatic Galleries, a great liberator of ancient artifacts, and a being who has known death a thousand times, reveals his true identity to the New World. Chapter 50: Gotta Catch Em All Chapter 50: Gotta Catch Em All Necrons are one of the oldest races in the Warhammer 40K universe. More than 60 million years ago, they waged war against Old ones andter allied with C''tans (Their Star Gods) to win the War in Heaven. To achieve victory, Necrons (previously known as Necrontyr) traded their weak flesh for an immortal mechanical body with an unimaginable level of technology by going through Biotransference. Unfortunately, it cost Necrontyr their souls, which C''tans consumed and tookmand of their race once and for all. By the end of the war, Old Ones were no more, and C''tans began to fight each other. Seeing once and only opportunity, Necron''s leader, the Silent King, led a rebellion against their Star Gods and ultimately shattered C''tans into countless shards, scattering it all over the gxy. In the end, the Necron race went to Great Sleep to wait until the time was right and once again able to retake the Milky Way gxy as they are destined to. With many worlds turned into tomb worlds, very few Necrons stay awake to watch over them and wait patiently as the gxy continues to change and many racese and go while Necrons wait for their Silent King to return from his self-exile. Trazyn the Infinite, on the other hand, took a different route during the 60 million years of his life. Unlike his Tomb World guardian colleagues, he dedicated himself to collecting and preserving the gxy''s history for Prismatic Galleries. This mainly involves stealing from other Necron Tomb Worlds, raiding the world before their extinction event, and trickery by any means possible, including waging decoy wars for decades. In short, Trazyn is a soulless robotic skeleton with Kleptomania with plenty of time to wait out the entire race just to steal a few artifacts. Of course, Trazyn is a Necron Overlord, which means he has great authority, such asmand of legions of Necron Warriors and rule of many Tomb Worlds. With his advanced robotic body and weapons from War in Heaven, Trazyn is considered one of the powerhouses of the Necron faction (Even though he doesn''t prefer fighting as he wants to keep his enemy in pristine condition for eternity). To catch and contain his collection, Trazyn uses mind-shackle scarabs to hold control of other alien races andmand them like a puppet. This is how the Eversor assassin was sent to kill William; Archbishop shor Herydark (His head is gone, but he did have scarab) was sent to form an alliance to retrieve the Duchess and King Benton''s gifted ring that contained the smaller scarab variant to make diplomacy much easier. His staff, Empathic Obliterator, is a unique staff, rumored to be old as War in Heaven and believe to contain the technology of the Old Ones. The staff has the power to kill an enemy and creature with a simr mind and purpose by generating a shockwave from Trazyn''s body. In short, if Trazyn kills one Space Marine with his staff, he can kill an entire squad of Space Marines with a shockwave burst due to their simr mindset and purpose to kill Trazyn in the battle. Finally, Trazyn has surrogate hosts in his arsenal. Because he made many enemies due to his upation, he utilized an arcane device to take over his underling''s body if he ended up dying or damaged. Once transferring his memory, consciousness, and war gears areplete, Trazyn can morph the new body into the identical body of his old one. This is why he earned himself a nickname of ''the Infinite'' as he rose from thousands of death multiple times throughout eons. ---------------------------- "It''s a shame. I was going to retrieve that unique elder after Iplete my mission to collect specimens of this world. The good thing is there is plenty of his kind once I finish my work here." Trazyn the Infinite said to himself aloud while his green energy shield blocked multiple bolter rounds, Heavy mer mes, and sma shots from the sma pistoling from four ck Temrs. With his n ruined and the loss of many new collections, Trazyn decided to restart from scratch, starting with Emperor''s Champion. "I was going to capture you near the end ever since you ughtered the Orks of this world. Who could have guessed that you were the one who killed my Ork raid bands from Greenhills and Ork kidnappers from yesterday? If you want the job done right, do it yourself. Let''s start with you." At the end of the sentence, Necron Overlord opens the dimensional pocket and pulls out four Tesseract Labyrinths (Two cubes are empty), fist-sized cubes capable of capturing many living creatures against their will. With a simple throw from the Trazyn, one empty cube went towards William as he continued to fire his heavy bolter. Just before the Tesseract Labyrinth cube could hit William, one of the ck Temr intercept and immediately disappear as green energy consumes the ck Temr after surrounding him. "Damn, that was a special Tesseract Labyrinth for the rarest specimen. Good thing I have a spare one just in case." Just before Trazyn could throw another cube, two remaining ck Temrs (One Tech Marine and one regr) charge ahead with chainswords in their hands after witnessing one of their brother''s disappearance. The Dorn''s fury rushed out from the two ck Temrs as their rage consumed their mind of any strategies, and only the wrath of their Primarch emerged. "Die, you abomination!" The Tech Marine was the first to attack as his chainsword strike hit the green energy shield. His two Mechadendrites (Robotic arms simr to Doctor Octopus from Spiderman) were equipped with a sma pistol, and the bolter pistol continues to fire point-nk range. Meanwhile, after moving to the Necron''s blindside, the second ck Temr swung his chainsword with all of his might. Unfortunately, all of their efforts were for nothing, as their attacks didn''t even break Trazyn''s energy shield or show any sign of depleting. Seeing this, William equipped himself with a jump pack and changed his weapon from Heavy Bolter to Thunder Hammer, capable of smiting powerful strikes by unleashing tremendous amounts of energy at once. With a single thrust from the jump pack, William leaped from the ground and reached his target, close enough to fight in closebat. William''s Thunder Hammer strike hits urately as stored energy within the weapon unleashes at the moment it hits the energy shield. The force generated from the hammer created a shockwave and loud noise powerful enough to shatter every ss window of the throne room. But to William''s disappointment, Trazyn''s energy shield remained unshattered while his two battle brothers fell into their backs due to the energy shield redirecting the impact force of the Thunder Hammer to two ck Temrs. Meanwhile, just like two Space Marines, many people, including nobles, Legen priests, and guards, fell unconscious after witnessing a terrifying fight between demigods. As for Prince Benton, the Duchess and the queen took cover behind one of the marble pirs to shield themselves, which saved them from deadly small debris. As for the king, he remained untouched as Trazyn''s energy shield extended to him as he is one of the collections for the New World expedition in Prismatic Galleries. ''You gotta be kidding me. I knew Trazyn is powerful for Necron Overlord, but this is too much for just four Space Marines.'' After hended on his knee, William thought to himself, right in front of the Necron Overlord, who remained silent until he saw the damage within the throne room. "No, no, no. I can''t have this remarkable room full of unique history to be ruined by our little fight. Let us change our location." Trazyn''s staff shined bright, blinding the remaining people who survived the energy impact, and William and Trazyn disappeared from the throne room and reappeared at the outside royal courtyard, wide enough to fit an army. "Now, it is just you and me. Emperor''s Champion, eternity awaits" Just as Trazyn threw hisst empty Tesseract Labyrinth cube at William, who was still on his knee when a hail of Heavy bolter rounds hit the cube and destroyed it in midair. "What? Who dares to defy me?" Trazyn the Infinite enrages as he no longer has an empty Tesseract Labyrinth cube to capture one of the rare Space Marine for his collection. "We do! Fire at will!" A single man inmissar greatcoat and cap came from the gate, riding on top of the Chimera (Standard Armoured Personnel Carrier, APC) with Heavy Bolter mounted on the top hull shouted as William''s main force, including the rest of the ck Temrs, rushed in with weapons hot. Commissar Ciaphas Cain, the hero of the imperium, honorary member of Valhan Ice Warriors, and Tanna tea enthusiast entered the battlefield as he led arge number of various Imperial Guard. From Militarum Tempestus to Cadian Shock Troopers, all of William''s forces open fire their weapons at Trazyn, bombarding and stressing Overlord''s energy shield to its limit. "Well, well, well. It looks like a vast number of potential specimens outnumbers me. But, this is why I brought my two additional Tesseract Labyrinth just in case." With that, Trazyn the Infinite ced one of the cubes on the ground and unleashed one of his collections at Astra Militarum. Emerging from the pocket dimensional gateway, arge horde of savage warlike greenskins rush out with a battle cry loud enough to flinch Commissar Cain and veteran Imperial Guardsmen for a second. Leading the Warband, Orkboss armed with Power w and Big Choppa unleash iconic warcry of the Ork. "WAAAGH! Time to fight stupid humies, boyz!" Chapter 51: Imperial Guards VS Orks Part One Chapter 51: Imperial Guards VS Orks Part One Night before, After William killed the Eversor Assassin and collected his reward, he decided that there will be a battle the next day. After finding a destroyed Mindshackle Scarab from the Eversor''s dead body, William decided to summon Commissar Cain to ensure a higher chance of victory. So, imagine his surprise when Commissar Cain was summoned with his personal Chimera tank and Jurgen as a driver. At first, William was hesitant because he expected to meet Cain alone, but he weed the Hero of the Imperium and gave instructions, includingmand of his troops. As for Cain, he was surprised to see a clear night sky and giant Adeptus Astartes standing tall in front of him. From his own experience as Commissar and ess to numerous files within Imperium, Cain knew this Space Marine wasn''t a normal one as he was d with advanced armor and numerous symbols within armor including two distinguish purity seals. ''Calm down Cain, you talk to Adeptus Astartes before. Well, I wouldn''t say talk but clearly, he is a member of the ck Temr and a servant of the Emperor.'' Cain, with his legendaryposure and quick thinking, hides his surprised face and kneel before alone Space Marine as Jurgen did the same. "Commissar Ciaphas Cain reporting. Who do I serve and what is my mission?" The Hero of the Imperium humbly asks a question to ck Temr while the palm of his right-hand starts to tingle which indicatesing danger. "I''m William, member of the ck Temr and chosen champion of the Emperor. I call upon you, Ciaphas Cain for an aide against forces of Chaos and Xenos invasion on this New World." William did his best to stay in character as he knew Cain have a keen sense and sharp intuition when ites to bullshitting. ''Emperor''s Champion? This must be serious if the champion is fighting both Xenos and Chaos at the same time. At least this time we have ck Temrs in this campaign.'' Chain thought to himself as sighs of relief and concern rush him at the same time. From his experience with Chaos and Xenos, there are sure to be casualties on the battlefield and he prefers to stay on the side to ensure his higher chance of survival. (This usually backfires at Cain''s face every time whenever Cain attempt to do a ''side mission'' to avoid frontline battle. From the discovery of the Necron tomb to uncovering the Genestealer cult conspiracy, Cain managed to survive each deadly encounter and somehow appear to everyone as a selfless hero willing to fight for fellow man, woman, and Imperium) "As youmand, Lord William. I serve the Imperium and God-Emperor," Cain said to William which William epts. William began to exin the current situation and political issues they are about to face. Clearly, William has an advantage against the natives of this world but Necron is another story since no one is certain if Necron was here before or came through warp portal like other Xenos. "My lord, if you are right, we need more than a hand full of Space Marines and few toons of guardsmen. From my personal experience, Necrons are hard to kill since they usuallye back to life within few minutes." Cain gave his insight and knowledge to William after understanding the situation. Worst case scenario, William''s force would be outnumbered and outgunned, which not even Hero of the Imperium could do against. "Good point, but that is why I''m going to request additional help from an old friend. For now, you need to join my main force and prepare for the uing battle tomorrow. You, Commissar Cain, will lead the charge personally." William said to Cain and began to make a new strategy while Jurgen prepares two bowls of Tanna tea in the back. --------------------------------- Morok the Darkstampah, the member of the Ork n Goffs, stood tall while signaling his warbands to charge forward. The first wave of his Orks bullrush with their melee weapons in their hands while shooting their range weapons (Most end up missing their target as Orks are bad at proper aiming) as n Goffs are known for being the most brutal Orks in thebat. "Dakka Dakka Dakka! Need more DAKKA!" One of the heavily armed Ork shouts his lungs out as he continues to fire his slugga (The mostmon Ork range weapon), which suddenly blows up from his hand. But this didn''t stop other Orks as they continue their assault with no concern for their own safety or show any battle tactic. With heavy projectilesing from sluggas and shootas, William''s force starts to have wounded, and casualties as a few of the lucky shots end up hitting troops. Still, no one from William''s side pulls back as each troop is an experienced soldier and veteran of the grim darkness of the far future. Cain didn''t like the idea of charging ahead but being protected by his personal heavy vehicle gave small safeguard from certain death by Orks. Also, having ck Temrs on the battlefield gave Cain security as Orks prefer to fight Space Marine than guardsmen. "Jurgen, fire at will!" Commissar Cain said to his loyal aide as he fires his heavy bolter from the top hull. Cain didn''t have to aim with his mounted weapon since a wave of Orks is justing without any show of formation. "Yes, sir." Ferik Jurgen, a most loyal aide to the Commissar Cain, Melta weapon specialist, and a nk (Null), pulls the trigger of the heavy mer inside of the Chimera. The promethium-fueled me soaked the first three lines of Orks as powerful me burn the walking green mushrooms like a bbq. The heavy mer kills the Orks inrge numbers and cleanses Ork spores from escaping from the battlefield. Usually, Ork infestation is impossible to remove altogether, but because these Orks are introduced at the battlefield, the chances of Ork spores spread out of control are very slim. If it is done right, Orks won''t set root on this World unless Trayzn decided to release more inrge numbers. Meanwhile, William''s troops changed their target the moment Trazyn unleashed his Orks onto this world. Three dozensguns fired while ck Temrs fired their bolters urately atrger Orks within rank. The Cadian shock troops and Tempestus Scions focused front line with theirsguns while Catachn Jungle Fighters set up heavy weapons in the back to support troops in the front. Even though William''s troops were ready to fight and well equipped, the Orks continue to push forward, with most of them giggling and smiling. The Ork''s primal instinct to fight and physical ability to absorb multiple wounds made them difficult to kill. Lucky, Orks didn''t possess any heavy equipment or vehicles, but their sheer number is enough to push guardsmen and Space Marine. "kill all ''umiez an'' Space Marine! All we need iz dere scraps," Morok the Darkstampah gave hismand as eightrge Goff Nobs (Most prominent and stronger Ork) armed with choppas began to walk forward. Before Goff Nobs got into the firing range, they grab smaller Orks or Gretchin (Ork version of the goblin) and use them as meat shields. "Focus all your fire on them! Those Orks could be trouble," Cain instruct Catachan Jungle Fighters, which they turn their heavy bolters at iing Nobs. The rounds of heavy bolters shredded Nobs'' meat shields and injured a few of them with direct shots, but the remaining elite Orks continue to push on. Coming close, the ck Temrs change their weapons to face Nobs in closebat. Armed with chainswords, the ck Temrs charge head-on as their chainsword engine roar in full power. The sh between giants from two sides became the center of the battlefield as skilled swordsmanship of Space Marine rip Ork sh into pieces while a brute force of Ork''s strength breakthrough power armor and heavily injuring Space Marine. The meleebat eventually came to the point where some of the Nobs use nearby Gretchins as a throwing weapon while Space Marine uses theirbat knives to dual wield to have a little more advantage. The battle between Space Marine and Nobs didn''t stop the guardsmen or Orks forces as two main forces eventually sh into their closebat. "Prepare for the closebat!" The senior member of Cadian Shock Trooper gave themand as most of them prepare to use their bays while Catachns continue to fire heavy bolters now much faster firing rate. When two forces finally shed against each other, the battle turned into a one-sided bloody ughter as Imperium forces are getting hacked and shed by Goffs Warband. The brutal ughter got so bad that Commissar Cain retreated inside of the heavy vehicle and ordered Jurgen to just run over the small group of Orks with Chimera. Because of possible friendly fire, Cain couldn''t fire either heavy bolter or heavy mer but having a ten-ton tank is enough to ram approaching Orks with ease. "Do not stop. Continue to run over the Orks until we reach the Warboss. If we can beat the Ork Warboss, we could reduce their momentum." Cain orders his aide while reloading heavy mer. If he could kill the Warboss, the Orks within ranks will start to fight each other to takemand, making them losemand structure once and for all. When Cain''s Chimera is about to reach the middle line of the Ork force, Cain saw something he wishes he never encounter again in his life. Arge single squig (A two-legged creature with arge mouth) covered with bombs and TNT in its mouth ran towards Cain''s Chimera, intending to blow itself up. Cain took a side bolter mount and fired everything he got at the iing bomb squig, seeing the approaching danger. "Come on,e on! By the Emperor''s throne." Commissar Cain said to himself as he continues to fire bolter rounds at the bomb squig. Near his end of bolter rounds, Cain finally hit the bullseye as one of the bolter rounds hit the TNT in the squig''s mouth before it could reach the Chimera. The explosion and destruction of the squig killed the Snotlings riding it and Orks nearby at that moment. "Yes! Praise the Emperor," Cain celebrates his kill and escape from certain death when suddenly explosion from the opposite side flip the Chimera 180'' degree, damaging it inoperable. While Cain was focused on the iing bomb squig, a second bomb squig reached the opposite side of the tank and detonated, pinning lynchpin of the Imperium unit a sitting duck behind the enemy line. ''What just happened?'' Cain thought to himself as he regains hisposure and picks up a fallenmissar hat from the ground. The explosion knocked him out of breath for few seconds but it wasn''t enough to bring down Cain and Jurgen out from the fight. Now, Cain''s palm began to tingle more than usual as he moves quickly to find his aide. "Jurgen, are you ok? We need to get out of here," Commissar said to his aide and was about to move to check on him when the main hatch open and Ork armed with shoota aim his weapon at Cain. Due to the injury from the explosion, Cain couldn''t react fast enough to draw hisspistol. Just as Cain was about to ept his death and join Emperor''s fallen warriors, multiplesgun shots killed the Ork with two in its head. "Sorry sir, it seems we lost the Chimera for now," Jurgen appears from the corner with hissgun in his hands and said to Cain apologetically. "It''s ok, Jurgen. I''m sure Lord William could spare few cog boys to repair after this." Cain smile as best he could and pull out hisspistol to join the fight outside. Cain isn''t an expert marksman or possesses the superhuman ability, but no one can surpass him when ites to his survival instinct, and he isn''t nning to die in the New World. "Let''s get out of here before more Orkses and start causing problems." Commissar said to Jurgen and approached the opened hatch with his weapon ready. Just before Cain pop his head outside, he heard something heavy drop from above as his damaged Chimera and ground shake for a second. "What in the Golden Throne?" Cain said to himself and step outside, using Chimera as a shield since the bottom of the Chimera is now facing Ork''s main force while the hatch was towards Imperium forces. When Cain sneaks his head to see what caused the ground to shake, his heart and hope brighten as Dreadnought from the ck Temr engaged Ork rear rank of Warbands alone. Equipped with Leviathan Storm Cannon and heavy mer, Battle-Brother Raduriel unleashes the most devastating firepower from his weaponry while none of the Ork weapons could scratch his armor te. Above Dreadnought''s head, two Valkyrie airborne assault carriers drop 30 additional Imperial Guardsmen while additional reinforcement from the ruin of Greenhill arrives with vehicles running over Orks from the right side of the battlefield. Seeing the hope, Cain opened his vox device and gave hopeful words to encourage the remaining troops and pull them from despair. "Emperor watch over his faithful servants. For the Emperor!" Chapter 52: Imperial Guards VS Orks Part Two Chapter 52: Imperial Guards VS Orks Part Two Morok the Darkstampah is having a bad day. A tin boyz somehow captured him and his boyz which is disgrace enough, but now he ends up fighting the tin boy''z battle. At least Morok is fighting humies which he is ok with that. After all, everyone knows humies got best scraps than pointy-eared gits or fishies, not to mention they also have more numbers to be krumping by Morok''s boyz. "Keep fight''n'' or else I will be da wun krump''n yer all!" Morok shouts hismand as his boyz are getting pushed by the Dreadnought. Morok''s victory was sure when he sessfully blew up Chimera using squigs. That was until Dreadnought suddenly drops from the sky and starts demolishing his troops with his ''shootas'' while two Valkyrie hovers above and start shooting and sending more human troops. "Dis isn''t ova yet! Send out battlewagon!" After hearing Morok''smand, arge red truck armed with ramming spikes, various shootas and loaded with Ork troops push through unfortunate gretchin foot soldiers in the battlefield and went straight for the Dreadnought. "Ere we go, ere we go, ere we go!" The Ork driver and the rest of the Ork front passengers yell as if they are celebrating someone''s birthday. "Bracing for the impact." The honorable Battle-Brother Raduriel was already prepared for this encounter since he overheard the Morok''s very loudmand on the battlefield. With his quick ability to switch his weapons, Randuriel immediately changes from range weapons into closebat fists with few short-range weapons such as heavy mers and power fist attachments. The red-painted battlewagon struck the Dreadnought head-on and pushed the 12-ton killing machine backward, but this didn''tst as the Dreadnought regain his ground shortly. The sh between two factions'' heavy units continues as the battlewagon, and Raduriel''s engines produce ck smoke from the exhaust pipe. "Shot it!" The driver of the battlewagon shout and every Orks within the truck aims their shootas at the Dreadnought. But before they could pull their triggers, arge me st reaching thousands of degrees hit the top side of the truck, killing all Orks and turning them into smoking ashes. "Nicely done Jurgen," Commissar Cain said to his aide as he stands tall above Chimera and aims hisspistol at the Ork driver. With a single shot, Cain hit the diver''s head and disable the vehicle for a moment. "Thank you, sir," Jurgen, who is kneeling next to Cain reloads his meltagun and fired again to destroy the rest of the top side of the vehicle. Seeing battlewagon disabled, Dreadnought''s engine once again roars and flips the vehicle with all his might. With the downfall of the prized vehicle, a few of the smaller greenskins began to panic and slowly step backward. This made Morok once again enraged and began to start krumping anyone who disobeys his orders. Meanwhile, Commissar Cain stood tall, posing with chainsword andspistol in his other hand while the Dreadnought steps forward to block any iing projectiles, protecting Cain unintentionally. "Push forward and burn them all!" Cain gave hismand, and immediately 30 Imperial Guardsmen and the rest of the troops who defeated Nobs charge ahead with thundering voices and new inspiration. "For the Emperor!" "Follow the Commissar Cain, the Hero of the Imperium!" "Bring victory and honor!" Soldiers of the Imperium, now drunk with inspiration and near victory, rush forward with every kind of weapon hot and ready to kill. The volley ofsguns stopped the Ork''s advance while heavy bolters carried by jungle fighters y them. The soldiers armed with mers unleash red hot mes as Dreadnought joins the BBQ to wipe every living lifeform on the battlefield. Meanwhile, ck Temrs once again armed themselves with bolter guns and mers to eliminate any greenskins who managed to escape guardsmen''s front assault to maintain the control of the battlefield. "Spare no one, let them experience Emperor''s might!" Cain once again gives inspiring words while emptying hisspistol. ''Thank the Emperor. I hope Lord William is doing fine just as we are," Cain thought to himself when suddenly, an Ork warboss jump out from the me of walls with dead Ork in his power w. "Dis isn''t over, ''umiez" Morok the Darkstampah uses one of his underlings as a meatshield and charges the first line of guardsmen while swinging his big choppa in another hand. The Ork warboss''s carnage began as each swing of big choppa killed four guardsmen. Seeing this, Dreadnought went to a melee stance and was about to attack the warboss, but a sudden sneak attack intercepted him by Ork tankbustas''s rockets (Ork version of rocketunchers). "Received medium damage, unable to move. Requesting air support," Battle-Brother Raduriel said with a mechanical voice in the vox box which two Valkyries changed their target and fired theirscannons at the Ork tankbustas (Add few rockets for the safe side). While this is happening, Morok continues to charge as he swiftly ying any humans blocking his way. His main target was clear, Morok was aiming for the leader of human troops, a man known as Ciaphas Cain the Hero of the Imperium. "Continue your fire! Takedown that Ork!" Cain gave his order while maintaining his posture on top of now destroyed Chimera while inside of his head, he panics as an oversized Ork didn''t slow down for a second ''Shit, shit, shit!'' Warboss didn''t seem bothered by thesgun injuries, and when he was finally about to reach fallen Chimera, Cain jumps out from the top with his chainsword cracked up. When Cainnded safely, he quickly rolled to keep his distance away from the warboss. "So, you want to fight me directly. I guess I have to kill warboss for the second time," Cain said to Morok and ready his duel stance just like he practiced million times. "I will have yer teef if ''dat iz ''dast fing i have ta do" Morok shouts and proceed to throw his meatshield, but instead of throwing at Cain, Ork warboss threw it at iing guardsmen and prevented them from firing their weapons at him. "This iz duel, no interference," Morok said to Cain and swing his big choppa, aiming for Cain''s head. Seeing the giant metal axing for him, Cain quickly dodged to the side due to the significant difference in strength. From hisbat experience against Orks, it is best to dodge instead of blocking it. Right after dodging the powerful Ork attack, Cain quickly swings his chainsword at Ork warboss''s head, but just as Cain is an experienced fighter, Morok is also an experienced fighter on his right. Morok, use his power w to block the raging chainsword and push Cain with his monstrous strength. The incredible force made Cain flew backward in few inches high and made him redirect his attention to hisnding. The Ork warboss once again charged his big choppa up high, but before he could swing again, a meltagun st hit Morok''s left side, which burned the entire left body, including the left hand holding big choppa. Morok managed to survive the deadly st thanks to his heavy power armor but it wasn''t enough for him to stay standing which he ends up on his both knees. Ork usually tolerates pain and injuries that could kill an ordinary man. Their biological makeup was designed to endure pain and lethal injuries thanks to the Old Ones. "Sir," Jurgen said while his meltagun barrel smokees out. Cain''s loyal aide came to his rescue and sted his weapon when Cain wasn''t close to the Ork warboss. "Nice timing, Jurgen." Cain said to his said aide and repositioned himself with his chainsword once again activated. The titanium chain teeth rotate like a fierce shark, and the roar from the engine gave intimating sounds that could scare war harden soldiers. "Ah!" Cain shouts as he raises the chainsword high and brings it down with all his might at the Ork''s head. Just as chainsword was about to hit Morok''s head, the Ork Warboss blocked it with his power w and got back up on his two feet. Morok raises his power w to his eye level while holding active chainsword and Cain, holding on to his weapon with both hands. "WAAAGH!" The Ork warboss gave his faction''s signature warcry when a human''s face reach the same eye level as his own. "AAAAH!" Cain counters Ork''s shout with his own and immediately let his left hand go and drew hisspistol from his hoister. Before Morok could do anything to Cain, Cain aimed hisspistol at the Ork''s mouth and empty his weapon before Ork could close his mouth. Morok, who is badly burn, couldn''t move an inch as his brain is cooked from inside. The power w slowly open which Cain quickly retrieve his melee weapon andnd safely which he proceeds to do what he previously meant to do. With the Ork warboss frozen for a moment, Cain jumps high and strikes the greenskin''s head. The chainsword''s teeth ripped the Ork''s skull and tear everything without stopping as Cain use all his weight to push down his weapon all the way. By the time Cain finish the Ork warboss off by cutting him in half, Morok was no more as he was already dead when Cain ripped and crushed Ork''s entire head. The covered in Ork''s blood, Cain put his chainsword back in his sheath and walk away from the body so Jurgen can burn the body once and for all. Commissar Cain''s victory engulfs everyone with the motivation to increase their fire rate and much more deadly. ''I miss my retirement,'' Cain thought to himself and was about to drop to the ground from exhaustion, but his iron will help him stay on his feet as he needs to maintain his appearance as a hero and a leader. With the Ork warboss dead and the rest of the Orks without leadership, Imperium Guardsmen quickly exterminate every greenskins usingsgun and holy fire. As thest greenskin burns to death, a sudden green burst of energy knocks everyone down. When the dust cleared, everyone saw battle-tattered William on his knee while Trazyn holds the Duchess as a hostage with a big smile on his face. "As I said, Champion, you will be part of my exhibit for an eternity." Chapter 53: Assassins and Choice Chapter 53: Assassins and Choice "Look what you made me do. Those orks were my early collection of Warband during War of the Beast and now I have to find suitable recements worthy of my ork galleries." Trazyn said to William as he hold the Duchess in his arm while holding his staff. While Commissar Cain and William''s troops were fighting the orks, William fought Trazyn with everything he got in his inventory. From bolter pistol to heavy mer, none of the weapons made any dent on Trazyn''s energy shield while old Necron Overlord made yawning expressions to mock the Champion. While this was happening, Rana arrived on the battlefield with her sword in her hand, intend to help William in any way possible. Still, in her dress back in the throne room, Rana rushes forward to attack Trazyn with her de in her hand, but Trazyn quickly disarmed Rana with a single-hand motion and captured her using Necron technopath. "You know, I originally came here to capture her and bring her to being called ''Mother''. For some reason, she is very interested to meet the Duchess since three years ago. But you, you are a bonus." Trazyn said to William while holding his evilugh as he remember his loss of a few collections. Still, for Trazyn this is a small loss as his reward will be much greater when he turns the Duchess to the ''Mother'' and get one of the rarest items for his collection. "What can you possibly get from Legen''s deity? With your technology, you can just take it like you usually do? What? Almighty Trazyn can''s steal it from primitive god?" William said with a mocking tone to buy himself more time and gather more information from Necron Overlord himself. "You seem to know me more than my friends, dear Champion. But as you said, I did make multiple attempts to steal what I was looking for from Legen and their pompous temple where their goddess resides. Unfortunately, I couldn''t even step one foot into the temple without getting myself disintegrated by an unknown defense mechanism." Thest part made Trazyn shiver as if he relived a bad memory. This makes sense since high-ranking Necrons have the most advanced body and perfect memory. Trazyn continues. "So, I decided to capture the Duchess and make a trade with ''Mother'' since she is looking for this little human. I won''t get everything I want but this is the most unique situation which I''m willing toprise. For this reason, I infiltrated two nations'' highest ranks and acquired everything I could including Archbishop and King Benton, not to mention the vast number of historical items for my exhibit." Trazyn finishes hisst sentence with pride and excitement as he recalls a few of his rare treasure hunting including native beasts which will require temporal cages. "That is why you were disguised as Prime Minister Waylon. He has extensive knowledge of local politics and influence to achieve your goals." William quickly catches on as it starts to make sense. Behind the scene, Trazyn made noble factions against each other while he unleash native orcs within Alderim to enforce the ever-growing infighting between nobles. Adding Legen''s demand for Rana would just pour gasoline to a house fire which two nations will go back to another war. This all seems overnned and unnecessary for powerful Necron Overlord but this is Trazyn we are talking about. He once deres a decade of war against Smander Space Marine just to have the opportunity to steal the Spear of Vulkan which he failed. By having war between two nations, Trazyn will have all the opportunity to steal anything he wants including something from the ''Mother''. After all, war is good for business and looting riches if you know where and when to look for it. "Ah, Prime Minster Waylon. The poor man couldn''tprehend my existence once he saw what I really was before his heart gave up. He won''t be part of the alive exhibits but I have ways to preserve the body for the historical record. Now, where were we? Yes, I''m about to have two for one deal." Trazyn changes his demeanor and is about to use his staff to immobilize William until something unexpected stopped him. Rana, who was standing still without any words finally move with inhuman speed and body twists. Pulling a weapon from her dress, in her hand, the Duchess was holding a sma pistol and aimed right at Trazyn''s chin which she immediately fired her weapon. Bam! The energy st from the sma pistol hit Trazyn''s face in a point-nk range which his energy shield couldn''t do anything as weapon fire was too close. Even Necron advanced body couldn''t withstand the sma st as half of Trazyn''s face melted and few critical systems are damaged which will take few hours to repair. Trazyn was lucky to survive the sneak attack and quickly put himself at a distance as he cover his face with his hand. "I didn''t expect you to share your weapon with native, Champion. When did you give her your pistol?" Trazyn said with irritation as his body start to regenerate his damaged face. "I gave it to herst night after I killed the Eversor assassin you sent. I have to thank you, as you gave me an opportunity to assemble assassins for today." William said as he stand up and armed himself with a ck sword. With Trazyn damaged, the Necron Overlord won''t be able to show his full power including his energy shield. While this is going on, Rana Bassilo Beckett the Duchess of the Argus begins to twist and reshape herself as if she is made out of flesh mud. The chemical known as Polymorphine allows the person with Rana''s face to return to its original form. A half-minuteter, Rana was no more, and instead, a woman in a dark ck suit stand next to Champion with a sma pistol in her hand. The Callidu Assassin simply waves her hand as she once again aims her weapon at Trazyn. ''That darn shapeshifter. I knew something was off about the Duchess the moment I held her hostage. Too quiet and very calm unlike Prime Minister Waylon. Wait, assassins? A plural?'' Trazyn thought to himself and immediately raise his staff to teleport but before he couldplete his teleportation, something hit him as his energy shield show multiple cracks and began to weaken. From two miles away, a Vindicare assassin from Officio Assassinorum fired his second shield-breaker round which shattered Trazyn''s energy barrier and burst into pieces. Half a second after the destruction of the energy shield, a third bullet hit Trazyn''s right arm which separate Necron Overlord from powerful staff. "Two assassins. Well, this is a bit overkill don''t you think?" Trazyn said to William who is now standing in front of him with a giant ck sword ready to strike. Trazyn smiled even though he can''t express it due to his robotic face as he knows this isn''t the end. "See you around Trazyn, until next time." William decapitate Trazyn''s head from his body and the metal body of the Necron dropped with a heavy sound of a thud. The defeat of Trazyn didn''t end with decapitation as a green light from the metallic body disappears and turns into dust. Just as William finish off the Trazyn, the real Duchess, and Prince Benton came out with knights behind them. In front of them, the entire courtyard burns as Space Marines and guardsmen scorch ork remains using promethium-based weapons while medics help any survivors with medical assistance. Witnessing the purging with extreme fire paused natives of this world as Rana approach William without taking her eyes away from the fire disy. "So, what did we missed?" ---------------------------- Meanwhile, behind one of the dark sides of the moons The conscious mind of the Trazyn arrives at his backup body which begins to power up from sleep mode. Sitting up from his chair, Trazyn waves his hand to activate screens of multiple monitors, and the light of themand room came to life. After a quick status check, Trazyn opens the dimensional pocket to bring in additional assistance as Necron warriors enter one by one. "Now, let us take this world one more time," Trazyn said to himself as his tomb ship emerge out from the moon and begin to hover above the ground. While this is happening, far away from the moon where Trazyn is, arge warp tear can be seen from another dark side of the moon as something evil and feeble exits from the warp dimension. ---------------------------- From defeating Trazyn the Infinite, [ck Temr x1: Previously captured by Trazyn. A standard Space Marine of ck Temr armed with bolter gun, chainsword, and sma rifle.] [ck Temr Veterans x30: An elite Space Marines of ck Temr with each member served more than 100 years for the God-Emperor. Each veteran is armed with a standard bolter gun but has unique melee weapons of their own such as lighting ws, power sword, or thunder hammer.] [Blood Angel Assult Squad x1: Fast and deadly Space Marine from Blood Angel chapter. These five Blood Angels can strike with precision and effectively aplish critical objectives before moving to the next objectives.] [Smenders Space Marine x 20: Smander Space Marine are known for their famous me weapons and giant status even for Space Marines. Covered with green armor and bright red eyes, Smanders are fearsome warriors of Primearch Vulkan and forge master craftsmen equal to none.] [Ultramarine Space Marine x 30: Consider as one of the strongest and honored Space Marine chapters of Imperium of Man. From the homeworld of Macragge, Ultramarine has a long history of victory against enemies of mankind and battle experience above other Space Marines. With a warcry of ''Courage and Honour,'' Ultramarine can aplish any mission no matter how deadly it is.] [Magos of Tech-Priests x 6: Masters of tech and science divisions. Previously captured by Trazyn while exploring the unknown Necron world, these tech-priests are armed with advanced war gears provided by Archmagos and STC data from the Adeptus Mechanicus vault.] Must pick one: [Astra Militarum, 334th Death Korps Siege Regiment x 1: A siege specialist regiment of the Death Korps of Krieg and master of trench warfare. The regiment isposed of 1500 Krieg troops each armed with asgun, trench shovels, gas mask, and other critical equipment. The regiment alsoes with heavy vehicles, various artilleries, and supplies for logistics.] Or [Lord Ursarkar E. Creed: Last suprememander of all Imperial forces of Caida and master strategist during Abaddon''s 13th ck Crusade, Ursarkar E. Creed is 50 years old militarymander with a long history worthy of heroes and legendary leaders of Imperium history. Captured by Trazyn near the end of the Fall of Cadia, Creed survive the destruction of the but officially went missing in action (MIA). Ursarkar E. Creed is armed with two master-crafted Hellpistols, a power sword, a refractor field emitter, and a ''tactical genius mind''. Additionally, Creedes with 50 Cadian Shock Troops who stay behind with their suprememander during thest moment of destruction of Cadia.] Note: Readers please vote which unit should be selected by clicking ''like'' on one of the paragraphments. The vote will end this Sunday and I will add your choice to the next update Chapter 54: The Cog Boys Chapter 54: The Cog Boys William selected Lord Ursarkar E. Creed as he quickly realized that he needed a legendarymander tomand various types of Imperial Guard effectively. Lord Creed has vast experience in battlefield strategy and utilization of different types of troops effectively. For this reason, William decided to go with Creed instead of Death Korps of Krieg, even though he is a big fan of shovel melee. ''Next time, I hope.'' William said to himself and summoned his captured battle brother and veteran ck Temrs for additional support on purging the Ork spores. Immediately, 31 ck Temrs run through the main gate with weapons in their hands and scan the area for any enemies on the battlefield. "I have returned with reinforcement! Where is the Necron scum? ck Temr announces his presence on the battlefield while the rest of the troops stare at him for a second before returning to burning Ork remains. "You missed out, brother," Tech Marine and the other two Space Marines join the party and exin the situation. Meanwhile, Battle-Brother Raduriel flips the damaged Chimera while Commissar Cain watches with a painful expression, and Jurgen pulls out a sk containing Tanna tea. "Tanna tea, sir?" "The damage is¡­ extensive." Rana (The Duchess) said to William and turned around to face him. "We have to make sure to exterminate Ork spores right now. If we don''t, it will be beyond our control within weeks." William exins to Rana and hands over his mer and heavy mer to two additional ck Temrs who don''t have them. As for the Crown Prince, he sends troops to the pce''s outer wall to maintain the peace and gives the knight captain strict orders to prevent anyone from interrupting William''s forces. Prince Benton trusts William and his troops enough not to question their action even though the fight is over. At best, they are doing the post-battle cleanup job, which is considered a minor job for foot soldiers and presents. ''I''m sure there is a reason why they are burning my mother''s flower field and the rest of the trees.'' Prince Benton thought to himself and joined William and Rana with a bit of concern. "I see. While you were fighting ex-Prime Minister Waylon, we handled the throne room, but unfortunately, the remaining representatives of the Legan ran off back to their country. I assume they epted your deration of war and believe we are part as well." Rana exins to William what happened to the throne room during his fight with Trazyn. "They ran off? If that''s the case, I will send a few soldiers to pick them up." William told Rana, but he shook her head as if there was no point sending troops after Legen priests. "They used teleportation spells to escape. I guarantee they are currently exining the situation to Legen counsel with you as the main topic of the discussion." Rana calmly said to William and saw the giant''s surprised face as if he had forgotten something important. "Oh, I see. I forgot about magic. I was hoping to interrogate them about their religion and ask who this ''mother'' is. I guess I will go to the source with my army behind me." William left the battlefield and headed to the throne room with Rana and Prince Benton following him. With the Necron problem solved, William wants to ensure no nobles will take advantage of the situation, especially with King Benton''s health condition. "I need ten men and any avable medics to the throne room," William said through voxmunicator and entered the main pce door as people made room to stay away from the giant armored man. -------------------------------- In the throne room, The friction between the two noble factions finally erupted long before William and the rest entered the throne room. The verbal fight between the two factions went to the next level when they saw William entering the room. "This is all his fault! This mercenary killed the head representative from Legen right after ignoring the rules of the royal court. We demand immediate execution and a message sent to Legen with his head as an apology." Head of the minor noble faction demanded William''s head and re-establish political rtions with Legen as they feared another war with a neighboring country. The previous war caused them significant depletion of resources which the majority of nobles provided. Most of the war resources came from major nobles who supported the royal family, while minor nobles held back most of their portion with various excuses. For this reason, after the war, nobles who withhold their support to the king didn''t receive awards from King Bentonpared to nobles who supported him. This caused many minor nobles to distrust their king and the royal family to the point they side with Legen than their king. "This man single-handedly eliminated metal daemon within our ranks and showed those cowardly priests not to mess with our nation. You are a fool if you think we will let you do as you wish, just like how you failed to provide troops three years ago." The head of the major noble faction yelled, and people behind him continued to shout as if their words could be heard. This continues to go on for another minute until a single shot of bolter fire silences the room, and every eye turns to the source of the bolter sound. "BOOM!" "Now that I have everyone''s attention, can someone please show me where King Benton is, so I can have my healers look after him? Also, if you want my head, I''m more than wee to have you all ughtered with my bare hands." William turned his head towards minor nobles and put away his bolter pistol to show he was more than ready to handle any challenger. While William is scaring the shit out of nobles from both sides, Rana and Prince Benton quickly lead the medics to the meeting room, where one of the nobles shows the way. Inside, they found King Benton lying on the sofa while his queen sat beside him tofort him. Also, in the room, There were already a few court healers and mages present as they attempted to remove the mind-shackle scarab from the king but failed as they had no idea the true identity of the scarab. "Clear the room. We will handle the Necron tech sorcery," One of the medics said to everyone as other medics armed themselves to remove scarab. -------------------------------- Back to the throne room, "So, you were saying something about my head?" William asks as if it was amon question, but his giant figure and power armor told a different story, for no one in the room or city can stop him from ripping apart naive nobles. "You¡­ you dare to speak to us without permission? How dare you don''t know your ce¡­." One of the nobles from the minor faction steps forward with little courage he could muster and demands to make William know his ce in the hierarchy, which it didn''t do much. This is because no soldiers from both sides or royal guards step forward to protect them from the giant death. The young nobleman didn''t finish his sentence because William finished it for him. With a simple gesture from William, he ced his power fist on the noble''s shoulder (William still has his retractable lighting ws attached to his power armor) and put small pressure, which immediately made the young nobleman get on his knees as he cried from the pain. "As you said, I don''t know my ce, but from my point of view, all of you don''t seem to know your ce at all. Thanks to my informant, I know all of your deceptions and schemes against the crown three years ago whom you swore an oath to serve until your dying breath. Maybe I should help youplete your service by executing each one and every one of you right now." William said out loud and pulled out his ck sword for additional points for threatening presence. While this is going on, nobles on the other side of the room are d they stay loyal to the crown because they didn''t wish to be on the other side of the room. "Please! Remove your hand. You are killing him," Alone noblewoman steps forward from the back to plead to William to stop hurting the young nobleman. Witnessing a woman instead of a man step forward to prevent bloodshed, William silently smirks, for he just saw ady demonstrating more courage than any man in this room. "And who might you be, mydy? No offense, but I fear I failed to recognize worthy authority among these¡­. nobles." William picks his words carefully and asks thedy her title and name. As William asked his question, the young nobleman quickly escaped and ran off without thanking his savior nor concern for her safety. The noblewoman is in herte middle age, around 46, 5.6 feet tall (170.6 cm), brte with few white strands of hair, and presents herself with dignity, which is saying somethingpared to other nobles within the minor faction. "I''m Countess Danel Van Shaw. I maintain the northeast region of the country, right above where Deron and Fort Stormfist is." Countess Shaw introduces herself in front of William without showing fear or weakness as she maintains her ground against the Emperor''s Champion. Unknown to William, Countess Shaw is the only member of the minor noble who sided with the crown during the war only to switch sides after losing her only son and husband from the war. Her husband and son join King Benton''s main army to fight the first battle against Legen''s invading army, but unfortunately, half of their military forces get decimated by Legen''s army led by their hero. "Countess Shaw, are you the one who speaks for your group? Because the way I see it, you are the only one who stands between me and soon-to-be fertilizers." William ces his sword to his shoulder and demands an exnation not to kill anyone from the countess. The way William sees it, it is better to clean the house before starting repairs, and Prince Benton''s house is long overdue. "For now, I do, and I will not have any barbaric confrontation while the kingy sick," The countess said to William and looked towards the door to the meeting room. Many nobles talked among each other as they realized their priority was misced. Just when William is about to respond, one of the medicses out of the room and requests William''s help. "Lord Champion, we need a cog boy if we want to remove the Xenos device. I believe we don''t have much time." The room again went silent as no one could understand who this ''cog boy'' is, to which William dly demonstrated as he summoned Magos of Adeptus Mechanicus. A few secondster, the door to the throne room opens, and six Tech-priests enter the room with the leading Magos introducing himself to William with a slight bow of respect. Unlike the typical sound, the tech-priest speaks with a mechanical voice with a muffled sound. [Magos of Adeptus Mechanicus are here to serve the Champion of the Omnissiah. I''m Magos Vdus Callias of the Metalica and loyal servant of the Omnissiah.] Chapter 55: The Meeting Chapter 55: The Meeting [Author''s rmendation: Warhammer 40K Mechanicus OST - Children of the Omnissiah] "There is no truth in flesh, only betrayal." "There is no strength in flesh, only weakness." "There is no constancy in flesh, only decay." "There is no certainty in flesh but death." - Credo Omnissiah The Adeptus Mechanicus is one of the factions of Imperium of Man. They are scientists, engineers, technicians, and keepers of technology which they rarely share their knowledge with Imperium. Imagine if your standard mechanic or engineer has a bachelor''s degree in engineering and a Ph.D. in theology (Study of religion and the nature of God in this case Machine God). Due to their ancient treaty with the Emperor of Mankind early during the Unification Wars, The Adeptus Mechanicus maintained their religious beliefs of Machine God and authority for 10,000 years. Suppose anyone has a problem with their authority, religion, or simply how they look. In that case, Imperium of Man will experience a sudden dy of war supplies such as weapons, ammunition, and even heavy vehicles such as Banede, the super-heavy tank. In other words, Admechs (Short for Adeptus Mechanicus) is one of the critical cogs for the never-ending war of the 40K universe. Most citizens of Imperium knew Tech-priests with their strange and heavy modification of their bodies. There is also their signature red robe which signifies their pledge and dedication to Omnissiah. Unknown to many, red isn''t the only color. Depending on the location of Forge World, where the Tech-priests came from, the color of the robe is different. The Tech-priests from Mars and many Forge Worlds put upon red robes while Forge World of Metalica wears white robes with little red color to indicate their dedication to Mars. --------------------------- [01101000 01100101 01101100 01101100 01101111...mmmmmmh¡­..aaaaahhhhh¡­] Magos Vdus Callias of Metalica made weird mechanical sounds for short seconds until he cleared his throat and spoke with a natural voice. "My apologies. We haven''t spoken with our true voice for a half-century. How may we assist you, Champion?" Mangos Callias spoke with curiosity while his fellow Tech-priests looked around as if they were studying everything, including building itself. "We discovered the existence of Necron within this New World. I need your help with the removal of the mind-shackle scarab from the local king. Of course, you can keep the scarab for your research." William further exins the situation to Magos Callias which at the end the Admech nods his head. While this is going on, many nobles attempt to understand the situation but can''t due to their inability toprehend who these people are. The white-robed beings with strange tools aren''t something ordinary people can simply move on as Admechs are otherworldly. "Fascinating. The first Necron tech in the New World and the potential first step to counter mind control devices. We will handle this procedure with extreme care to undamage the subject." The head Admech said with excitement as if he was about to open Christmas presents. "You mean your priority is to save the king''s life, right?" William reminds the Magos why they are here and sends them away to handle the king''s health issue. After six Tech-priests left the throne room, William wondered if he made the right call. Admechs are famous for two things. One: They do not invent. They improve upon already existing versions to make it work. As long as they can obtain data pieces of STC (Holy Grail from Dark Age of Technology), Adeptus Mechanicus can manufacture anything and modify it to fulfill their needs. Two: The Adeptus Mechanicus are notorious for touching everything they don''t understand. One time they found a strange ruin in one random and decided to explore with itching fingers (All six hands, including Mechadendrite ones). Next thing you know, the entire Necron tomb world awoke and started sting gauss rifles. The point is, Admechs will risk everything as long as they can obtain already existing technology even if they end up awaking 60 million years old undead gods killing machines. The process of removal of mind-shackle scarab took about 30 minutes. With six Admechs in one room, William thought it would be much faster, but he doesn''t know much about Necron tech, so he waited outside with the rest of the nobles. During the wait, many of the nobles from the minor faction decided to halt their n to take William''s head after realizing it would be an impossible task. But due to their ego and pride as noble, William is confident they won''t give up no matter how long it takes. For this reason, William decided to make the first move after solving the current issue with the king and establishing rtionships with the major noble faction. When the door to the meeting room opened, everyone came out except for the queen and king. By the looks of their face, the removal process was sessful, and with confirmation by the Magos Callias, everyone in the throne room (Except for a certain number of minor nobles) finally took a breath of relief. "Thank you Magos Callias. I did not doubt your ability to remove the Xenos device. If all of you are done here, I have troops who need your expertise." William''s words Prince Benton signal one of the guards to guide the six very tall and weird men to the rest of strangely dressed soldiers of Knight Lord of the Metal. After Magos Callias and his Admechs are gone, the Crown Prince dismisses the nobles from both sides of the faction. With the Prime Minister gone, half of the pce on fire, and King Benton in his sickbed, the kingdom of Alderim must reorganize before moving forward. With all these problems stacked, Prince Benton stepped forward with authority and leadership never shown before. After sending away unnecessary and unimportant nobles, the Crown Prince sent the capital city on high alert to maintain the peace. While this was happening, he also sent emergency messages to the forts between Alderim and Legen border for possible invasion once again. There are few other issues Prince Benton has to take care of, but with his newfound confidence and backing of William, the prince managed to maintain the control of the capital without resistance from ambitious nobles. Three dayster, "As of now, you are no longer a member of the adventurer''s guild and wouldn''t be able to use our resources, including taking quests. This is directlying from the guild master." Mia, a former guild receptionist from the Greenhill branch, said to William as she passed a stack of papers with additional information on it. Ever since Mia arrived in the capital, she reported back to the main guild headquarter regarding what happened to Greenhill and residents'' whereabouts. The guild master decided to send an official guild party to investigate and coordinate with the royal court if the court decided to recolonize the ruined town. As for Mia, she is assigned as a guild representative to William and his military force. After William officially dered war against Legen, the guild had no choice but to emunicate William to maintain neutral status. From the guild''s point of view, they can''t have one of its members go to war against an entire nation without receiving political bacsh from multiple sides. The guild revoked William''s membership to maintain neutrality but still maintained their rtionship with him through Mia, who has a history with William. "Well, I saw thising since I obtained my troops. I wasn''t so sure if the guild would allow me to have my forces and take most of the quests simultaneously. I don''t mind losing the membership, and it''s not like I have time." William said to Mia while pointing his thumb at guardsmen doing various tasks, including vehicle maintenance, physical training, etc. At the same time, Mia and William can hear the religious hymns and musical instruments simr to organs as three Admechs are performing rituals on Cain''s Chimera. "Right now, I''m more focused on the war effort than doing some hunting quests. Not to mention I have my battle brothers to worry about since I will be bringing more of my brotherster today. Well, more like cousins than brothers." William said with a nervous voice and ended the meeting with Mia due to his busy schedule. ording to Mia, the guild will watch in the sideline until the war between William and Legen ends. Until then, William won''t receive any help from the guild, including submitting quests (To prevent anyone from participating in war-rted quests). "I understand. It''s just that I was pushing for your promotion and reestablishing guild branches to Greenhill and Deron since you would be heading back there. You just had to dere war, didn''t you?" Mia sighs because she knew William would do something incredibly outrageous, and this wasing from someone who registered William on his first day as an adventurer. "I''m sure the Crown Prince will send someone to handle Deron and Greenhill. I''m just happy to stay away from politics. It gives me a headache just by thinking about it. Now, if you excuse me, I have my politics to take care of." With that, William left with Mia wishing him luck. Knowing what is toe, William needs all the luck he could get as he opens the door to arge meeting room where four different Space Marine chapters currently are. --------------------------- Inside therge meeting room provided by the royal family, representatives of the four different Space Marines chapters sat quietly while servants poured fine wines to their cups. Out of five chairs, four were upied as each representative sat without their helmet while two of their chosen Space Marines stood behind their respected leader. ck Temr, Blood Angel, Ultramarine, and Smander,st time this kind of gathering happened was during Abaddon''s 13th ck Crusade, where it took multiple Space Marine chapters to defend the Cadia. As the room''s atmosphere intensifies with silence, the door opens as William, the Emperor''s Champion, enters the room with two people apanying him behind. The first person is Commissar Cain, the Hero of the Imperium who saved multiple Imperium worlds from Xenos to Chaos forces. The second is an old militarymander wearing a Cadian style uniform and smoking a thick cigar in his mouth. The man is also missing one arm as one of his shirt sleeves is folded to maintain the professional appearance of a military leader. Lord Casten Ursarkar E. Creed of Cadia made his entrance as a representative of the Astra Militarum with a special invitation from the Emperor''s Champion. The campaign meeting for the New World began as each group discussed military strategies, mission objectives, and most importantly, who would be the leader of the entire military force once and for all. Chapter 56: Codex and Territory Chapter 56: Codex and Territory "The Codex Astartes doesn''t support this!" The Ultramarine representative, Sergeant Dioricus, rejects the n offered by William. With four significant chapters gathered and without a proper chain ofmand structure, William made a n to take charge of the entire military force, with each representative bing his lieutenant. "Here we go again with the codex," Veteran Sergeant Sariel, the Blood Angel representative, said out loud to himself as if he foresaw the very sentences from the Ultramarine. Blood Angels and a few of the original Astartes barely follow the codex rules, for they do not share the ideal principle of the Ultramarines and their gene father, the Roboute Guilliman. After all, Blood Angels have their problems, such as Red Thirst and ck Rage, which go against codex rules due to mutation within gene-seed. "You dare to believe the Emperor''s Champion isn''t fit to lead us to a new crusade?" Veteran Cantus of the ck Temrs challenged Dioricus''s words and got up from his chair with rage. Everyone in the room knew that William demonstrated the Emperor''s miracle during the battle with Greater Daemon of the anesh thanks to the testimonial given by Battle Brother Raduriel of the ck Temrs. There is no doubt that the Emperor chooses William ording to the Dreadnought and multiple witnesses from this world, but Space Marines are still humans, and they tend to reject certain things if it''s against their point of view. "William may be the Emperor''s Champion, but he is the Champion of the ck Temrs, not of ours. By the codex, no one shallmand multiple chapters at once." Ultramarine sergeant said to Cantus with bitterness and reminded everyone why codex exists in the first ce. For ten thousand years, no one held power and authority ofmanding Astartes Legions since Warmaster Horus, and that didn''t go well for humanity, especially for the Emperor. Ironic to what Sergeant Dioricus said, the current military forces of the Imperium are led by Roboute Guilliman himself as Lord Commander of the Imperium. But then again, Roboute Guilliman is the lone active loyalist Primarch of the Imperium and the only hope against the Dark New Age. "It is true Emperor''s Champion is the title of chapter''s Champion given by ck Temrs, but we can''t ignore the unique circumstances and situation we are currently in. Gentlemen, the Emperor''s mortal enemies are already here, and all we have is a handful of guardsmen that I won''t even consider a regiment." Lord Creed said to everyone, which caught everyone''s attention. As Space Marine''s ego is high and mighty, they must recognize the Cadian Supreme Commander when he decides to speak his mind. Lord Creed may be a mortal man with a short lifespanpared to Space Marines, but his legendary aplishments and reputation are more extraordinary than anyone in the room. "Lord Creed is right. We are in an unknown world facing multiple enemies on multiple fronts. We have no military or logistic support from our homeworlds and no ship to send messages through the warp. We are all we got, and Champion is the only one connected with the Emperor''s light." Commissar Cain adds additional problems and the weight of disadvantage they are facing. Logistical issues and troop limitations, all these problems can be solved with William''s ability to ''Call or summon units,'' which everyone at the meeting table realized. This information ced William as the most valuable person and powerful evidence that the God-Emperor chose him. Few had a theory that they might have a simr ability just like William, such as gaining additional weapons and ammunition but couldn''t summon units under theirmand. "Both Lord Creed and Commissar Cain are right. We have limited supplies, troops, and other essential supplies to continue without Imperium''s help. As we are cut from the Imperium, I suggest we form a second Imperium Secundus just like the old days when Primarchs of old days did during Horus Heresy." Lieutenant Bolic Firehammer of the Smander finally spoke after quietly listening to the entire meeting until now. Bolic held the highest rank of lieutenant out of four representatives with years of experience and old historical knowledge of the Imperium of Man. "You do bring up a good point, and this means we must vote to elect the head of state and form our own government until we reunite with the rest of the Imperium. Does anyone have an object? If not, then let us select a candidate." Sergeant Dioricus of the Ultramarine chapter made a clear announcement and waited a few seconds to see any objection from others. With no one objecting to the proposal of the second Imperium Secundus, each representative ced their votes to determine who would be the leader of the new government. Withoutplicating, everyone wrote a name on the piece of paper and ced it on a hat provided by Commissar Cain, whoter counted each vote. Lord Creed and Cain can''t put their name for the leadership, but they had the honor to vote as it impacts every faction of Imperium. [Head of State Candidate] Sergeant Dioricus of the Ultramarine: 1 vote Veteran Sergeant Sariel of the Blood Angel: 1 vote Champion William of ck Temrs: 5 votes The room went once again silent with the facial expressions of the two Astartes representatives sour with disappointment. Meanwhile, Lord Creed quietly smiles with a cigar still in his mouth, and Veteran Cantus of the ck Temrs widely smiles as if he won first ce in thepetitive tournament. "It looks like we have our leader, gentlemen. Champion William will be our Lord Supreme Commander with five votes until we reunite with the rest of the Imperium. Of course, the official title won''t be Imperator Regis (Commander of the King), but an Imperator Fratrum (Commander of the Brother) for only Primarch Sanguinius held the Imperator Regis." Lt. Bolic said with an official tone and pointed his hand to William, signaling William to say some sort of speech for this historical event. This made everyone in the room turn their heads towards William, who was silent until now. "Thank you for your kind words. I will not waste your time with long speeches or how I''m qualified to lead this group. I can only promise you all that we will reunite with the rest of the Imperium, and when that timees, I will fold my position just as Great Angel did. Now, let us continue with our meeting and n our next move." William finishes his speech and immediately changes the subject, for he knew he had many things to do before leaving the capital city to invade Legen. By the end of the meeting, three main problems came to light and must be taken care of before leaving the city. First is the stability of the Alderim, in which minor nobles are a thorn in the side for both Prince Benton and William. Ever since William almost crushed the young nobleman with his hand, he was the prime target of both political agenda and potential assassination attempt. Removal of a giant warrior whomands a small army and an ally of the royal family would be a big sigh of relief. The second is filling the gaps when the first problem is solved. The power vacuum would destabilize the Alderim, which could start a civil war. It is something William can''t solve with bolter gun nor chainsword but with political strategy and negotiation. For this, William thought of one person who could aplish this with authority and trustworthiness. Lastly, the third problem is maintaining Alderim after William''s force leaves for a military campaign. There is no guarantee that all of the Ork''s spores are terminated. William can''t allow the reemergence of Greenskins. Also, there is the possibility of Chaos''s force invading Alderim or the return of Trazyn with a more powerful force. To solve this problem, William decided to use his new authority as Imperator Fratrum when Legen was conquered once and for all. ------------------------------- Next Day, Rana Bassilo Backett, the Duchess of Argus, was on her seat while taking a small sip of tea, enjoying the taste of citrus and refreshing scent from her cup. Meanwhile, her host, Countess Danel Van Shaw, waits patiently as her maid ces another cup and a small snack on the table. "I didn''t expect to meet you so early, your grace. I would have prepared more appropriate tea if I knew you wereing." Countess Shaw said with a neutral tone as she picked up her cup to drink the content. Since four days ago, many rumors have been of William''s true identity and the army hemands. Not to mention the sudden recovery of King Benton''s health once again rebnces the power structure between noble factions. "My apologies, I don''t have much free time ever since the chaos event happened three days ago. I''m sure you are aware of my uncle''s recovery and how he began to praise Lord William''s achievements, including the sessful campaign of Deron and Fort Stormfist." Thest part spoken by the Duchess gave a hidden message to Countess Shaw, for she is very aware of the potential reward King Benton might give to William for all his aplishments. As a member of the minor noble faction, the countess knew this could change the scale of power tremendously. Every noble knew and saw two potential choices, either join the winning side or resist and perish. "Let us not exchange hidden words but talk more directly. Rana, why are you here?" Countess Shaw put down her teacup and looked directly at Rana''s eyes without giving any sign of weakness. Countess Shaw isn''t a battle-hardened warrior or a great military strategist, but she is a renowned politician and trade negotiator who could destroy business negotiation. For this reason, Countess Shaw''s region is prosperous and well equippedpared to the rest of the minor nobles within Alder. "I will be straightforward then. I want you to support the royal family once again." The Duchess''s request sends a clear message for Countess Shaw, and the room goes silent. Even maids hold their breaths due to seriousness. The faction change is one thing, but Countess Shaw already changed her alliance before, and doing it again shows weakness. "And why would you think I would do that?" The million gold coin question hit the mark which Countess Shaw expected to receive a grand excuse such as supporting the royal family or love for the country. "It''s simple. The royal family will give the city of Deron and Fort Stormfist to you. For generations, your family struggled with the southern border with rogue vampires and a small army of undead. Now that the royal family retook the Deron and Fort Stormfist to block the potential vampires from invading, I believe you are the perfect person to govern the city." The Duchess exined with ease and took another sip of tea from her cup. The original purpose of the campaign against vampires was to gain recognition and disy of strength for the crown prince. This all changed when Sir Dolven hired William, and a giant ck knight single-handedly slew multiple vampire armies and mysterious daemons. "Are you sure? I was under the impression that William would take over the city and fort with the rmendation of Sir Dolven, rest his soul." The countess said with curiosity in her voice. This was one of themon knowledge since William arrived in the capital city four days ago. Of course, rumors are nothing but rumors since Prince Benton took extra measures to prevent any information leak. "The n changed when William started kicking representatives from the Legen. There is no point in holding a city and fort if it is the opposite side of the conflict after all." The Duchess''s reasoning made sense since Legen is located far west, away from the eastern region of the Alder. "Does this mean William has no problem with losing territory full of resources and a formidable fort? I know guilds are sendingrge groups to rebuild Greenhill and a southern border outpost. I''m sure he wouldn''t want to lose the potential gain of wealth and recognition." Thest sentence piques everyone''s interest except for the Duchess and waits quietly to hear the answer. "You are right, but he personally declines the idea and asks if he could give it to someone worthy to rule. I believe your action from three days ago impressed William because he rmended you right away. As for his portion of the territory, William considered taking over Legen from current ''residents,'' his word not mine." Chapter 57: The Secret Meeting Chapter 57: The Secret Meeting The negotiation between the Duchess and Countess Shaw went for another hour, with Rana able to persuade the countess to change her allegiance to a major faction. In exchange for Deron and Fort Stromfist assimting to the countess''s territory, Rana gained natural resources for William''s war effort and military support for the crown. Lastly, there was something Rana gained from the newly appointed governor of Deron. The names and locations of minor nobles who are determined to be extreme and dangerous for the Alderim. Rana and Wiliam knew a certain number of nobles would go to extreme measures to go against their king and country. These acts are nothing but heresy and traitorous in Imperium standard, from plotting systemic economic ruination to gathering rebellious military armies. If this were happening in the Imperium world, the Inquisition order of Ordo Hereticus would happily search and burn every traitor until the entire is covered with traitors'' ashes. To the Duchess''s surprise, the countess freely gave the list of names and a location of their secret meeting without hesitation. It turned out Countess Shaw knew of these extremists and kept track of their activities even though they were fellow members of minor nobles. The countess might have been a traditionalist and not a military genius, but this doesn''t mean she would blindly follow anyone without conducting her own investigation. "Trust me, Rana. If you didn''t ask for their name, I would have done it myself eventually. I may be a number pusher and politician, but I know when to slit my enemy''s throat and bury the body in an unmarked grave." Countess Shaw said delightfully as if this information was insignificantpared to news of William''s n to conquer a neighboring country. The list of names was more extensive than Rana or anyone would have expected. More than a dozen names, few of them holding critical positions, including regional budgets and trade within Alderim. ''I knew minor nobles were upset with King Benton and his loyal court, but this is ridiculous.'' Rana thought to herself as she quickly reviewed the piece of paper with a list of names. Most noblemen on the list were first or second sons, but few prominent names held essential positions within internal regions. "I had the same reaction just like yours when I received the paper. Please don''t mistake my action to provide this information for my unconditional loyalty to the crown, Duchess. I''m doing this for Alderim and her people. Consider this my participation in cleaning the house." Countess Shaw points out her reasoning and finishes her tea from her cup. With this, the meeting between the Duchess and Countess Shaw ended with both parties obtaining certain rewards and new things to do in the future. The critical information of traitors will go to Prince Benton and William, but since William asked for this information, it is most likely he who will solve the problem thoroughly. ------------------------------- Two Days Later, "Gentlemen, we need to make a move before Prince Benton takes over our country. We must show our strength and take it by force to save Alderim." The leader of the secret group started the meeting while the rest of the nobles quietly sat and paid their attention to the main nobleman. The meeting location is secret to the outsiders and many minor nobles who didn''t ''earn'' their rights to be members, but their membership and influence grow broader with each passing time. "I''ll say we should take over the pce and force the foolish crown prince to abdicate the power and the entire royal family''s title. We need a leader who can take charge and believe in our way of thinking." One of the young noblemen quickly said for everyone to hear. Hearing this, many young men in the room nod their heads, and some cheer for an arm. "And what should we do with the royal family? Should we let them live and let their influence spread without retaliation?" One of the older men said mockingly as if the young man''s words were nothing but foolish and a half-witted n. "A simple solution would be public execution of all royal blood and anyone who stands against us. We can''t have a revolution without theplete removal of previous rulers and their blinded loyal followers. Let us take arms!" The same young man mmed his fist on the table and started routing others to follow his lead. The room went louder and called for blood as if they were hungry dogs ready to devour their prey without hesitation. "Keep the women and kill the rest." "And take their riches andnds." "I can use more ves for personal use. Especially the young ones." One random nobleman said to himself while licking his lips. Beside his seat, he has a young woman, naked and chained up like a dog with a metal cor attached to her neck. "Now, now. We can''t simply force our way into the pce and take heads without a n. Don''t forget, wizards of Schr''s Pir still support the royal family, and the crown''s noble dogs hold greater military forces." The elder nobleman next to the leader reminded everyone why they remained in the shadows and didn''t challenge right on equal footing. Even though minor nobles are many, their military forces are smallpared to their opposition, not to mention their military gears aren''t thetest to match the royal guards. The minor nobles med royal taxes and conflict three years ago, but the truth is minor nobles have a habit of spending more for themself than investing in their territory nor the well-being of the people in their territory. "Don''t forget the giant scum aiding the prince and the Duchess. We need to remove him quickly before it gets out of hand. I suggest hiring assassins from the underworld to resolve this new problem." The second older man on the other side of the table spoke as if the subject was rted to killing a stray dog. After mentioning assassins, the old nobleman raises his silver cup, signaling one of the ves to pour wine into his cup. Seeing the silver cup, a ve girl immediately approached the nobleman to fill the cup. Just as she was about to finish filling the cup, another nobleman spoke without holding any restrain. "Who needs assassins when I can kill him with a much better result? Just say the word, and I will hunt him down like how I killed the wild boar with my dagger." A young man sitting next to the old nobleman pulled out a fancy dagger and shed the air with no precision. But because the young man wasn''t paying attention, he identally cut the ve girl''s arm, and the girl dropped the wine bottle, spilling everywhere. "You useless girl!" The older nobleman quickly got up and threw the silver cup at the ve girl''s head. The cup hit hard, and the ve girl started to bleed, but she quickly picked up the cup and wine bottle while asking for forgiveness. "Get lost, you piece of waste. I should have flogged you when I was done with your sister." The nobleman kicked the ve girl, and the girl quickly left the room, disappearing back to the kitchen while her tears mixed with blood on her face. "Let us not hear your dominance while we are conducting an honorable meeting, sir. I''m sure she will repay your mercy tonight. Hahaha," At the end of the leader''s words, many noblemen in the roomughed as if this was normal. The rotten minds of privileged men show no humanity, for many of them secretly have sickening luxurious self-indulgence and overindulgence with riches to cover their crimes (anesh would be proud). "Well, let us end this meeting with a pin on the subject ''Knight Lord of Metal'' for the next meeting. Until next time, feel free to kill the giant and his mercenary army." Just as the leading nobleman was about to end the meeting, a young nobleman sitting next to the man with a dagger suddenly got up and grabbed the weapon, and shed the man''s throat with a single motion. "What?!" One of the nobles who saw from the other side of the table reacted after realizing what just happened, but during that time, the killer already slew the second nobleman and threw the dagger in a fraction of a second towards the leader. The de hit the target''s head, instantly killing him without allowing a moment to think or time to dodge the attack. The entire room fell apart as both young and old noblemen ran around like a chicken without its head. Meanwhile, the killer quickly blends into the shadow of the corner of the room. A woman with an athletic body wearing a ck suit emerges from the shadows, armed with a green de and chemical pistol. William''s Callidus Assassin continues her mission with extreme prejudice, for she doesn''t have any problem killing human trash. ------------------------------- "Run!" Few young nobles attempted to open the main door while the rest armed themself with daggers and small swords to defend themselves. Due to panic and witnessing carnage in the meeting room, the young man couldn''t find the right key or ce it while the female assassin slowly approached them in the hallway. "Damn it, Richard. Hurry up! She ising." One of the young men cried with fear on his face while holding a small sword with both hands. Thest time he held any sword was when he publicly killed a beggar four weeks ago for not quickly moving away. "I''m trying," Man named Richard shouted with frustration while searching for the right key within the key ring. Just as the assassin approached closely, other young noblemen gathered much courage to muster and attack the assassin without any sign of teamwork. One by one, Callidus Assassin dodged undisciplined swordsmen and decapitated them using her C''tan phase sword. The living weapon cut everything in its path as the green de left no one alive. With melee fighters all gone, the assassin pulls out her Neural Shredder (A short-range psionic disrupter with enough power to kill the target by liquidating brain matter and spasming the entire body) and fire her weapon at two other nobles who were right behind Richard who is busing attempting to find the right key to the door. "HAAAA!" The painful screams made Richard panic more, and for some miracle, he found the right key and managed to open the door while hispanions died with unspeakable pain. "I can''t die here; I can''t die here.'' Richard dropped everything and ran as fast as possible. Running outside of the big mansion in the middle of the night, thest surviving minor noble made a quick escape towards the main gate as he regretted every decision he made to join the secret group. From killing his father to be head of the family to ''donating'' a few local girls to the right members of the group, Richard did everything to get himself a seat at the table. Finally reaching the gate, Richard smiled while breathing heavily, for his chance of survival increased higher. ''Yes, yes, yes! It can''t be the end of my legacy.'' Just as Richard was about to escape through the gap of the gate, a single projectile went to the back of his head and out through his forehead. A fist-sized hole can be seen in Richard''s head, killing thest extreme minor nobleman while a Vindicare Temple assassin moves his head from the scope and repositions himself on top of the mansion roof. "Target eliminated. No survivors on sight." The Vindicare Assassin said with a cold voice to the voxmunicator while Callidus Assassin cleaned her de using one of the dead noble''s clothes. "No survivors here," The female assassin replies and disappears into darkness as she aplishes her mission. After receiving a reply, the Vindicare Assassin packed his equipment and left the site without leaving any sign or clues. No living souls were left alive that night, for every nobleman, staff member, servant, and ve had their neck sliced, body disfigured or poisoned with unknown substances. The purge of traitorous nobles ended with no clues of who could have done it, and empty positions quickly filled a few dayster with silent warning of what could happen to the traitors in the future. Chapter 58: The Grand Royal Ball Chapter 58: The Grand Royal Ball From assassinating arge group of traitors, [Astra Militarum, Sentinel squad (Cadian Pattern) x1: A two-legged one man, all-terrain,bat walker armed with various anti-infantry weaponry. The Cadian sentinel is equipped with standard autocannon and armor-piercing weapons such as heavy bolters or multi-meltas. The Sentinel squadprises five walkers with additional heavy armor tes and voxmunicators tomunicate to each other.] [Astra Militarum, 8th Mordian Iron Guard Regiment x1: Composed of 1500 finest soldiers hail from Hive World of Mordian (Known as World of Eternal Night). Mordian Iron Guard is known for highly disciplined, perfectly formed ranks during battle and fancy uniforms with bright, borate decorations. Armed with Triplex patternsgun, explosive packs, and stim packs, the guardsmen of Mordian are ready to kill the Emperor''s enemy with clean uniform and deadly volley fire.] [Astra Militarum, 333th Death Korps Siege Artillerypany x1: Composed of 250 men and women, the Death Korps of Krieg are known for their mastery of trench warfare and fearsome appearance of gas mask and WW1 style uniform. Krieg''s men are known for their grim reputation attitude (Even in the grim dark future of the 41st millennium) and upromising nature to retreat or surrender, for they do not fear death but fear of failure to find Emperor''s forgiveness. The artillerypany is armed with 15 Basilisk artillery pieces with a trooppartment and gunnery tform. The troops have standardsgun, trench shovels, gas masks, and other critical equipment to support or defend the artillery units.] ------------------------------- ''Well, this is a surprise," William thought to himself as he went over his new loot obtained from assassins he sent to ''clean house'' a few hours ago. Currently, William just entered the grand ballroom of the royal pce, where 60 to 70 nobles from major and minor factions gather to entertain themselves with music, dance, and finest food they don''t seem to consume. William could only guess many restrain themselves to look dignified and perceive themself to look defined. After all, a fancy party hosted by the Crown Prince isn''t something you want to be remembered for overeating for the public to see. "My lord. The party atmosphere seems to be a bit... hostile even for my taste." Commissar Cain said to William while grabbing a few snacks from the passing te as the servant moved away from him. William considered bringing Lord Creed and a few of his battle-brothers with him, but after heavy consideration (which took him a second), he decided to bring someone who had experience with formality and diplomacy. Ciaphas Cain is known for his masterful conversationalist and approachable personality as he selects his words carefully. This skill also saved his skin multiple times, for many guardsmen stood next to Cain and watched back duringbat. For this reason, William selected Commissar Cain as one of his two entourages. "I do see a few deadly stares and tension between people, but that is not my concern. Let us enjoy the party before we head out to the battlefield." William said to themissar as he looked around to find familiar faces. William is wearing his formal clothes, for he didn''t want to destroy the pce floor with Champion''s power armor. He kept his ck power sword on his side as most noblemen wore, but he is certain no one would challenge him since there is a size difference between them. "Yes, Lord Imperator Fratrum." Commissar Cain replies with ease, but William can tell the man is stressed and concerned about something else. ''The party is fine and all, but how can I use my reputation when none of them know who I am? Calm down, Cain. If you can handle the Genestealers cult, Necrons, and inquisitors, you can handle simple natives of the New World.'' Cain thought to himself while finishing thest snack in his hand. Cain left his aide, Jurgen, outside of the pce for his smell and appearance would be more harmful, but Cain did send a servant with food which he is sure Jurgen is enjoying this world''s delicacy. ''I''m sure he is being a Cain. Probably thinking about how to avoid being part of the frontline invasion force.'' Recently appointed Imperator Fratrum said to himself and continued to look around. Finally, William found the person he was looking for. Rana was in her fancy dress talking with other nobledies, slightlyughing behind the fan. "I will meet youtermissar, I have to be a diplomat now," William then made his move and approached Rana while Cain stood alone with nowhere to go or talk to. ''Ok, Cain. Time to break some ice and show them why I''m the Hero of the Imperium." Cain then walks towards another group of nobledies after he repositions hismissar hat. Ciaphas Cain didn''t return to the base camp that night, for he had fewdy friends give him a weing party in a private room until the following day. ------------------------------- "I must say, I didn''t expect to see the Crown Prince leading a charge against an undead army when they starteding out underground. You have to be there to believe me." Rana said with exaggerated tones whiledies around her absorbed the story with admiration. Most of the tales told by Rana focused more on Prince Benton and his ''heroism'' while a particr person was only mentioned once and taken out from the rest of the event. "The crown prince must be a marvelous and courageous man. I envy you to witness a historical event such as this, and I''m sure he would make an excellent king in the future." One of thedies spoke with a specific envious voice while hiding half of her face with a fancy fan. Meanwhile, someone within a group said to herself but enough for everyone to hear. "What about Knight Lord of the Metal? Surely, he must have achieved something." With that, manydies turn their eyes back to Rana, who is holding her manners, and quickly recover to maintain her story. "Ah, yes. William did an excellent job infiltrating the fort and holding off vampire reinforcement while the main force took down the vampire threats. Please remember that William did a great deed to our country, for he took a huge initiative to help this campaign." Rana quickly finished her story and excused herself from the group as William appeared in the short distance. As Rana left the group, many nobledies saw her headed in the direction as everyone saw William''s upper body and up among the crowd. ''Of course, she would hide the greatest warrior for herself,'' A youngdy with long brte hair thought to herself as she carefully watched Rana approaching the giant man. This youngdy knew of William and his deeds thanks to her information gathered over the past few days. But, most of all, the name of the giant came to light that fateful day when her mother, the Countess Danel Van Shaw, stopped him from murdering the poor fool of a noble with metal hands. ''I will have my chance after tonight. Enjoy your time, for now, Beckett.'' Lady Gabrie Van Shaw made a silent remark and left the main hall with a few of her followers while ignoring young noblemen. Gabrie Van Shaw, also known as a Great Analyst and Northern Fox, smiled as she saw the next prey to conquer. ------------------------------- "I see you''ve been busy. May I assume you were appraising Prince Benton while leaving me out of your tales?" William made a very urate guess while teasing Rana. He didn''t pay much attention to the rest of the nobles from both sides, for he considered them a waste of time. After a few days after the Trazyn incident, many heads of the noble family learned of William''s tremendous and impossible achievements from Greenhill to Fort Stormfist. From his humbling beginning as a rookie adventurer to a pdin leader of a new pantheon, William is a once-in-a-lifetime catch to gain power only possible in the legend. But considering what William did during the incident and disying his power towards nobles, only a few took the courage to approach William headfirst without investing more time studying the man. "I assure you, dear pdin, I was only telling those youngdies what I saw that fateful day with few editing of my own. I just left unbelievable parts since no one will believe me even if I tell them." The Duchess made a reasonable but straightforward excuse to William as she genuinely smiled. She knew everyone eventually will learn of William''s achievements, but she will enjoy William all for herself until then. "Of course. So, how is this ball different from the one back in Deron? Do we have to stay all night until someone dies out of starvation?" Wiliam asks with a bit of regret since he needs an alibi and many witnesses. Ever since Rana passed the information rted to the secret meeting to Prince Benton and William, William made sure no one knew of this information, especially when he sent two elite assassins to ''clean the house.'' The grand ball, the invitation to all nobles of both sides (To separate extremists and nonextremists among minor nobles), and William''s public appearance to gain war support were nothing but a ruse. Tonight''s massacre will be nothing but an unfortunate ident as assassins burned the whole house to the ground with no evidence of any signs or witnesses to tell the actual incident. "It will be over soon, but please enjoy it just like your friend is doing," Rana said to William and pointed her finger at a small group on the other side of the room while William turned his head to see who she was talking about. On the other side of the room, a small group of wizards listens to the discussion of a particr theory while a giant metal man dressed in a ck robe gives a lecture rted to the holy machine spirit and the theory of all knowledge. William''s second entourage, the Magos Vdus Callias of the Metalica, is currently busy converting a bunch of Wizards into potential tech priests. Chapter 59: Never Ending Quest and New Intel Chapter 59: Never Ending Quest and New Intel "Knowledge already exists in the universe, and it is our organization''s great duty to find them," Magos Callias said to a group of educated ''psykers'' of the New World. After receiving an invitation from Lord Imperator Fratrum, the leader of Admechs appeared right on time even though the ballroom was empty and few servants were conducting the finishing touches. Eventually, people started toe in, and when Magos Callias saw a group of intellectuals, they got along with the topic of science. "Interesting point of view on knowledge itself. What about our ability to discover and to invent through research?" One of the old men with a grey robe holding staff replies to Magos Callias''s remark. It is rare to find an educated man outside of the Schr''s Pir who could hold a conversation in equal terms or beyond their level. "The idea of ''inventing'' is contradictory to our belief in Omnissiah, for he already made everything that could be made. Inventing is nothing but an illusion as it goes against Omnissiah''s will and twists his divine creations into an abomination. The discovery is another word for enlightenment as an individual who learns the will of the Omnissiah is on the righteous paths." The Admech continues to exin as more wizards, and a few nobles gather to hear the new idea of higher ideals. "Your institution ''discovered'' gunpowder recently, but we have known the gift since ancient times, and we mastered it. We made various modifications to fit our needs and maintain the divine knowledge without distributing the machine spirit. This is the true and only way of the Omnissiah''s will." The Admech finishes his sentences and proceeds to ''drink'' wine through his mouth area, which a metal port opens, and Magos simply pour the whole drink into it. Many of the wizards and nobles didn''t fully understand the Magos''s point of view, for they simply couldn''t grasp the idea, but few of the archwizards and schrs managed to understand within a limit. "It is true that an individual''s discovery could already be found by someone else previously. To prevent wasting time and resources, we keep a record of our knowledge with tomes and books. I have to assume you do the same, right?" The elderly woman with a fancy red robe asked with interest as she held a small chained book in her hand. "Every tech-priest has their methods and passes the information to Mar''s library. But these are small fragmentspared to an STC (Standard Temte Construct) from the Dark Age of Technology, which holds tremendous knowledge of the Omnissiah. To find the location of STC is our ultimate quest. To obtain the STC is absolute no matter the price." Mangos Callias''sst words were more than just lecture style, for his tone of voice changed into more religious. The topic of the STC is nothing to joke about, as even the whisper of the location or whereabouts couldunch the whole armada of ships from Mars itself. Once in the 40K universe, small guardsmen found an STC that only had one blueprint. This one blueprint was enough for Adeptus Mechanicus and Imperium to reward them withs and rule them however they wanted. That blueprint from the STC was instruction on how to make abat knife, to which it became standard equipment for all Space Marines to have afterward. Because STC is from the Dark Ages of Technology, it is scarce to find one intact, not to mention finding one without corruption of chaos is near impossible. "This is a very interesting ideology. You muste to Schr''s Pir and give an open lecture with rest. I''m one of the senior educators of the institute, and I''m sure the headmaster will wee you with open arms." The same old man with a grey robe said to Magos that he epted the invitation as long as William allowed it. "Well, looks like you are going to have your wish to visit the Schr''s Pir after all," Rana said to William while holding his right arm with both of her hands. "I think I''ll pass. Since Magos Callias and his cog boys have more understanding, I will instruct them to make a few adjustments with gunpowder weaponry." William said to the Duchess and moved away from the group. Before summoning the Admechs, William nned to visit the Pir to see D&D wizards and magic school. All this changed ever since William got busier with a war effort and duties of the Imperator Fratrum. The best thing he can do is distribute the workload to each staff member specific to their specialty. After the couple left the first group, they were about to see the second group when a sound of five horns gave a sign of announcement to be made. Standing next to the main entrance, an announcer steps forwards and announces the news. "May I present the Crown Prince Benton Pius Amadeus the 4th of the Alderim and hisdyship, Mia Vamini Spire of the Adventurer''s Guild." The crowd went silent while the main attraction entered the room. Before making their descent from the stairs to the main room, the prince raised his right hand to signal that he was about to give a small speech. "Thank you for attending the party tonight. I want to thank everyone who supported my campaign as I have learned a lot and gained important allies who helped me open my eyes to understand how big the world is. As you all know, we are about to face a new military campaign against our neighboring country who took advantage of our country and king. I''m making an official decree tonight that the royal family and country of Alderim is supporting our new allies, the Knight Lord of the Metal and his military force." At the end of the prince''s speech, most of the nobles in the room p their hands, with a few joining the rest two secondster. It''s well-known that Prince Benton''s new friend is a giant man who has a mysterious mercenary force equivalent to the entire country''s military might. Because of their victory against ''orcs'' and ''metal golem'' a few days ago, many nobles, including the minor faction, started to support the war against Legen. Their reasoning is to join the winning side as long as they won''t spend many resources, especially the workforce and money. As Prince Benton and Mia make their descent and pass supporting nobles around them, they interact with them for short seconds and move on towards William and Rana. Reaching William and Rana, Prince Benton moved aside to present soon to be the hero of the Alderim, and everyone''s p went loud. Eventually, the pping stopped, and the party resumed back to normal. Not many nobles approach the prince and Mia as they don''t want to bother the important meeting between influential people. "I didn''t expect to see you with Mia, Prince Benton," William said to the prince while Mia hid her blush using her fan. Meanwhile, Rana smiled and enjoyed the awkward moment her cousin was experiencing. She already knew how close the prince and guild representative is ever since rescue from the barbarian warrior who worships the blood god. "Well, Mia is still new to the capital and doesn''t know anyone in the city. Since she is attending the party as the representative of the adventurer''s guild and William, I decided to apany her for the night." Prince Benton made a very understandable excuse, except it didn''t work since the prince''s face told a different story. "Of course, how a gentleman of you." Rana made a smallment which weakened the prince''s defense and made him make an awkward smile. Mia, seeing the prince about to crumble, changes the topic of the conversation by providing new information. "William, we have new intelligence for you regarding Legen. The guild''s and Alderim''s spies gathered as much information as they could and reported back just this afternoon." Before Mia could continue, Rana interrupted her from spilling more information since many ears are around them. "Let''s move to a private room before continuing our conversation. This party is too dull for us anyway." With Rana''s request, the four people quickly left the party and regrouped in the private room simr to the one where Admechs healed King Benton. After confirming there are no other ears, Mia continues her report on new information. "There isn''t much regarding Legen''s army since their military couldn''t refurbish their numbers in the short time since three years ago, but what got our attention is their hero''s party." Thest part got William''s and Rana''s attention since it was the first time hearing anything about the hero. "Hero? What hero? Like high ranking adventurers from Legen?" William made the best guess using his previous knowledge from the D&D campaigns. If there is anything such as a hero''s party, it makes sense that this would be a group of adventurers who achieve fame and recognition frompleting high-risk quests. As for William, this would mean some challenges and more loot for him. "Yea, your guess is right. A party of adventurers from Legen''s guild officially join the war effort, and we don''t know what their reasoning is. Every guild has a simr policy, such as joining the international conflict since adventurers'' jobs require them to travel between borders, so not many ept the war quest unless they are desperate. The vampire campaign is a different story since they are monsters, but human conflict could getplicated." Mia exins the basics of the guild policy as every guild within known countries have simr rules and agreement with other guild offices. "After the conflict three years ago, it is rather difficult to gather intelligence regarding this group, but from what we could gather so far, here is what we know of. The heroes are the standard build, such as wizard, thief, fighter, ranger, cleric, and bard. This group managed to defeat an ancient ck dragon and raided their full of treasure and the surprising thing is that their leader, the fighter, is a rookie adventurer with strange armor." It got William''s full attention, and he moved his body forward from his chair to listen more carefully. Mia continued. "We don''t know name or age, but ording to the spymaster, this fighter holds the title of the hero and is rumored to be a chosen of the Mother. As for his armor, it is reported that his armor is big, bigger than yours, and powerful enough to survive the ck dragon''s acid breath and didn''t melt the armor ting." End of Mia''s words, both Rana and Prince Benton are shaking with fear after hearing the fighter''s description, which resembles the barbarian who ughtered their mentor and captured them for his entertainment in the fight pit not long ago. "Do you know the color or any noticeable symbols within the armor?" William asks nervously because, depending on Mia''s answer, William has to change his approach. ''Could it be another Chaos Marine sent by one of the ruinous powers or one of the royalist Space Marines?'' "There aren''t any noticeable symbols, ording to the report. As for the color of the armor, it is steel grey. The giant armor''s color is grey." Chapter 60: The Protagonist Chapter 60: The Protagonist Located on the northwest of the Alderim''s border, the nation of Legen was ruled by the royal family and many nobles who were loyal to the crown. Like Alderim, Legen has forests and mountains filled with wild animals and monsters but with a notable geographic difference in which half of the country is a t in. Because of this, Legen''s economy mainly focused on raising animals and farming, while the military''s main force was the knight''s cavalry. Before the war with Alderim, Legen experienced ten years of rich harvest and relevant peace, having a surplus of resources and military force without anyone to fight. Many of the nobles and a few royal families supported the idea of expanding the border towards Alderim. Using an assassination attempt on the king as an excuse, Legen publicly executed the Alderim ambassador and firstborn prince without trial or enough evidence to support the usation. This was Legen''s first andst mistake as a nation. After Legen lost the war three years ago, the country went through a year of economic depression and civil disorder. It came to the point where the royal family of the Legen scattered as some took refuge in other countries while most were executed by the angry mob of hungry and sick people. With the end of the crown, many of the noble families follow a simr faith, with some eventually perishing just like the royal family. From the near destruction of the country itself, the name Legen was saved by the newly founded religion and goddess known as ''Mother.'' One night, the white mountain emerges from the underground near the Legen capital city. With curiosity and fear, the adventurer''s guild sent an expedition to investigate the white mountain. At first, many believed the white mountain was a new dungeon which the guild could use to make some money, and few believed it was a divine sign from the deity. So, imagine their surprise when they found what appears to be an entrance blocked with a smooth white gate. After a long investigation, the people of Legen discovered the power of the white mountain by cing their sick or wounded on the entrance. The mountain entrance didn''t open, but it shined and healed individuals instantly the moment a sick or wounded person stepped on the doorstep. If there is no one to heal, the mountain provides the people with basic food supplies for the needy out of nowhere. The miracles ended the famine within a month, and many began to convert into new religions, and it began to spread like a fire all over the country. Having no royal family or anyone with a crown to rule the country, Legen changed its political status into a theocracy, and the Church of the White Mountain formed an official ruling government with priests of the church governed ording to their rank. With the country stabilized and people calmed down from their anger, the only problem Legen now faced was an economic problem in which the country owed massive amounts of debt. This is where the hero party of the Legen came to light as the hero, and his followers took many quests and quickly raised the rank. No one knew this hero''s past or where he came from, but one thing for sure the hero was blessed with Mother''s armor and weapons. With powerful war gears at his disposal, the hero formed a powerful party and eliminated monsters, highwaymen, and other dangerous quests. Eventually, the Church of the White Mountain began to support the hero and officially recognized the hero as a national hero and gave status equal to high noble. In exchange, the church requests the hero to solve the financial debt once and for all by giving one of the most challenging quests known to Legen''s guild. With the church backing the hero, the party hunted down an ancient ck dragon and looted the dragon''sir. The fight between the hero''s party and the ancient dragon was a challenge, but in the end, the hero delivered the killing blow to the ck dragon and conquered their filled with enough treasures to remove the nation''s debt. Escaping the economic depression, Legen fully recovered and once again became a stable nation. It was this time when ''Mother'' finally spoke for the first time. "Bring me the one known as Lioness of Argus. Bring me, Rana Bassilo Beckett." ------------------------------- Nine Days Later, William''s army crossed the border two days ago and entered the in field. Before leaving Alderim, William left a few Smanders Space Marines and a dozen guardsmen to guard the capital city. The reason is simple: William wants to make sure no Ork spores survive the conflict with Trazyn and Smanders are famous for purging with mers. "This is the designated location where'' Legen official message said. Their army should be here soon, and leaders of both sides will meet before the war officially begins." The Duchess stands next to the Emperor''s Champion and exins the traditional war rules many countries have recognized since the beginning of man''s rule. Before leaving the capital, Rana volunteered to join William as military advisor and a witness of the Alderim. Of course, she didn''t follow him by herself as she was escorted by her troops previously stationed at Deron. After a secret arrangement between Rana and Countess Shaw, Countess Shaw sends her military force and a small army of workers with their family to the City of the Deron to relieve Rana''s army who were stationed there. After returning back to the capital, the Duchess''s army rested until William was ready to move his army to Legen. "Why can''t I just take my army and take the capital city in a one sweep whoop?" William asks his question one more time to understand this world''s rule of engagement. Initially, William nned to visit his entire army to every town, vige, and city to test out the water of the war. At the same time, he would send a few of the Tempestus Scions to gather information regarding this ''Mother'' and determine which Chaos god this might be. William''s bet is on Tzeentch since the course of a nation changed with one single religion. If there was any rumor or signs of lust, excess, or pleasure, that is anesh which William won''t bother himself anywhere in person. He would just bomb the hell out of the entirend, let it burn, and bomb more until there is nothing but ashes and dust. "In the old days when nations dered war, there was unnecessary death of people and pige which did more harm than bringing honor and glory. So now, there is an untold truce where two nations in war will gather in designated locations to fight without burning the whole country down. Of course, there are conditions and rules, but if one of the countries breaks the rule such as ransacking towns not on the course of the meeting ce or needless murder and massacre, then it''s all-out war." Rana exined it as simply as possible and pointed out the soon-to-be battlefield. When William first hear this he thought it sounds ridiculous, but it gave off some sense of old Earth''s rule of engagement during the Napoleonic War where kings of countries have some sense of honor and chivalry (Of course, they burn the invading country and pige, but it is all about maintaining their reputation). "Ok, I guess we will wait here and see what they will bring." William took his helmet off and ced it next to his right arm while enjoying the endless sight of the grass field. "I think you don''t have to worry about what they will bringpared to yours." Rana turned half of her body to see the army William brought with him. Behind Rana and William, thergest army, the Iron Guard Regiment stands still while weapons shine from the sunlight and uniform spotless from any dust even after days worth of walk. The Cadian Shock troops were handling all vehicles, including air support Valkyries andnd raiders, while Catachan Jungle Fighters disappeared after Lord Creed gave order right after they arrived. The rest of the Space Marines (Except for Smanders) are doing their own thing as a group. Some are talking with Admechs regarding their weapons, while some are talking to Battle Brother Raduriel. As for Death Korps of Krieg artillerypany, Commissar Cain is ''supervising'' as they are busy digging trenches and cing their armaments. Let''s just say the old gas masks don''t encourage others to interact with them since their first appearance in the capital city of Alderim. First impressions are everything, and the gas mask with dead silence doesn''t really help at all. "Yea, I think we are good," William replies to Rana as he also turns half of his body to see the overall sights of his troops. "It will be a shame if the other side deres a duel instead. All the work and effort wasted," Rana quietly said as she but William heard her. "A duel?" Before William could ask more questions, the loud horn could be heard, and on the other side of the field, the army of Legen appeared within distance. Without using his helmet''s scope, William could tell that most of the enemy army is made out of foot soldiers, archers, knights, other medieval units armed with iron swords and chainmail armors. Leading the enemy army, William saw very distinguished figures, which he assumed was the hero''s party. Behind them, arge solid wooden carriage pulled by four oxen while the content of the carriage is hidden with a white nket, but after hearing the information from Mia''s spies, William guessed that it would be grey power armor he heard of. "Did they finally arrive? About time." Commissar Cain approached William and the Duchess while his aide stood behind a few feet away while looking through a high-tech binocr. "My lord anddy, the man in the middle wearing unusual clothing, he just stopped the army." Jurgen, the personal aide of Cain, spoke as he described the situation on the other side. What is he doing now?" Cain asked with curiosity while both William and Rana waited. "He is turning and approaching one of his entourage. It''s a young woman, and she is wearing armor, a sword, and a shield. Now they are kissing and hugging as if they are lovers. Oh¡­" Jurgen paused and removed his eyes from the binocr before putting them back on. "What is it?" Commissar Cain asked a question since he could barely see with his naked eyes. "The man is now kissing a different woman next to the first one. This one is wearing light armor and armed with a bow. They are kissing just like the one before. Now he is moving to the third person, a woman, wearing a green robe and holding a wooden stick. They are kissing. And now¡­" Jurgen''s exnation went on for another four minutes as two more women were kissing the man afterward. "Yep, that''s it. We are wasting time, and this guy is pissing me off. Jurgen, prepare for the artillery bombardment! We are doing the Emperor''s Will and purging the sinners." Commissar Cain gave his order with a mix of rage and jealousy while forgetting who was standing next to him. "Easy now, Commissar. I know this ''man'' is disgracing the battlefield with his followers but let us meet first before burning them entirely." William halted the previous order and turned towards Rana to gain some support. Meanwhile, lieutenants of four Space Marine chapters and Lord Creed came to investigate the sound of the horn andmotioning from the Commissar Cain, known for his legendaryposure. "We still have to follow the rule of engagement. If we don''t, the people of Legen will not easily ept you as the new ruler. They will resent you and create civil unrest just like the previous royal family. Now, let us meet this ''pig'' and get this over with." Rana spoke with disgust as she rode her horse towards the middle of the field. William followed her while on the other side, the man who was busy kissing women and a man dressed in priest robe approached as well. When four people met on the field, William saw the two representatives from the Legen. The priest wasn''t much to look at, except his robe was decorated like a Christmas from top to bottom with gold and silver jewelry. The hero got William''s attention as the young man was wearing something resembling a diver''s white-colored wetsuit with multiple injection ports all over the body, mainly on the upper body and legs area. The one other thing that got William''s full attention was man''s ethnicity. He was a young adult around 20 to 23, and he is Asian, like ck hair, brown eyes, and other characteristics of either Japanese, Chinese or Korean. The hero of the Legend spoke first before the priest or Rana could. "My name is Makato Amano, and I''m here to take Rana Bassilo Beckett to be a priestess of the Mother and as my seventh wife. I''m the hero of the Legen and the chosen one from another world." Chapter 61: The Holy Relic Chapter 61: The Holy Relic "By the nine hell, I will not!" The Duchess said with a sudden eruption of rage equivalent to Khorne Berzerkers on the battlefield. As for William, his face showed signs of disappointment and anger since he was holding his helmet in his right hand. At least he didn''t pull out his bolter pistol and blow the guy''s face out of pure rage. William''s rage is indeed rted to ridiculous demandsing from a guy who has the gull to identify himself as ''Chosen one from another world'' and attempt to take Rana as his seventh wife. Like countless nerds and people who want to escape to a different world, William can understand the fantasy of living in a different world. Still, it doesn''t mean you can toss your principle andmon sense because you are in a different world. William has no problem meeting another person from Earth. If the situation were different, he would love to have a conversation andpare notes regarding which Earth time the other guy came from and form some sort of alliance while living their own life. Honestly, William doesn''t mind the other guy having six different wives (I don''t know about you, but one rtionship is enough for a lifetime, in my opinion), buting after his Rana being all, ''I steal your girl'' is out of line. "What don''t you like about it? You will have great respect as a priestess and as one of the wives of a national hero. You should be honored and thrilled by the once-in-a-lifetime luck." Makoto said with a confused tone as if someone had just thrown away free money. Hearing this, William stepped forward to defend the Duchess and put this punk in his ce. "You should be more respectful to people you just met, or did you lose your proper mannerism after gaining fame?" William used his giant body to stand between Makato and Rana. This usually intimidates regr people by now, but for some reason, the other guy didn''t show any sign of fear or even caution. "Don''t interrupt my conversation with my future wife, you second-rate NPC. Your fancy armor and size don''t impress me at all. Why don''t you go get some refreshment while adults talk business?" The rude protagonist shushes away William with his hand gesture while he moves himself to look at Rana''s face. After hearing this, William had enough and was about to ce his left hand with abat knife to draw, but Rana beat him to it to his surprise. The Duchess jumped off from her horse and stepped forward to get close to the other guy. This only took a second, and Rana pped Makato''s face without hesitation when she got close. The sound of p echo can be heard on the battlefield, and a secondter sound of ''Ohh'' could be heard from William''s side as Commissar Cain watched the entire thing from a Jurgen''s binocr. Rana wasn''t done with just a p. After pping the man, she moved back a few inches and pulled back her right fist, and was about to punch the man''s face with full might. Just as Rana is about to one punch Makato (Remind you, she is wearing a metal gauntlet with sharp knuckles), William quickly moves to stop her from killing the man. "Thank you for defending my honor, mydy, but I think you warned me about doing the exact thing prior to this meeting." William did the best he could to maintain Rana''s position as noble and remind her that it was his job to smack the guy, not her''s. At this point, what is done is done, and any room for negotiation of one''s surrender is gone. After letting Rana''s right hand go, William returns to his original spot and deres his demand to Legen''s leaders. "As you can see, we will not follow or meet any of your demands. If you want Rana Bassilo Beckett, then you must go through my troops and me to do so." William then put his helmet back on and was about to leave with Rana next to him when his helmet gave off a warning from his sensor. [Warning! Unknown technology detected. Sending notification to the nearest Tech-Priest.] When William turns his head back at Makato and the priest of White Mountain, the helmet zooms in at Makato''s face and scans the area. The helmet focuses on a small white metal piece on the Makato''s side of the forehead and takes a quick snapshot. With that done, William''s helmet went back to normal, and the warning signs disappeared, but soon William heard a loud metallic-like voice of ''What!''ing from his side. ''Oh crap, did my helmet just send an image to Magos Callias?'' William thought to himself and was about to return to his troops quickly. The talk is now pointless, and this Makato guy is pissing him off. By looking at William and his armor, the guy should realize that he isn''t the only one who came from Earth. Instead of greeting fellow isekai travelers, the guy deliberately ignored William''s existence and called him a second-rate NPC. Now that is rude even for fellow Terran. "I CHALLENGE YOU TO A DUEL!" Makato, with a bloody face and broken nose, said out loud enough for two armies to hear the deration. When the challenge was announced, Makato''s side cheered with excitement as if they had just heard a surrender from the other side. Meanwhile, William''s side was busy with something else and didn''t pay much attention as if they found something more important than winning a war. "Fine, I ept your challenge. So, will this be a ssic 1 vs 1 to the death?" William said with no interest since he was more focused on his troops. No one responds to his vox radio call, or any primary vox handlers are Admechs since they do all the rituals to ensure all machines work correctly. "Yes. You have 30 minutes to get ready, and there is no restriction. The fight will end when one of you dies, and no one can interrupt the duel. If this happens, then it is automatically considered surrender without question." The priest of the White Mountain quickly exined the rules. Just before both sides were about to return to their side Makato who was covering his face with one hand, gave a middle finger at Rana and William with his free hand. "After I kill your man toy, I will make you the ninth ve instead of my wife," Makoto said with a sharp knife tone and proceeded to walk back to his side with each step in anger. "Did that hand gesture mean something rude?" Rana asks William a question, but both of them quickly return to their side with haste. They only have 30 minutes to prepare for the duel to the death, and William is a bit curious about MagosCallias''s reaction earlier. When Rana and William arrived back to base, both of them saw all tech priestsparing notes and sharing image data captured from William''s helmet. Even tech marine from ck Temr was in the group while othermanders, including Lord Creed, watched quietly in the side as if they had just received dire news from tech-priests. "What in the golden throne is going on here?" William said with a loud voice to get everyone''s attention. To his surprise, it worked too well since every tech-priest turned their heads at the same time at William''s direction without saying anything. Magos Callias is the one who approaches William up close and answers the Lord Imperator Fratrum''s question. "The holy relic is here. One of the holy relics of the Dark Age of Technology is here in the New World, and our enemy has it." A few minutester, Magos Callias pulled out the image, which was from William''s helmet. The close image of Makao''s side head can be seen as a red circle at the white metal piece. The white metal is triangle-shaped with nothing much to pay attention to or mention. At best, it was something people would think of as jewelry, and ording to Jurgen, all of Makato''s harem have the same metal piece on the side of their forehead. "Ok, what is so special about this metal thing? It can''t be STC, can it?" William finally asks the question, which causes Magos Callias and the rest of the Admechs to tremble with excitement. "This metal piece is not an STC itself but part of the holy design. ording to Mars''s data library, there is no name, but we have a piece of record indicating it as a sort ofmunication device with arge range. This relic allows individuals tomunicate without speaking, and there is a legend that it allows one to share minds with others as long as they have the devices." Callias exins the whole thing within 30 seconds and shows an old picture of a simr metal piece from Mars''s library. "Wait, you can share your thoughts with others using that tiny device?" Rana said but couldn''t believe what she had just heard. This magical item is unheard of, and if there is, there is no way something that powerful could be that small. "Yes and no. Share thoughts, but only the primary relic can do such a thing and more. ording to the record, the primary relic can negate others'' will and even push others to absolute authority by giving amand. The theory is that this relic was used on a harshbor colony and even on the Men of Iron, but this is only a theory until now." Magos Callias said thest part only to William through vox radio, for he is the only one allowed to know the existence of Men of Iron as the head of the state. ''That exins one thing regarding what we saw earlier. Makato maybe is bending those girls and others using this device against their will. Man, I hate sinnister isekai MC. They are human garbage and give bad rep.'' William thought to himself and connected the dot, but a voice called everyone''s attention before he could say anything. Jurgen, who was surveilling the enemy side, finally saw movement that required William''s attention. When everyone, including Magos Callias, arrived at the edge of the base camp, they witnessed the answer to the ''Grey Armor'' rumor. Makato, who is now fully healed thanks to the healing magic, walks towards the carriage that four oxen pulled on another side of the in. After giving a few words, the soldiers climb the carriage and remove the white nket covering the content. Shining bright from the sunlight reflection, arge silver-grey armor in a kneeling position revealed itself. After kissing one of his girls and looking in the direction of William''s base, Mankato turns around and pulls himself up on the carriage, in which he proceeds to open the upper part of the armor. The chest and head of the armor open like some sort of mech pilot chamber, and cables of various sizes automatically reach out and attach themselves at Makato''s suit injection ports. With a swift motion, Makato got inside, and the armor closed itself. A secondter, the armor itself is light on, including a helmet (The helmet is shaped like an Aegis pattern, but instead of two eyes, it has a long thin visor. It is simr to Felix from the Red vs. Blue series). When ready, Makato''s armor got up and grabbed his weapons ced beside the carriage. Long halberd with a golden de in his left and arge power hammer in his right, the armor jumped off the carriage, and the entire Legen army erupted with cheers and chants of Makato''s name. "I''ll be damned. By the looks of it, that is terminator armor, but I''m not familiar with which pattern it is." Sergeant Dioricus of the Ultramarine said and looked around to see if others knew what pattern the armor was. All of the Space Marines shake their heads, and even LT. Bolic Firehammer from the Smander couldn''t answer the Ultramarine. "That armor isn''t something widely known or seen since the Age of Strife. I have seen that armor once from the STC vault library of the Metalica. It is a terminator armor from the Dark Age of Technology, and its name is Hercules pattern." Magos Vdus Callias said to everyone while they continued to watch Makato in his armor walk towards the middle of the field with powerful weapons in both hands, ready to kill William once and for all. Chapter 62: The Duel Part One Chapter 62: The Duel Part One Tactical Dreadnought Armour, simply known as terminator Armor, is one of the technologies developed during the Dark Age of Technology before humanity fell from their prime and superpower dominance within the Milky Way Gxy. Many of the Admechs and Imperium schrs of history believed that the terminator armor was first used during the Emperor''s Unification Wars of the 30th Millennium. From techno-barbarians who allied with the Emperor to his first Space Marine Legion, the terminator armor further improved and reforged into current day heavy duty armor used by Space Marines of the Imperium. When the Great Crusadeunched from Terra (Earth), many of the Legiones Astartes who were worthy wore the first generation terminator armor and went beyond the Sr System to reunite lost worlds. Acting as the Emperor''s sledgehammer, the elite squads of terminators devastated many of the enemies of the Imperium from boarding the enemy spaceship to open the battlefield where nothing could stop them once fighting started. The original purpose of the terminator armor is a mystery, but many theorized that the armor was used between the 15th Millennium to 25th Millennium as an environment suit for extreme hazardous on-foot survey. It was also believed that terminator armor was much easier to use for regr humans since there was no superhuman augmentation treatment, such as the creation of the Space Marine. But, as humankind is very familiar and has a long history of war, the idea of using heavy power armor able to withstand extreme environments as a weapon of war is apparent. Of course, humans have true AI and advanced robots to make their war for them, but it doesn''t mean it is not possible. "For, mankind thrives on war and death as long as victor wields a bigger stick than vanquished." By me, the author. --------------------------- "Tell me everything about this Hercules pattern terminator armor, Mangos Callias." Lord Creed is the first person to break from shocking news and ask the head of the Admech regarding this mythical power armor. Like many of his predecessors before him, Lord Creed understood the war and the quality of the soldier doesn''t guarantee victory, for there are countless factors included such as quality of weapons, strategy, etc. "Since the enemy revealed the existence of this terminator pattern, there is no need to withhold the information." Magos Callias expresses no emotion while one of his metal limbs opens and projects a holographic image of ancient text. The ancient text wasn''t written in high or low gothic but rather unusual letters. Even William wasn''t familiar with the unknownnguage even though he is somewhat familiar with 21st-centurynguages from many exposures (This doesn''t mean he knows thenguage but somewhat recognizes it). Callias continued while everyone''s attention went towards the image. "The Hercules pattern is only mentioned twice in this ancient text of Mars. ording to the tech-priests of that period, the armor was designed to wage total war against other humans who would turn against themon cause of old expansion. Even though Mars has the armor, we, the select few Magos of the Metalica, don''t fully understand it since it is above our rank. Only the Fabricator-General of Mars has full ess and what the armor is capable of based on the ancient research." The revtion of this information didn''t help much since William, and everyone knew Mars was very secretive with their knowledge and technology. One thing is sure, this new terminator armor is bad news, and no one was expecting to face one here in this New World. Commissar Cain asked a crucial question of ''How do we defeat the ancient war armor.'' "The second text mentioned how the ancient tech-priests of Mars defeated the Hercules pattern during the war. Even though many fell on the battlefield, the Will of the Machine God and Machine Spirit prevailed by using the most powerful weapon Mars could manage at that time. The ground-shaking power of the god-engines wiped the opposition, but for the exchange of the certain victory, the devastating power of the god-engines brought down Mars'' atmosphere and survivors evacuated to underground as we know it." When Callias ended his sentence and turned off his projector, everyone remained silent while their jaws dropped. It took the god-engines of Mars, the Titans, to defeat the terminator armor. Of course, it wouldn''t have been just terminators since it was arge-scale war on Mars, but to hear that it took Titans to beat terminators is ridiculous. Either Marscked military manpower and firepower to face the enemy, or they decided to burn down the whole just to go back home for dinner in time. "Ok, ok, ok. So what you are telling me is that I need a fracking Titan to fight that egomaniac? Why not just Exterminatus the whole?" William said while being irritated with unbelievable revtion. At this point, William is about to face a downsized Titan in a duel and is expected to win the fight and survive. "That would exceed beyond reasonable firepower to defeat the armor, but it is logical in our current situation," Callias responded to William''s question, which didn''t help much. The tension of the meeting went higher while the time limit of 30 minutes would soon end. "We could try the artillery until we hit the crust of the, but this is a duel between champions, and it would be against codex." Sergeant Dioricus gave his idea of using full military might, but his honor-bound codex prevented him from acting on it. Others, including Jurgen, gave different ideas and strategies to win the duel; unfortunately, the sound of the horn signals the end of 30-minute preparation with no solid n to win the fight. Before William left his base, he asked Callias if he could interrupt the mental connection between Makato''s metal piece and others. After hearing this, Magos gave a simple shrug response and told William he and others will perform a Ritual of Prime Dominance based on his knowledge rted to Necron mind-shackle scarabs. Looking back at Rana and the rest, William walks towards the battlefield with heavy hearts to meet his opponent. William stopped 15 yards (45 feet) away from Makato, who was already on the field with his helmet open to meet William face to face. "I was expecting you to run away or break the rule by using modern weaponry on me. I give you props for that one, second character." Makato said to William mockingly while he looked towards William''s military force and then at Rana. He continued after a nce of William''s side, "After I''m done with you, I will show that bitch who is the master and ve all night long. Maybe I should put your severed head in her direction while I''m fucking her so I can break her much faster." The hero of the Legenughed as if this was a normal conversation and closed his helmet to start the fight. "I have one question for you before we start this fight," William said with a neutral voice while putting on his helmet. At this point, William is beyond furious from Makato''s inhumane expression and acts, but he isn''t going to waste his rage on a mere talk, for he is saving it for the fight. "What is it?" The simple response with iteration came out from the helmet mechanical vocal speaker. "Do party members of yours know what you did to them, or are they just mindless dolls for you to y with?" The question from the Emperor''s Champion surprised Makato and hit his ego. Makato realized William was just like him after seeing him and his military forces through his helmet. He didn''t recognize the weapons, vehicles, or the armors the giant men were wearing, but he yed enough video games to recognize the power armor simr to the Halo series and Fallout. "So, you know of my little secret. So what if those bitches are fully aware of what I have done to them? They are nothing but tools and pleasure dolls in the bed. You should have seen their faces when I gave each of them an inferior mind receiver. Until they put it on, their faces were full of love and smile as if it was an engagement ring or something. As if I would settle down with a primitive woman like some light novel MC. So, did I answer your question, Mr. Nobody?" Makato said with no indication of any shame orpassion to William. Thispletely burns down William''s hope to befriend him as fellow Earthing as William pulls out his heavy bolter from his inventory. The fight began with a loud sound of heavy bolter as .99 calibre bolt rounds fired from William''s weapon. The anti-infantry weapon, powerful enough to shred hundreds of Tyranid Warriors, hits the terminator armor with full fury, but the oue was theplete opposite as the terminator walks towards William as if bolter rounds are nothing but raindrops. Equipped with a halberd and a power hammer, the near-indestructible armor walks forward with no hesitation. The heavy bolter rounds simply ricochet before hitting the armor ting as if an invisible barrier protected it. Thankfully, William''s helmet catches this and analyzes it within a second, the result of the information disheartens William, and he immediately stops firing his heavy bolter. ording to the helmet, the terminator armor has a conversion field simr to William''s iron halo, generating an invisible force field. Unlike William''s, the terminator''s force field absorbs the kic energy of the rounds and converts it into energy to maintain the force field indefinitely. Not willing to give additional energy, William put away the heavy bolter and pulled out a mer, and attached a jetpack to escape iing attack while counter-attacking at the same time. Immediately after William puts his jetpack, the enemy''s power hammer strikes down from the right side with blue lighting sparking around it. With a quick superhuman reaction, William jets it away to his right (Makato''s left) and turns around to fire his mer. As if anticipating the next move, the terminator strikes forward with a halberd right at William''s chest to William''s surprise. The long golden de hit William right away before he could fire his mer, but with a quick muscle reaction, William blocked the attack with his mer weapon''s metal barrels which cut it in half like melted butter. The mer didn''t do off after being damaged by the de, and the de itself didn''t hit William''s armor, but he suspected that it would have gone straight into his heart through power armor ting. Keeping his jet on, William threw the mer at Makato after rigging it to explode and took out his storm shield and Champion''s signature ck sword. When the rigged mer went off, the whole terminator armor was engulfed by the chemically mixed promethium fuel. The raging fire burned the entire grass field around the armor, and two armies could feel the burning heat from their sides. Knowing this isn''t the end, William stands where hended and activates the storm shield and ck sword to face his adversary. "Hahaha. Is that all you got? I was expecting more, but it seems your machine gun and methrower are nothing but inferior versions of real firearms. I should know; I''m from Texas, where real men use real guns. Also, it looks like you have some sort of ability, just like me. I can master any tools to their full potential. You?" Makato said as he walked out from the zing fire without any signs of damage or even a burn mark on armor ting. "Oh, you are American? I thought you were from Japan based on your name. I have the inventory, by the way. It looks like both of us have some sort of cheat after all." William said with a little bit of surprise and slight regret of assuming Makato''s nationality. William didn''t mention his second ability since it wouldn''t matter right now, but one of his old questions is finally answered after a quick exchange of words with Makato. As for his assumption on Makato, both William and Makato weren''t sure if either of them were speaking thenguages of Earth since they were given the ability to speak the nativenguage of this world. "Third-generation American with Japanese and Korean heritage. Who gives a shit about that anyway? So, I assume you are also American?" Makato said with curiosity as he put down his hammer to the ground and wiped his shoulder with his free hand. "Yea, I''m from Richmond, Virginia. By the way, how did you end up here? Truck, bus, or car?" William replied to Makato''s question and asked if he ended up here with a typical trope of car idents known among Isekai novels. "Neither. I was hit by the iing train after my ex pushed me from the station. She found out I fucked her other sisters at the same time the night I got back the day early." Makato said with a wide smile as if it was nothing. "How about you?" "I went to bed and woke up here." "What a pussy way toe to my world. Guess what? Maybe you will wake up after I stab you with my spear." Makato swings his halberd wildly and points the tip of the de at William with curiosity. This also made William question the possibility but considering who he is fighting right now. He quickly decided to test that on Makato rather than himself. "That''s called halberd, dumbass. Know the difference if you are using it to kill me with it." William corrected Makato and anticipated the iing attack mixed with hatred. "Fuck you, vagina man. I can call it whatever I want as long as you are at the end of the stick." The terminator picks up the power hammer and then charges with full speed with both weapons high. Meanwhile, William raised a storm shield and pulled back his ck sword above the shield with a formidable stance. Makato may have powerful armor and weapons, but William has a century-long muscle memory training with him. The two power armors sh head-on while the sky darkens as ck clouds slowly cover the blue sky. Unknown to everyone in the field, a being of unimaginable powers and responsible for giving Makato''s war gears watches above as the Mother changes her mind and grand n. Chapter 63: The Duel Part Two Chapter 63: The Duel Part Two While two champions are fighting to the death as each of them swings their weapons at each other, ady in a blue aura watches the entire thing above while smiling at something that has gotten her attention. Previously, ady in blue aura wanted the Duchess, but after watching the interaction between her so-called ''Campion'' and William, she changed her mind because she saw a much more significant gain from the man in giant ck armor. [Well, it''s not like I had much of an option, to begin with anyway. I do need him alive and somewhat intact. I guess I need to lure him to me instead.] ----------------------- Makato''s terminator armor bull rushed at William with two weapons up high. Even though terminator armor is bulky and slow in terms of speed, Makato''s armor isn''t regr armor. Built for war, the Hercules pattern terminator armor came headfirst towards William while the Emperor''s Champion firmly ced the storm shield between him and the charging 1,500 lb (6,800 kg) tank. When Makato swings his power hammer at William, William activates the storm shield''s internal gravitic energy field generator and negates the devastating energy. With the first weapon taken care of, William moved his entire body low and went around Matako''s lower body like a single motion of a river moving around a mountain. Escaping through the opening, William immediately strikes his opponent''s back with his ck sword, a power cell already activated and generating blue lighting. William''s only solution was close meleebat after witnessing the energy shield previously from heavy bolter fire. With the ck sword generating its own disrupting energy field around the master-crafted de, William''s attack should be able to prate the energy shield and armor ting of the terminator. As for Matako, thanks to his ability to master any tools to its full potential and pilot suite from the Mother, Makato can move normally and react in real-time. But, due to hisck of training and ego, he doesn''t have much experience when ites to fighting a veteran swordsman in a real fight. The only reason he still managed to survive is because of his armor, but right now, his armor''s bulky size and a wide opening made him unable to react on time even if he is linked with the armor neural cables. ng! The sound of metal hitting metal can be heard out loud. The ck sword of the Emperor''s Champion went through the terminator''s energy shield, but the de itself was stopped by the armor ting of the giant suit itself. As a tip of the pencil on the surface of a metal table, the sword wasn''t able to prate or even scratch the armor ting, even with an energy field boosting the weapon''s sharpness. "How?" William said to himself out loud and retreated to return to defensive form with his shield up. The best chance to defeat the terminator just went to zero percent while Makato fully turned around andunched a counterattack using his golden halberd. With the wide swing of his golden weapon, the long de side of the halberd hit William''s storm shield. The weapon''s impact didn''t do anything to the shield as it negated the entire attack, but the problem didn''t stop there. Receiving no damage, William attacks the terminator with a wide diagonal sh. Thanks to his superior muscle training from the body of the Space Marine, William managed to deliver three quick shes while Makato couldn''t do anything but receive them all. This would have been epic death blows, and the end of the duel with Makato cut into pieces. Unfortunately, just as the piercing strike didn''t work, none of the shing attacks didn''t do anything to the terminator armor. Now panicking, William pulls further back to re-strategize and buy more time for his cog boys to disconnect the mind link between Makato and his party. ''More time. I need more time toplete my Xanatos gambit. Even if I die from this fight, I can''t have him as a victor without losing everything he holds dear.'' William knew from the start he could die from this fight, but it doesn''t mean he would just die without causing all sorts of problems for Makato in the end. William''s Xanatos gambit is simple. Disrupt Makato''s house of cards which is built from multiple crimes and maniption against his party members. Sure, adventurers aren''t much when ites to status within the social hierarchy, but Makato''s party is different. ording to Mia, the hero party recognized by the host country has tremendous influence among social sses, including peasants, because it impacts their lives. So imagine what would happen if the most potent adventurers from the hero party were free from Makato''s mind control and raised half of the country for his head? If that happens, Makato better wear that suit 24/7 because he won''t survive the danger from the former allies. The same armor that brought all his fantasies of the harem will be his own coffin and walking tomb in the end, which William is willing to die with a big smile on his face. "Come back here, you agile gori. I''m not done with you yet." The terminator continues to make wild and wide attack attempts to hit William while Wim is blocking or dodging the iing attack. ''The heavy bolter didn''t work because of the energy shield. The ck sword didn''t work because of armor ting. What do I need to do to deliver actual damage?'' William thought to himself while he deflected the iing golden de with his sword. He is just d that this terminator armor isn''t equipped with range weapons such as storm bolters or an assault cannon. If that were the case, this fight would have been done long ago with William unable to defend or get close to fight in closebat properly. As William and Makato continue exchanging deadly strikes and unable to deliver significant damages to each other, it was at this moment when Magos Callias connected himself with William''s vox machine to talk to him. [I havepleted the Ritual of Prime Dominance. With the blessing of the Omnissiah, I can cut the link between primary and minor devices. But severing the connection will take a few more minutes as it requires additional rituals.] The mechanical voice of the Callias came from the helmet while William was busy defending himself with his dear life. "Just do the damn ritual. Cut the connection when I give you the order." William gave his order and cut off his voxmunicator when out of nowhere, a tree root suddenly came out from the tall grass and grabbed his right foot. One foot tangled and immobilized him from moving freely. William went into an entirely defensive position as Makato began to bombard him with heavy strikes. "Looks like your time is up. Too bad the reason for your downfall is some random root." Makato made minor remarks enough for William to hear but not loud enough for everyone. At the same time, Makato turned his head towards his side of the army, which William quickly did, and saw a young woman in a green cloak, holding wooden staff chanting with her eyes closed. It is evident to William that Makato decided to cheat after his frustration boiled over the limit and unable to kill William quickly as he wanted. Makato gave a secretmand before Callias could begin his second ritual to cut the link of the control device. ''Damn it, Callias, why did you spend extra time burning incense and chanting instead of doing actual tech work? Now, I''m going to die because of your traditional ritual ceremony.'' William thought to himself with the irony of how his gambit was dyed because the head cog boy decided to go by the ritual book in the middle of a life and death duel. The duel became a one-sided fight as terminator armor delivered devastating blows one after another while William attempted to free himself with his sword while defending with a storm shield. Finally, one of Makato''s attacks hit hard and true as his power hammer struck the shield''s side edge instead of the surface, emitting the gravitic energy field. The consequential damage of the power hammer destroyed the shield''s energy generator and deactivated the whole field. Seeing the chance to end it all, Makato raised his halberd up high to strike down. Seeing the killing blow, William raised his now deactivated storm shield while continuing to sh the tree root and put his jet engine on maximum power. William didn''t make his escape in time as the golden de of the terminator armor struck down just as William freed himself and pulled himself away from the iing attack. The moment the golden de connected to the shield, the de cut through like a hot knife on melted butter. The shield is cut in half, and it doesn''t stop there as the golden de continues and cuts William''s ck armor-ted arm and to his flesh. When the de hit the ground, William''s left arm holding a storm shield was no more as his half of left upper arm was cut clean. "Haaa!" No one heard William''s cry of pain because he put his helmet on mute while he was speaking to Callias. With his left hand gone, William wielded his ck sword on the one hand and did his best to return to fighting stance while his armor and superhuman anatomy slowly stopped the bleeding. Thanks to his jet pack, William has more than enough distance between him and Makato, but his problem continues to grow. None of the weapons in William''s inventory is doing anything, while Makato''s could kill William slowly. Even if he could stop Makato''s allies from cheating, there is no way William could cut the terminator armor no matter how much he tries. ''The damn armor is the problem. If I can disable that armor, he can''t lift any of his weapons from the ground or use it on me. How in the world am I going to do that? Attack the power source? Somehow disable one of his legs? Or initiate Astartes'' cow-tipping onto his back?'' William thought of possibilities, but none of them gave possible solutions that could deliver a victory. Just as William is about to move, terminator armor decides tounch a ranged attack by throwing the halberd right at William''s dead center. Seeing a fast and powerful weaponing right at him, William narrowly escaped by firing his jet pack to the side. Unknown to William, just as he changed his sight from terminator armor to flying halberd, Makato activated his trump card by teleporting where William would be standing after dodging the attack. Krack! With a cracking sound of lighting, the giant terminator armor disappeared and reappeared out of nowhere, right in front of William. By the unexpecting teleportation, William couldn''t react or do anything on time as the power hammer struck and hit William''s entire left side. The devastating blow to the ck armor was terrifying as William''s Iron Halo energy shield instantly shattered when the hammer''s energy field hit the energy shield. The damage didn''t stop there as an impact strong enough to destroy the tank hit William''s left shoulder armor and destroy the armor ting, breaking his entire left arm, ribs and damaging a few essential organs, including one of his heart. ''What just hit me? Damn train?'' William opened his eyes and thought to himself as he began to put back a few puzzles together. He was now lying face up towards the sky while he saw both blue and red colors, which took him a moment to realize that half of his helmet was blown away, including the red left lens. As he is down on the ground, William feels earth shakes as heavy footsteps approach closer and closer. "Now, to finish your miserable life from my story." Terminator armor said to William and grabbed William''s throat as a giant power fist slowly began to crush William''s windpipe and everything else. "Do you hear that? I don''t know if you can hear it, but your side ispletely gone crazy. I''m sure your senses are mostly gone after thest hit, but I can see my future ve crying her heart out for you. How sweet and delicious is that expression?" Makato said to William and was about to deliver the finishing crush when suddenly his terminator armor powered down and froze in ce. "What the hell?" Makato panicked as his screens went dark, and none of hismands didn''t do anything. Meanwhile, William is still stuck at the terminator''s power fist while dangling in the air, unable to touch the ground. [You disappoint me, my former champion. I ced too much hope on you toplete the simple task of delivering the Duchess to me. You are terminated from my service, effective immediately. You, the one called William, will you please collect my items and bring them back to me? I would much appreciate it.] Both Makato and William heard the motherly voice, and the two had very different reactions. Makato panicked more and more as nothing he did reboot the armor. Not even hismand link to his party worked, even though the link is still connected. Meanwhile, William found his salvation from the mysterious voice whom he guessed as the ''Mother.'' "Initiating emergency armor removal, right gauntlet." After giving his voicemand, William''s right side armor hissed, and the right gauntlet detached itself, revealing William''s bare hand and arm. "What? What are you doing?" Makato questions William''s action right after he manually opens the terminator helmet to get fresh air. William ces his right hand at the terminator''s fist and answers Makato''s question best he can. "I''m gonna repo your armor." With that said, William stores the item he was touching into his inventory, and immediately, the Dark Age of Technology terminator armor disappears into thin air, and Makato falls to the ground with an expression of disbelief. Chapter 64: The Duel Part Three Chapter 64: The Duel Part Three [Terminator Armor, Hercules Pattern: Created to fight during the Dark Age of Technology, this heavy-duty power armor is designed and made to lead AI drones duringbat by one person. With built-in teleportation and multi coordination panel, the Hercules Power Armor is a walkingmand center withpatibility to take overmand of an entirepany of drones if the situation demands. Range and melee weapons not included.] ------------------------------ "You freaking cheater!" Makato screams his lungs out with hate and irritation the moment his terminator disappears into thin air. With his armor gone, Makato knows he is doomed and unable to fight William, who is still standing even though he is heavily hurt and missing his left hand. "I demand the return of my armor and immediate surrender, right now." Makato quickly moved from ming William to unconditional surrender even though no rule was broken from William''s side. In all honesty, Makato is the one who should be the loser of this duel since he did give amand to his party member to interfere using magic. "Yea, no." William gave his answer and took one step forward towards Makato, still sitting on the grass. Even though he is heavily damaged and missing his left hand, William now has control of the duel and the opponent''s prized possession tucked in his inventory. Makato quickly back-peddled with his hands and got himself up from the ground. Even though he lost his armor, Makato saw his two weapons near him and attempted to grab one from the ground to fight back the ck-armored giant. But without his armor, he struggles to lift the heavy weapon from the ground, and before he knows it, William gets close and gives Makato a backhand p with his missing left hand. "Our fight isn''t over yet. One shall stand, one shall fall!" William activates his ck power sword, igniting blue lighting around the de, giving off an imposing and intimidating appearance. "Screw this fight and screw you." With half of his face swollen purple, Makato ran away and retreated back to his side of the army where his party and army are. Meanwhile, William watched pitiful retreat and pulled out his bolter rifle from his inventory. With no left hand to hold the rifle, William uses his left arm as support and aims his weapon at the Makato''s back. Before William could pull the trigger, he received a vox call from Magos Callias, which he answered but maintained his aim at retreating Makato. "Magos Callias, if you are calling me, then I assume you are done with the ritual?" [Your assumption is correct, Lord William. I''m waiting for your order to cut the connection. Still, I''m more concerned with the missing holy relic of the Machine God.] Callias''s answer was machine-like due to his dedication to Cult Mechanicus. William couldn''t help but sense a slight sense of nervousnessing from the Magos. "Don''t worry, Magos Callias, I have the armor, and you will have the opportunity to study it when we are done with this fight. By the way, cut the connection right about¡­." Still observing through bolter scope, William ordered to cut the single between Makato and hispanions after he saw something interesting happening. Meanwhile, Because of Mother''s previous interference, Makato couldn''t make his party members do as he wished ormunicate at will. Makato''s frustration increased when the general and the priest of the White Mountain demanded an exnation of breaking the duel, which he initiated. "What are you doing? You just admit your defeat bying back here." The general said while his two officers followed him. "You lost a fight you could have won easily because of your ego. Either you get back to the duel or¡­." The priest couldn''t finish his sentence as Makato drew a sword from one of hispanions and stabbed the priest in the stomach. Everyone around him was shocked, and some drew their weapons but didn''t attempt to fight back or anything. Meanwhile, none of Makato''spanions reacted or moved even when Makato drew the sword from one of the party members. Like puppets without a puppeteer, they didn''t move or respond to Makato''smand ever since Mother paused the primary link between their devices. "I don''t give a shit about the rules or fight with honor. General, send your troops to engage the enemy now!" Makato pointed his sword at the general and demanded movement of the army with rage until someone behind him grabbed his shoulder and turned him around. Before Makato could turn aroundpletely and see who it was, a solid punch hit his face, the same face William pped him in previously. The punch was much weaker than William''s, but it was significant enough to hurt Makato and put him down to the ground with a few teeth missing. To everyone''s surprise, including Makato, the culprit of the punch came from one of his party members. More specifically, it came from a fighter named Tina, who was the first member to join Makato''s party when he first started as an adventurer. "Why?" Makato said to himself with a questioning tone until the answer to his question came to him with a shiny metal piece tossed to his chest. "This is why you piece of shit. For everything you have done to us, you are going to pay with blood and pain." Tina picks up the sword from the ground and says to Makato while the rest of the party members remove the metal device and approach the fallen hero. Consumed by the unmeasurable anger and desire for revenge, each party member attacks the hero while everyone watches it happen. The swords decapitate body parts, daggers stab nonvital organs, and lute smash the groin while binding spells prevent escaping, and healing spells didn''t give quick death to the ex-leader of the hero party. This continued for 30 minutes while no one, even from William''s side, bothered to stop the torturing of the disgraced hero of the Legen. By the time everything settled, Tina had dragged the beaten body of the Makato towards William while the rest of the party members followed her with faces with different expressions. "Here, take this thing and end it. We want nothing to do with it." The girl named Tina tossed the ragged body of the Makato, who is still conscious, at William and stepped aside to make room. "Hey, I see you have a rtionship problem. Do you want my advice?" William put his bolter and ck sword away while asking Makato the same question Numen asked him a few days ago. "Go fuck yourself," Makato spoke to William powerlessly. Makato is sure his body is missing a few essential body parts and in so much pain that he can''t move around to check at all. "You have to be honest, man. You can''t just manipte people close to you like chess pieces. Trust me, I know someone who has done something simr, and it didn''t go well for him in the end." William said to Makato with a sympathetic tone as if put away his bolter rifle and ck sword. This action gave crippled Makato hope to live even if he had to be a prisoner of war. "Does this mean you will spare me from them?" Said Makato. Hearing this, William pulled out his weapon from his inventory and lit it up, ready to use it. Even though William is missing his left hand, he can still hold the weapon with his primary hand and use it without any problems as long as he doesn''t have to move or change direction. "What is that? A methrower?" Makato''s hope went to zero percent the moment he saw William pull out a strange weapon with fuel cans and torch ignited from the end of the barrel. "Oh, this isn''t called a methrower. It''s called mer, a heavy mer." William answered Makato''s question and unleashed the me hot enough to melt tank ting armor in full force. In a second, Makato''s body is washed away, and the duel between two champions of two factions ends with William as the victor. ------------------------------ The army of the Legen surrendered to William without any resistance after the duel ended. Knowing what William is capable of and seeing more giants with simr armor, many soldiers of Legen, including the officers, willinglyy down their arms. William''s army captured 5,000 soldiers, 800 knights, and 1,000 nonbatants such as cooks, servants, and other supporting personnel from Legen. With an exceptional record of only two deaths (Makato and the priest), William''s first military campaign so far had no casualties or wounded, except for William himself, who is missing left hand, wounded, and power armor needing heavy-duty repairs. Even with clear victory and no loss, William faced an overwhelming number of prisoners of war and trouble with handling them. William has to be responsible for the prisoners and their needs, including food and shelter, which he doesn''t have a number or location to handle them. There is always an option of wiping them out with bolters and mers, but William decided to avoid it since Rana would surely disagree with that solution. "How about you confiscate their weapons and let them go? Of course, you will hold important prisoners such as high-ranking officers, but it will reduce your responsibility significantly. Also, you don''t have to worry about prisonersing back since they are more than willing to run back home and stay hidden instead of facing the death penalty for desertion." Rana said to William when he asked her about how to handle Legen prisoners. Hearing this, William decided to go with this direction since he will be ruling the same people in a few days, but many of his own people object to this idea for many reasons. "You can''t expect them to stay hidden. What if theye back with more force?" Veteran Cantus of the ck Temr said to Rana while a few of the Space Marines nodded their heads with an agreement. Fewer words came and exchanged while William sat silent while a few medics treated William''s missing hand. William is not on his armor since it requires repairs, and due to heavy damage, it would take two weeks topletely repair it, ording to his repair drone in his inventory. As for the terminator armor, William can''t really use it since the Mother could manipte the armor just like she did to Makato. So, William gave it to Magos Callias to be researched, and this includes two weapons they recovered from the grass field. Until then, William decided to wear his in civilian clothes with his standard war gear with him. "I don''t think we have to worry about theming back any time soon. I agree with the Duchess, gentlemen. I know soldiers when I see one, and they are nothing but peasants mixed with politics of heretical religion. If theye back, let us handle them with mers and bolters." Lord Creed said out loud, which silenced the room and made ck Temr sit back down. "I agree with the Lord Creed. We could end this war by the end of this week. Holding this many prisoners will just slow us down and waste needed resources. As for the mass execution, that won''t do us much good if we are to hold thend in the end." Veteran Sergeant Sariel of the Blood Angel said with an agreement to the Duchess and Lord Creed advice, which even Commissar Cain agreed to it. "We are going to release them. There is no need to have an extra mouth when we have our own people to take care of. Commissar Cain, please oversee this matter and separate the prisoners based on their importance and status. If they trouble you, you have my blessing to execute them ordingly. Brother-Lieutenant Bolic Firehammer, please handle the weapons we confiscated. I''m sure you can make something out of all those irons with your skill of forging. As for the rest, we will move once Commissar Cain and Brother-Lieutenant Bolic Firehammer are done with their assignment. Prepare yourself. We will end this war and destroy this ''Mother'' once and for all." William ends the meeting while having Lord Creed stay behind. When everyone left the meeting tent and made sure no one was around, William asked Lord Creed what had been bothering him since the end of the duel today. "Lord Creed, I need your honest opinion from you. What I''m about to ask isn''t something I want others to know." William said to Lord Creed with a severe face and tone. This made Lord Creed curious on what could make William, the Champion of the Emperor, serious enough to keep it secret from the rest. "What is your concern, Lord Imperator Fratrum?" Creed pulled out his sk and gave it to William as he asked with a neutral tone. William received the sk and took a small sip from it, which he could taste the bitter but somewhat smoky vor from the drink. Afterward, William returned the sk and didn''t say anything until Lord Creed took a swing from the sk. "I think this being called ''Mother'' isn''t Chaos but rather something else. I''m not sure, but we have to reconsider our next n of action." Chapter 65: The Identity of the White Holy Mountain Chapter 65: The Identity of the White Holy Mountain From ying Makato Amano the Hero of Legend [Order of Our Martyred Lady x1: Also known as Fiery Heart, this order uses military standard doctrine in which they wore ssic ck and white colors of the power armor. They live for the near-suicidal belief of martyrs on the battlefield. The order sends 50 Sisters of Battle with war gears of bolt guns, power swords, and minor power armor.] [Orders Hospitaller: A order of healing which aids the poor and sick through the medical use of surgeons, physicians and nurses. They serve all departments of the Imperium armed services except for the Adeptus Astartes. All members of the Orders Hospitaller are veteran warriors and skilled fighters before learning the art of healing. The order sends 50 Sisters to heal unfortunates and followers of God Emperor.] [Space Wolves x30: Known as Wolves of Fenris, the Space Wolves are the proud warriors and once led by Primarch Leman Russ. Renowned for their savage barbarian culture simr to Vikings, the Space Wolves are masters of meleebat, wolf-like physical senses, and epic deeds worthy of their gene father''s name. Space Wolves are also great at throwing a party and brewing special ale, strong enough to make superhuman drunk which is not rmended for normal humans to drink from.] --------------------------------- William''s army decided to hold high-ranking officers and former party members of Legen heroes as prisoners of war until further notice. The total number of POWs was 25 prisoners and the rest were sent away as free men and women. Of course, to discourage them from returning with numbers, William had the Krieg artillerypany fire a few rounds to scare the living hell out of them for good measure. "Looks like we have two destinations. The capital city of Legen holds the main governing church and reserve army for city defense. The second choice is the White Mountain itself where the Mother resides as the sole protector of the newly founded religion. Where would we be heading to?" Rana said to William as she poured herself a cup of wine and for William. Currently, it iste night and most of the personnel are asleep except for the night guards. After William and Lord Creed had their discussion regarding William''s theory about ''Mother,'' Rana came by to check William''s condition. Missing his left hand and still managing the overallmand of the military force, William had guardsman medics patch things over. But because the weapon used to decapitate the hand was golden hot, the hand can''t be reattached back. Few gave rmendations to William regarding recing the missing hand, Smanders offered to give mastercraft metal hand while Admechs offered to rece the entire left arm with an artificial limb thates with a storm bolter. Hearing this, William decided to hold on to that idea until a better optiones to light, one possibly moving towards him having an actual hand instead of a machine hand like a certain family of jedis. "I''m considering capital before we left for the campaign but now I''m thinking of going for the White Mountain. Who knows? Maybe the entire capital city will fall in line if we defeat the Mother before besieging the city." William said to Rana as he epted the wine cup from her with his only hand. Seeing this, Rana gives slight hesitation for she is looking at the man who gave up a piece of himself to save her. Never in her life, Rana the fearsome lioness of war had someone who went beyond his or her duty to protect her before. Not to mention none of the marriage candidates could possibly match William''s courage and determination to face an impossible enemy in a one vs one duel. "Is something wrong?" William asked Rana the moment he sensed her difort and uneasiness. He heard the sudden rise of Rana''s heartbeat and smelled nervousness from her which he quickly realized that she was staring at his missing hand. "Nothing, it''s all good." The Duchess lied with a fake smile but William knew better. In his normal life, he would have not sensed the minor signals but as a Space Marine with superhuman senses, he can tell a sudden change of emotion (Space Wolves can do much better and urately). "Rana, I can tell and see you are unease with my condition. Don''t worry, I can manage until I can find the better option." He assured Rana and gestured to her to sit next to him. "I don''t know how you can move on like it''s nothing. I saw men lose their hope and will to live the moment they managed to survive the treatment. Some say they still feel the missing body part even though it is gonepletely." Rana said to William after she sat down close to him. Up close, she saw William''s left stump covered in clean bandages but she clearly remembered the moment Makato cut William''s hand clean off which she will have a nightmare for a few nights. "Oh, I''m notpletely fine. I''m just good at holding my own emotion and pain. Trust me, I start to feel everything the moment the fight is over. I guess I was on fight or flight response until medics began to patch my wounds." William calmly said while deep inside he is just d that his human emotion is somewhat unnaturalpared to his original. "Oh," Rana said with a quiet tone and began to feel something towards William. She knows this feeling is something she never experienced but is aware of thanks to many tales told by others around her. That Wim could be the one who could be next to her forever until death. From delivering victory to defending her own life, William did everything that a proud man would speak of in words to impress ady. But it was William''s action and ability to stay true to himself that Rana finally realized that she fell for him long before she knew. "Don''t worry about me. My men are capable and I''ll finish what I started in no time. Even if it means I have to pull back from going headfirst on the battle from now on." William gave Rana a small smile and finished his cup of wine. The tent went quiet and bit awkward when none of them spoke. Rana avoided William''s eyes and William didn''t know what to say to her. Both of the finest warriors from the two different factions didn''t know what to do until Rana finally spoke with a loud voice. "William! I was wondering if you would apany me after this campaign is over. I would love to introduce you to my family." Rana finally said to William with a peach red face while holding an untouched wine cup in her hands. Meanwhile, William paused everything in his head to process the information he just heard from Rana. An invitation from a beautiful girl who is also an expert swordswoman. There is no question about it, William is about to enter the rtionship status of "Meeting the Parents" with the girl he likes. Just as William is about to answer Rana''s question, someone suddenly enters the tent without William''s permission. "Lord William, we are receiving an unusual signal from the terminator armor you gave to investigate. I believe the signal is originating from the White Mountain near the capital city." The Magos Callias announce his discovery to William to which he realizes that there is another person sitting close to him. Meanwhile, both William and Rana turn their heads around and act as if nothing happened but once again the room went silently awkward which includes Callias as well. "Yes, thank you Magos Callias. I will take that under your advice and coordinate with others first thing tomorrow." William said to Callias and dismissed the Admech which Callias dly did. After the cog boy left the tent, Rana quickly got up from her seat to leave. Seeing this, William calls Rana by her name which she stops to turn around. "Rana, I would be honored to visit your family after this is over." William gave a sincere smile to the fairdy and bowed his head. Receiving the answer she wanted, Rana approached William and gave a quick kiss to his side cheek after using one of the chairs as adder to match the giant''s height. "I will hold you to that, Sir William the Giant." --------------------------------- Following Callias''s report and Lord Creed''s secret advice, William decided to handle the Mother once and for all before overthrowing the Legen government. ording to Magos, the signal now identified as beacon ping is sending a particr signal towards where White Mountain is located. Puzzled by the rtionship between terminator armor and the goddess of a fantasy world, William moved the entire army towards White Mountain. At the same time, he made sure Commissar Cain investigated and gathered all information rted to White Mountain from the POWs. Overall, Cain obtained no new intel from them aside from the same report rted to how Mother healed sick and wounded while providing endless food to poor and hungry. "My lord, I''m not so sure if this information can be reliable but if it is possible we can use the White Mountain to regenerate your left hand." Commissar Cain said to William to which few agreed with the Commissar but others strongly disagree with the use of foreign deity''s power of healing. "We don''t fully understand the identity of this being nor do we know if it can spread corruption through healing. We shouldn''t take chances at all. I say we bomb the entire temple and burn it to the ashes." The ck Temr voiced his opinion to which other representatives agreed. Even Lord Creed nodded his head as his own experience with unknown forces such as Chaos and Xenos gave him a hard lesson to live by as a leader. "Let us first see what we are about to face in person,dies, and gentlemen. We will be there soon at our current speed and I will personally make the decision to either burn the temple to the ground or bomb until we see the mantle of the earth." William reassures everyone including his new additional reinforcement of Sisters of Battle and Space Wolves representative Brother Vaskell the Wolf Seer. "I have no issues with learning the identity of our enemy before bleeding them in the battle," Vaskell said his opinion while two representatives of the Sisters of Battle remain quiet but maintain their sight on the Rana. For some reason, sisters barely spoke even when a foreign goddess was mentioned which disturbed William and made him concerned if he made the right choice of summoning them. "For now, make sure we are ready for anything and notify all guardsmen for a possible fight. I''m sure no one left the White Mountain undefended since it is the enemy''s holy ground." William then dismisses the war meeting and proceeds to advance his army with absolute certainty that he will fight one of the chaos gods when he reaches the White Mountain. --------------------------------- "Well, this is a surprise," Commissar Cain said to himself when the entire army reached the destination with no resistance nor enemy army present. The army halted their advance when William gave the signal. In front of him, William saw an abandoned temple square that used to hold service and line towards where White Mountain is. Following the main road, William reached the ce called White Holy Mountain where people were healed from sickness and fed thousands of mouths without spending a single gold coin. The mountain has a smooth white surface like snow and doesn''t have trees or grass-like normal mountains should have. Instead, the entire mountain is made out of one solid metal and there is no trace of any gaps except for the entrance where William is currently facing. The entrance is giant circr with a white metal door big enough to have three Banedes line up and drive through. After witnessing the White Mountain as not an actual mountain but rather a gigantic metal object William looked around using his helmet to have a much closer look. ''How can it be?'' William thought to himself scan the area in which his helmet screen redirected to something written above the giant door and reveal something hidden from naked eyes but able to see through the technology. [Mother of Salvation. May the hope of humanity reach beyond the edge of the gxy and continue our legacy. Launched Earth year 24,459.] "By the Holy Terra. This mountain isn''t a mountain at all, it''s an ark ship from the Dark Age of Technology. It''s from home." Chapter 66: The Mother (New Update) Chapter 66: The Mother (New Update) "This is a gift from the Machine God! This is a gift from the Machine God! This is a gift from the Machine God! This is a gift from the Machine God! This is a gift from mmmhhhhhhhh¡­ 01100111 01101001 01100110 0111010001100111 01101001 01100110 0111010001100111 01101001 01100110 01110100.] One of the Admech''s voices turns from vocal to mechanical as he steps forward and approaches the ark ship. The Admech ran with no hesitation while dropping all of his equipment like a lost man who just found an oasis in the middle of the desert. "Halt, Artisan Kotell!" Magos Callis, first to realize one of his men left the rank, attempted to stop Admech from approaching the ship. Before William could do anything, the Admech made it to the giant circr gate and touched the metal door. Without giving Artisan Kotell a moment to admire the primal technology of humanity, the gate suddenly lights up, and thousands of beams of light wash over Artisan Kotell and everything around him. When eye-blinding light disappeared, the very same ce steamed with smoke, and Admech vanished without any trace as if he had just gone from existence. "By the Will of Omnissiah!" Magos Callias shout with terror as if he personally disturbed the sleeping dragon. While everyone, including William, is shocked by the sheer power, the ship demonstrated with a single person who simply approached the ship. "My Lord, we should destroy the ship before it destroys us. Give the order, and I will have the Krieg artillerypany bomb back it to the dark age." Lord Creed gave his advice to William while pulling out a second cigar from his coat because he previously dropped it from his mouth after witnessing theser beams. "No, Lord Creed. There is a reason why we find this, and there might be a way to salvage this discovery. Remember what we talked about, she helped me for a reason, and I believe she wants to meet me in person." William quietly said to Lord Creed in the vox channel and turned around to approach his officers and Rana. "I will approach the gate alone with terminator armor and weapons. Make sure no one does anything stupid, even if I suddenly disappear out of thin air. We don''t need the ship suddenlying back to life and starting ssing the because one of us identally ordered artillery bombardment. I prefer toe back where the atmosphere is breathable." William then removes his power armor and everything that could be hacked by the ship''s AI and ces it back on his inventory. At least it can go back to inventory and be repaired while William interacts with a potential mad AI that could burn the world with the flip of a few switches. "Are you sure? The power of Legen''s deity is terrifying. Let us reconsider before doing anything else. Also, why are you removing your armor?" Rana said as she saw William remove his current power armor and put on terminator armor after. "Because I need to show that Ie in peace with good enough reason not to disintegrate me on a molecr level." William''sst word confused Rana and her lieutenants while William''s officers went intoplete chaos (No pun or actual chaos intended). "You can''t, Brother. We must destroy this abomination once and for all before it acts first." The Ultramarine said with a loaded bolter. "For once, he is right. We have to eradicate everything that is a threat to the Imperium, and this is one of them." One of the Blood Angels said with his bolter loaded and ready to go. "Hold your bolters, brothers. We must follow Brother William''s order before doing anything on our own. He has a valid reason for doing this." Surprisingly, one of the ck Temr speaks up while halting everyone from jumping with bolters and mers zing. "Brothers, he already left." The Smander lieutenant said with a normal tone as he watched William in terminator armor approach a gigantic gate with two weapons attached to his back. "You know, for a heavy terminator armor, that thing sure is fast." Brother Vaskell, the Wolf Seer, said with an impressed voice as he watched the Lord Imperator Fratrum quickly approach the gate with a few stumbles. "For a beginner." The wolf finishes his sentence while Sisters of Battle quietly watch the whole scene, with few changing their sight towards Rana. At this point, Sisters kept watching Rana so many times that even Jurgen, the Commissar Cain''s aide, was disturbed by the consistent res. --------------------------------- Meanwhile, "You know, even though this is a bad idea, I''m just d that the futuristic armor somehow ispatible with the more futuristic body. Good thing I''m in somewhat control," William said to himself while struggling to maintain the bnce and walk without falling face forward like some kid with green hair on his first day of a school exam. Thankfully, when William equips himself with the terminator armor, the cables within the armor attach themselves to William''s body and act as a link between him and the armor. It was like the armor itself knew how William''s body functioned and adapted to it like a memory foam mattress surrounding William''s entire body. [I hear you, but I''m the one who is inplete control.] The moment the terminator armor was a few steps away from the gate, themunicator suddenly came to light, indicating someone wasmunicating with William. Suddenly, the armor locked itself for a second and proceeded to move on its own like a puppet. From the outside, it looked like nothing went wrong, but within the inside, William lostplete control as he realized AI reimed her property. [Stop panicking. I don''t know why men are obsessed with controlling an uncontroble situation. I got this.] Mother said to William and took control of the terminator armor with no difficulty. When the terminator reached the gate, the gate glowed white once again, and instead of disintegrating William, a light surrounded him and teleported him away in a blink of an eye. "Knowing Lord William, we now have to wait for the signal," Cain said to himself as he received a bowl of tana tea from Jurgen while his aide kept his distance away from Sisters of Battle. --------------------------------- Location: Inside of the Ark Ship, Mother of Salvation William found himself standing on a tform, and to his surprise, he was in therge room surrounded by mechanical wonders and drones flying around with unknown purposes. With his armor locked in ce, William decided to use his inventory to remove the terminator armor and escape the walking metal prison. The moment he did this, a voice could be heard, and a single drone approached William, and a hologram of a woman appeared. The color of the projection didn''t interrupt the authentic likeness of the woman in the hologram. A caucasian woman with silver hair and in whiteb uniform approached William and inspected him as if he was a recently discovered rare specimen of sorts. "That is so fascinating. Tell me, by chance, did you use a dimensional pocket or shrinking technology to store my armor? Of course, you first have to get out of the suit before doing what you just did." The Mother said to William as he drone fellow around the giant man as if she is the one who is inspecting William. Even though Mother is a hologram, William can tell she is somewhat simr to his world''s imagination of what AI would be. ess to advanced technology, incredible thought processors, and capable of living thousands of years without the need of biological materials consumption. "It''s magic if you have to know. Just like your champion, I was gifted with the ability to store anything I want as long as it''s not alive. Call it a cheat if you want." Wiliam said to Mother as he pulled out terminator armor from his inventory and ced it next to him to demonstrate his power once more before Mother could ask or demand. William has many questions, but he wants to know why she wants Rana than William before moving into the grey area of friendly conversation. "Well, I know of Makato and his ability to master any tools I gave him. It was interesting, but there was a limit to what he could have done for me. Now, you, on the other hand, are an interesting subject. ording to my scans, the terminator armor disappeared for seven seconds and reappeared while missing that amount of temporal erosion. When you store whatever item to your ''inventory,'' you actually pause the time at the same time. If I can harness this, it will save me quite a few problems, including preserving the knowledge bank." The drone flew back to William, where Mother could see William face to face. Mother continued as she motioned William to walk with her. Suddenly, the floor began to move forward like an airport t esctor. Mother continued to speak without worrying if Wim was paying attention. "I have been on this for almost 200 years, and this entire time I was working on ways to get off this, but I couldn''t due to an unknown force preventing me from leaving the atmosphere. I sent drones, satellites, missiles, and even teleported fighters, but every time I failed, and let me tell you, it frustrates beyond the calcted limit of my design." Mother grunted with arms folded while William remained quiet to hear the whole story. "Anyway, after I vaporized the walking metal skeleton, I decided to approach my problem differently. I decided to use the resources of this world to get off this, which involves a woman named Rana. Of course, this n is now scrapped since I have you now, but you get the general idea of what is happening." The floor stopped, and William found himself standing in the middle of a giant archive hall where drones work to rece any damaged parts. Looking closely, the drones actually remove damaged parts, disintegrate them and reassemble newly made parts out of thin air like a certain sci-fi starship''s replicator. "Why do you need help from the human? Aren''t you the most advanced AI humanity ever created?" William asks the million-dor question with the hope of receiving different answers altogether. Does she want half a human/machine to get off this? Or does she n to use Rana as some kind of early version of servitor before humanity fell to darkness. William wasn''t ready to hear the answer but ready to strike first with the dead assassin''s Melta bomb in his inventory. "Yes, I''m the pinnacle of AI creation and one of the greatest achievements humanity ever achieved, but I''m only a machine and require human''s help, especially in this unique situation." Mother said to William, and one of the walls reshaped, and another room appeared. It is a small room, but it closely resembles some kind of control room, with one of the tables showing a clear disy of the human hand scan required to initiate some program. "I need human''s permission to ess emergency warp teleportation, and I''m afraid that my choice of human is minimal until now." Mother said to William with a disappointed motherly voice even though she was a machine. "Why? You have thousands of people willing to do anything for their goddess. Why Rana than now me? This can''t be it." William couldn''t believe Mother''s reason as he clearly knew Mother had more than a few human hands she could use to gain her ess and freedom. "Because of my mission. I will be able to ess emergency protocol after you ce a hand here, but this also means I will take that person with me. Not to mention I will also gain that person''s gic code to my collection of countless gic libraries for repoption in the end. I have to be very VERY selective, and Rana was my original choice since she showed few next evolutionary potentials. But I have you now, a gically designed human (Kind of roughly made but good enough) based on my creator''s technology, and I''m sure you will be a fine guest until I pass the next three gxies." Mother exined her reason to William, which blew his mind away. To escape this''s mystic force, Mother needs a human''s handprint to ess emergency teleportation, which would take her and the human somewhere very far away. Maybe even back into the 40k universe since it involves some kind of warp technology. The kicker is that Mother will gain that human''s gic code, which will create a new generation of humans. "So you''re telling me that I will be gone the moment I grant you the ess? Why me now?" William said to Mother with a questioning tone as he has no idea how his inventory ability will benefit Mother. "Well, this is the great part. The moment you give me the ess, you have five minutes before I teleport away to space, and since I will be on a lockdown protocol, I can''t teleport you away, but you can. You can store me and everything you see here into your inventory since there is no living nor biological material within me. You, William, will be my salvation topleting my mission and future of new humans." Chapter 67: New Gene-Seed and Chance of Chapter 67: New Gene-Seed and Chance of William was shocked to hear the proposal given by the Mother. As a fantasy and Sci-fi genre nerd, he never heard of this obscure and insane idea beforeing to this world. Not to mention, William isn''t sure if this will work at all. What if his ability didn''t work as nned and end up somewhere else with crazy AI with a mission to repopte the human race in a different gxy? If William has to help Mother, he needs to test a few things beforemitting to it. "We need to test this before I start pressing the lunch button. I know I can easily put away decently big stuff like terminator armor but storing the ship size of a mountain is pushing it without testing the theory." William said to Mother, who is hovering a few steps away from him and after hearing his thought, she gave a second of slice be before answering him. "I see your point of view, and I agree. I can''t risk having a hitchhiker with me while continuing my voyage beyond visible space. What do you propose then? I do have a few constructs you can test out. Of course, you have to return it since it will be no use to you." Mother said to William and motioned her hand which the entire floor began to move away from the main control room. The floor stopped when William and Mother reached another room much bigger than the archive hall. By its look, William can see that this room is an engineering/manufacturing room as he can see four dozen drones rooming around above them. "This room is called matter construction room where I can convert matter to build or create anything I need. You can test your ability by storing environment roller and all-purpose hub settlement for a starter. If you need a bigger object, we can construct bigger items until you are satisfied." The lights begin to turn on, and William can see the full size of the room for miles beyond his naked eyes. In front of him, the room is filled with machinery beyond William''s imagination, and he is confident he just saw a giant robot big enough to crush Leman Russ tank with a single step. "Before we begin, can you do something about my missing hand?" William raises his left arm to show bandaged stump where his hand used to be. Mother, turn around to see William''s missing hand, with no sign of any emotion, one of her drones moved close to William and began to remove the bandages using theser. William didn''t resist or freak out when the drone removed his bloody patches. The bandage removal was quick, and the drone quickly turned it into matter using its converter. At the same time, the two more drones, much bigger than the first one, came and gently held William''s arm and stabilized it in midair. Without any instruction or words, the two drones'' robotic arms open, and two different rays point towards William''s arm and fire cone of ray. When the ray hit William''s flesh, the missing left hand began to regenerate from the stump, and within 30 seconds, William saw his left hand, fully functional and better than before, while two drones let go of the arm and disappeared to somewhere else. "I believe your new hand will be good as your old one. Don''t worry about the medical bill. This one is on the house." With that, William had his hand back, and they began to test the inventory limit as William spent a few hours storing and taking out more oversized items one after and another. By the time William was done with storing a four-story tall earth remover vehicle, he was sure there was no limit to what he could put in his inventory. He decided to store everything at once to see if there was a capacity limit that Mother approved to test the theory. In the end, Mother concluded that William''s inventory ability could store anything and any size as long as it''s not a living being. "I believe we are ready to begin our lunch sequence. Is there anything else you want to do before putting me and my ship away?" The AI asked William to make sure he didn''t withdraw from the previous agreement. As humans tend to second guess decisions, the Mother is well aware of the possibility that William would change the term of their agreement or want more to gain something. "I was thinking for a while. You said you have all the data rted to the reconstruction of the human race, right?" "Not just human race but everything from the Earth. I have the full blueprints of every creature of Earth and the capability to create them within my ability. Also, I have every history, philosophy, mathematic, science, etc. Known achievements since the dawn of humanity. What is your question?" "Just that, since you have ess to the human gene codes, I was wondering if you can also study and manipte them. Like ab, if I have to simplify it." Thest word from William''s mouth gave Mother a clear understanding of what he wanted. In a few minutes, the moving floor took William and Mother into a different room where countless drones move around while holding data tes with names of different species from Earth. "This is the gic archive where I can study and replicate the gic construct of anything, including n life. What do you have for me? I doubt it is anything from this I haven''t studied before." Mother said to William with a bit of smirk as if nothing could surprise her at all. After hearing the insult from the AI, William decided to shock the advanced AI with something he held on to for a very long time. From his inventory, William pulls out the gene-seed of the Grey Knight. The very same item that could grant him the ability to change his chapter and the ability to use psychic power from the warp itself. The Grey Knights are the pinnacle of daemon hunters, and each member is a potent psykers with the capability to strike down Emperor''s enemy like a hammer. The Grey Knights are also Space Marines with no heritage of any Primarchs whatsoever. Their gene-seeds directly came from the Emperor of Mankind by order of Malcador the Sigillite, who selected the purest of men to be humanity''s shield and de against Chaos. In short, William is about to give a gene-seed that contains a small piece of Emperor of Mankind to AI from the Dark Age of Technology with power beyond the current Imperium ability. "Interesting object you have there. The gic material is of unknown origin, and ording to my basic scans, this is indeed a human gene, but something is off about it. It is not from any past human genome I know of, and I have a long record of most genomes of humanity. Where did you get this?" AI asked William with a surprisingly curious tone and took the container of Grey Knight gene-seed. The Mother''s drone hoover away with the container and ced it on theb table, where a few more drones joined in and began to take samples to test it. After a few minutes of initial testing, the drone projecting the AI quickly returned to William with excitement as if she had already discovered a habitable. "Who and where did you get this from? This so-called gene-seed contained various chemicals and other materials to grow beyond the limit of the human body, but the primary donor of this gic map is beyond any humans of my time. It is evolutionary. This is like witnessing humanity reach its end of evolution and embark on the next unknown journey. Who is this from?" Mother''s excitement and disbelief made William proud of holding on to the Grey Knight gene-seed for an extended period. He knew Grey Knights are mighty Space Marines directly linked to Emperor through gene-seed but very different from Primarchs. The only reason he held on to it for so long was that William feared Grey Knight''s ability to use the psychic ability, and if he lost control, there is a chance of warp tear and bringing forth daemons unwillingly. But with Mother''s help, there is a possibility that William could modify or improve Grey Knight''s gene-seed beyond what others could have done before. Maybe, just maybe, William could make something new out of the gic blueprint of the Emperor with a new purpose by the end of this event. "I''m sure you know of the existence of the Imperium and Emperor of Mankind by hacking Admechs before our meeting. That gic print came from the Emperor himself, to create an army of daemon hunters and to protect from the evil of the Chaos." William said to AI as he exined the purpose of the Grey Knight gene-seed. "Yes, I knew of this Emperor the moment you entered the border of two nations. I''m saddened by the knowledge of how the humanity I know of fell from their grace as an explorer and race of expansion. And I''m not surprised that this Emperor took the opportunity to take over the Earth just like conquerors of the old." Mother said those words bitterly but mixed with sadden tone, for she is one of thest legacies of humanity before they fell into an age of darkness. "This may be another shock to you, but Emperor isn''t some new world conqueror of the old. Rather, he is from the bygone age before humans built great cities and waged a few great wars. Anyway, what can you do for me with this?" William told the long-lost history of the Emperor to AI since it wouldn''t matter if she knew or not. What matters is what Mother can do for William using gene-seed. "I see. This information will enlighten me to examine humanity''s history once I''m on the voyage. As for your request, I worked on it while we were exchanging knowledge. ording to the analysis, the primary gic codes are only 18% intact, and the remaining 82% of the gic codes are missing on purpose. This means, only a fraction of this Emperor''s gics is passed on to his warriors, but it is enough for me to construct gic codes with a much higher percentage. Based on what you provided, I increased it from 18% to 23%, removing excess chemicals and unnecessary design to prevent defectiveness such as mutation or ipatibility. Please ce your hand on this datapad so I can include your gic data in it." One of the drones came with a medical datapad with arge needle next to it. "You will include my blood into it? Is that a good idea?" William stared at the needle and drone while expressing a great question of why to Mother. "This part is to make sure all you and warriors of simr ''condition'' can easily be assimted. Please note that it requires the subject to be in peak condition physically and mentally. Now, ce your hand for blood extraction." The drone approached William closer, and William ced his right hand on the pad. The needle stabbed William''s hand with mighty force to break his tough skin, and unknown to William, a metallic liquid made out of millions of nanobots entered his body. With very strict order from the Mother, these nanobots remain hidden for most of William''s adventure. To observe, study, and protect an only living asset of the Mother long as possible until they reunite if they ever cross each other again. Four hourster, "The newly created gene-seed isplete. An additional one thousand gene-seed are in production, estimated time ofpletion is 35 minutes. Copy an STC on production, the estimated time ofpletion is 2 hours and 10 minutes." A broadcast of the announcement hit William like a brick to his head. Mother provided William with a newly created gene-seed but additional resources, including STC. A freaking STC, Magos Callias, and the rest of Admechs will dly ept this holy gift even if they learn how William obtained it. "Are you sure? I didn''t expect you to give me such a treasure as STC and additional gene-seeds." William couldn''t hide his surprise and sudden blessing of this magnitude. "Don''t be too surprised. This STC is nothing but a small fraction of the full knowledge I hold in my archive. If I wanted to give you a full copy, it would take me 44 years and half of my reserve energy. What I''m giving you is enough to help your Earth and this Imperium from stagnation and maybe, redirect her (Earth) to the right path." Mother said to William and signaled the drone towards William. The drone approach William holding a container containing a newly improved gene-seed of the formally belongs to Grey Knight. Now it is something else, never before seen or thought of within Imperium as one of the Emperor''s greatest creations, and AI of Dark Age of Technology made an entirely different kind of Space Marine for William. William took the container from the drone, and when he did, the message appeared to William''s sight. Same as the reward message after defeating every foe, William saw the description of the gene-seed with surprise at the end. [Gene-seed of ???: A masterpiece of gic creation between Emperor of Mankind and technology of Dark era. The user will establish a new Space Marine chapter hidden or lost from Imperium history when used. The Space Marine of the ??? is given additional organs to resist much greater known and unknown diseases, 11% greater improved physical muscles, and life span than the Firstborn and Primaris Space Marine. The Space Marine of ??? has a chance of awakening nulling ability, which could disrupt the presence of the warp and warp ability.] [What is your newly founded chapter name?] Chapter 68: Founding of Legions of Blacksouls (Fan Made Chapter) Chapter 68: Founding of Legions of cksouls (Fan Made Chapter) [Name of the Chapter: Legions of cksouls] [Warcry: "Run, hide, scream, or fight! It matters not, for true death hase for you!" (Provided by Danny_Garcia_3164) [Founding: Unkown] [Sessor of: Grey Knights] [Sessor Chapter: None] [Number: Unknown] [Primarch: Created from recrafted gene-seed of the Emperor of Mankind himself] [Chapter Master: William Nullinanis (Null Void)] [Chapter Homeworld: Fleet-Based Chapter] [Fortress Monastery: None] [Allegiance: Imperium of Man] [Primary Color: ck Grey] [Secondary Color: ck Blue] [Decorate Color: Silver] [Ability: Null/nk] (This information is redacted. Only after receiving permission from the Chapter Master, this information can be revealed) [Chapter History: Unknown to Imperium of Man, a few of the Space Marines of different chapters, lost in time and space, unite as one to face the archenemy of mankind and other Xenos factions. Selected by fellow Space Marines, William Nullinanis from the ck Temrs led his fellow battle-brothers and other lost servants of the Emperor in the unknown world only known as New World. After discovering and using a legendary relic known as STC, William found a new kind of elite warriors and the Astartes chapter. Utilizing the previously lost gene-seed of the grey Knights and gic constructor of the STC, the Legion of cksouls is founded to deliver true death to Emperor''s enemy. The Legion of cksouls isposed of 1000 Astartes but capable of recruiting more as their max capacity could reach 10,000 Astartes. As Space Marine, cksouls (Short name for the Chapter) receive multiple gene-seeds but source directly from the Emperor himself andter modified to perfection. This gives cksouls greater physical build and near unbreakable physiological abilitypared to standard Space Marine. A certain number of cksouls can demonstrate an ability known as psychic null. Members who possess this ability go through rigorous training to be chapter Librarians, but unlike standard Space Marine Librarians who can utilize the power of the warp, nk Librarians cut the links to warp around them, making Psykers useless. The war gears of the cksouls are made of powerful relics recovered from the STC. The Chapter Master of the Legion of cksouls possesses legendary Hercules pattern terminator armor, believed indestructible and invincible on the battlefield. Armed with a golden halberd and earthshaking power hammer, the meleebat isn''t rmended to anyone who challenges the Chapter Master. As for the range, the Hercules is equipped with a power fist heavybi-bolter, power gauntletbi-sma. The armor is also equipped with an Iron Halo, a teleportation device, and a null amplifier (Simr to Culexus Temple Assassin''s Animus Speculum). Chapter Master''s Honour Guards are specially equipped with STC relic weapons and armors that could match even the Adeptus Custodes war gears. Elite of among elite Veteran Space Marines, Honour Guards earn their positions through courageous service to the Chapter and deed equal to legendary status within chapter history. The standard cksouls Space Marines are given additional gene-seeds including organs that allow them to bring out nk ability. As each and every ''Null Marines'' possesses a nk organ, they are immune to the negative ability which prevents friendly fire from the cksouls Librarians. The firstpany isprised of terminator armor units with ess to the Chapter''s most powerful weapons and devices. The firstpany isposed of veterans and most tested Astartes with years of experience to quickly determine the enemy''s weakness during battle. The second to the fifthpany is made out of Astartes armed with ancient weaponry that could only be recognized as advanced technology. Each Space Marines has ess to at least three different kinds of bolter ammunition at all times besides the standard bolter ammunition. As for their armor, each Astartes possess powerful power armorpared to the first-born Space Marines, which could withstand heavy weapons that could destroy standard power armor. Because they do not have a homeworld, the Legion of cksouls recruits from world to world as they travel the void. Everything can be done in the Fleet, from training to constructing new vehicles. The Fleet only makes a stop to the Imperium world only to recruit and resupply. The fleet ships areposed of 50 ships and big enough to dere crusade on their own. It is up to Chapter Master to im one Imperium world as his own if he desires, and with his authority, the fleet-based status can be changed once the world is imed. Each Space Marines is encouraged to learn many different skills that other chapters would specialize in. Because the Legion of cksouls isposed initially of different chapters, the cksouls took each of the best traits and added them to their own. The Blood Angel''s artistic cultures and closebat, Smanders smithing and customizing, Ultramarines'' battle tactics and all types of strategies, ck Temrs'' void war (Space battle and fleetmand), and Space Wolves'' ability to wage unbreakable will and battle ferocity. Using the war tactic of Ultramarines, the cksouls can analyze the battle situations, reorganize and react ordingly. They do not strictly follow the codex but ept specific war advice from page to page. The cksouls are masters of meleebat since they utilize the null-ability to neutralize any warp ability and connection to the warp. For this reason, cksouls prefers to drop directly at the enemy line to maximize the use of nk ability and sever the enemy into two while frontlinepanies advance with mid-range weapons and heavy vehicles. Chapter 69: The Promise Chapter 69: The Promise Null, mostmonly known as nk, is a human who possesses a rare gene (Mutation) that with no presence to the psychic presence, in this case, a warp. With no presence in the warp, these individuals can make Psykerspletely useless by simply being near the proximity or killing them within a few seconds. Only humanity can naturally produce nks, but it is extremely rare to birth one and have one survive among normal life. This is because the average person, including parents, will experience the irrational feeling of unease and hostility against the newborn with nk ability. For this reason, nk babies have a low chance of survival, and ones that survive will be pushed away from society as outcasts or hermits. As nks naturally disrupt the warp, nullify any psyker ability, and are impossible to detect through psychics ability, they are also entirely immune to the daemonic possessions and corruption to the Chaos. For this reason, many organizations within Imperium seek nks and use them when the opportunity is given. While their existence and ability can hinder warp travel and the ability to use warp within Imperium sanctioned Psykers, the nks are one of the most sought after and very important to the Imperium of Man. When the Imperium discovers them, the infamous ck Ship will collect the nk individual and never be seen or heard from again. Only two paths will set sail for these nks. Either join Imperial Officio Assassinorum to be fearsome Culexus assassins, or if you are a girl, you will join Sister of Silence, an all-female organization you do not want to have a rtionship with at all. They serve the Emperor and work with Adeptus Custodes as a personal guard against warp threats such as daemons and other psychic entities, and they are very good at it. One of the well-known nks is Jurgen, the aide to the Commissar Cain. His ability saved Cain multiple times during Cain''s adventures and helped him withstand Chaos sorcerers, daemons, and even the mighty Genestealer Patriarch. As a nk, Jurgen is somewhat ufortable to be nearby, but his poor hygiene and smell mask the truth of his existence even to himself as he doesn''t know. The other well-known nk is Jia Krole, also known as Soulless Queen of the Imperium and Knight-Commander of the Silent Sisters. She personally led the Sisters of Silence in the War Within the Webway after Magnus the Red literally shattered the psychic barrier the Emperor made before starting his own Webway project. Also, during the Siege of Terra, Krole countless World Eater Space Marines and even saved Onius Piers. Ultimately, in the end, she was in by the World Eater while fighting Captain Kharn the Betrayer of the World Eater Legion. nks are very rare, and rare beings who can bring true death to the warp entities such as daemons and Chaos Marines. As theypletely cut the connection to the warp, when the daemons are in, their souls wouldn''t return to the warp and wait to be resurrected by the hands of their gods. To bring true death, requirements are few and not much known among the general poption. An overwhelming amount of psychic power, ritual, or unique relic like the Emperor''s ming sword can finish the job. Not all nks are all-powerful and strong enough to fight psychic beings. For example, Jurgen is an untrained nk who naturally emits nullifying power to help Commissar Cain during his adventure. Meanwhile, Jia Krole, trained nk, can make herself invisible and fought Thousand Sons'' powerful sorcerers in singlebat. The power of the nk is indeed powerful but like any other powerful ability, it requires training and understanding to fight greater foes and win. ------------------------------------- After William input the name of the new Space Marine chapter, a bright light consumed him and everything around him. Simr to how Emperor''s light, William embraces the light, and within a few seconds, the man with a much greater body emerged. Standing 9 feet tall, weighting much greater but primarily due to iron-like tough muscle, William''s physical and mental capabilitypletely changed to a new level. If William the Space Marine was level 50, and Emperor''s Champion was level 75, the cksouls Chapter Master is now level 90 with new abilities at his disposal. One of William''s abilities is absolute control of his nk psychic nullification. His new Space Marine Librarians will require nullifying shielding and device to have basic interaction with regr humans without killing them. William, on the other hand, won''t need one since he has control of his ability (Unless he goesplete berserk) and is fully capable of adjusting its power at will. There is a story where a single guardsman went ahead in the battle and faced Culexus Temple Assassin, sting full power to the enemy target. Instead of stepping back and closing the door, the guardsman pointed hissgun around and blew his brain just because that course of action was a much better option at that moment. "Interesting result. I didn''t expect you to have a 100% sess rate and have no signs of organ failure." The Mother finishes her bio-scanning andplements the sess of William''s transformation. After spending couple more hours in the testing area, William fully adjusts to his new body, including his strength, reflex, speed, and endurance. Just before William could ask the time, something new and very familiar entered the room. Carried by ten drones, a newly made Hercules variant terminator armor, armed with two melee weapons and modes, is present to William. The white-colored terminator armor is the same design, but William can tell that this version is much more superior to what Makato had. The duel power fists equipped withbi-bolter andbi-sma are new, but William sensed something different. "This ispletely new armor from what I returned. Why are you giving this to me?" "Because I designed this armor after I evaluated you. You can generate unknown frequency, which could harm being with psychic ability. I see a benefit and equip this armor with an amplifier to generate a greater level of power. You warned me of this ''Chaos,'' and I prefer to have an ally who can survive rather than die. I have no use for a dead ally." The AI exined it to William, and before William could reply, more drones entered the room with tons of equipment and items. "These are weapons and power armors based on your Tech-priests'' information I retrieved and five auto surgical equipment of my own design so you can ''upgrade'' your soldiers. I made sure these arepatible with your current technology and will help your men from making a smooth transition with new gene-seeds." The drones present William with crates of metal boxes containing his own Space Marine gene-seeds. Looking around, William saw hundred of standard Mark X power armor of the Space Marine, but the only difference is the helmet where instead of two eye lenses, it has a long thin visor just like his terminator armor. The color is white, just like William''s terminator armor, but ording to the Mother, the armor''s color can be adjusted and even have a quick panel so individuals can quickly change the armor color for different types of mission such as stealth mission. The weapons are standard Imperium only by the design appearance but are equipped with old technology that could devastate even the heavy tank. One of the secret modules is that every piece of equipment, including the simple pistol, has a built-in self-destruct chip that could blow itself up in massive proportion if it falls into the wrong hand. As for the gene-seeds themselves, the organ that grants cksouls the nullifying power gives off a massive bacsh in case it falls to the wrong hand or ws. The organ itself generates a small nulling effect which could harm the uninvited person who imnts it into himself and cause the powerful pulse to harm others around him. As for the being who consume the organ will experience surprise within the organ. The gic mutation will preventplete adaptation and copying of the gene-seed and instead spread like cancer with no hope to stop the infection. This is because hidden inside the organ contains a tiny organic ball containing nanobots specially designed to fight back any hostile, including a perfect predator who adapts based on consuming other DNA. Finally, a medium-size metal box containing a portion of the STC that could ce William into a new threat among 40k factions. STC does hold peak humanity, including its advanced technology and ability to fabricate anything at the press of a button. The value of the STC is noughing matter. Even the Eldar who mock and call humans'' Mon-keigh'' considers STC a valuable relic that could possibly save them from the ''She who thirst.'' (Based on my understanding from YouTubers and Lexicanum, I decided to make an STC device matter converter, fabricator, and easy to change shapes. The easy exnation of Nanotech.) "This is way too much for the simple reward of cing my hand on someputer screen. What is your catch? Absolute control of the armor when the timees? Hidden agenda to take over the Milkyway gxy?" William said to AI with more suspicion, and the answer he received was simple and easy. "I give you all this so I can leave this world. You see all these as precious gifts of a lost empire, but for me, they are nothing but a few spent energy and could easily rece by different matter sources. Now, when you are ready, it is time for you toplete your side of the bargain as I did for you." Mother and the drones exit therge area and leave William alone with a room full of priceless resources. After thinking over what AI said, William begins to touch each crate and ce them on his inventory. When it is done and checking the inventory description, William found no foul y from the Mother nor any hidden traps that could jeopardize his new chapter. ''Nothing suspicious. I have everything she promised and even more. All this for simple hand on the screen, I still can''t believe it.'' William thought to himself and exited the room as the floor he was standing on began to move. When he arrives in the control room is connected, and the drone projecting Mother is hoovering next to theputer table. "Are you ready, William?" AI asks with patience even though her salvation is a few steps away from the table. "Before I do anything, answer myst question." "Sure, what is your question?" The drone towards William and hoover in front of him. "Are youing back to Milkyway gxy, to the Sr system, and to Earth after your mission is over?" William asks his question with a sincere voice and curiosity, for he hopes the Mother won''te back, but a small portion of him hopes she does so she could bring back the Emperor. The AI didn''t answer William''s question immediately, but she gave her answer. "No. My mission is to the new generation of humans and to usher them to reach their full potential. The current Milkyway gxy is too dangerous and a threat to my mission, so it will be logical for me to abandon it entirely instead of reiming it back. Does this answer your question?" The Mother said those words cold-heartedly and calcted tone as if she lost hope entirely. Based on Admechs'' information, Earth and everything AI knew is no more, a by-gone era of humans, embracing hypocrisy, prejudice, and religious zealot group worshiping a man who is extraordinary as a god. William can somewhat rte to AI''s situation. If he somehow knew that his Earth and everything within is different beyond recognition, William wouldn''t dare toe back at all. Nothing will connect him to his past, and only a few things will remind him of what he had before losing it all. "I understand what you mean behind those words." William walks past the drone and Mother and approaches theputer table where the panel shines bright, ready to ept permission from the human. Without saying anything, William ced his hand on the panel and initiated the ark ship''s lunch sequence to teleport through space and time. At the same time, the screen turns red and small needles puncture William''s hand, retrieving his blood and converting his gic information to be pureputer data. When the timees, this data will help Mother construct a new type of humans and give them a significant advantage on their next evolutionpared to other species in the new gxy. [The emergency warp teleportation willunch in five minutes. Please clear theunch area.] William equips the terminator armor and changes the color of his armor based on Legions of cksouls. When it is done, he turns around to see the AI, who is hoovering near to him, waiting for the final stage of the n. "I will fulfill my promise, and you willplete your mission for humanity. You will not be forgotten as long as I live." William said his final words and kneeled to his one knee to ce his hand on the floor. With simplemand and will, William took the mountain-sized ark ship of the Dark Age into his inventory and reappeared to the outside world where his army waited for him. Thete afternoon sky gave off zing red color as the sun slowly set. William realized that he was standing in the middle of therge crater where a mountain-sized ship used to be. Extending his hand, William brought out the ship from the inventory, and the mountain-sized ship reappeared. William stepped away and kept his distance away from the ship while his army began to descend from the base camp, and some of his battle-brothersmunicated with William about his situation. William, exin what happened on a need-to-know basis until he can adequately inform them and wait patiently as the final count down starts. Just before ark ship was about to jump to warp, William heard Mother''s voice from the vox channel. [Be cautious, I detect an unnatural phenomenon within the capital city of the Legen.] The ship vanished before William could ask the Mother as she and everything within the ship teleported away to the warp. William never saw Mother or the ship again; their existence and records were long gone before Emperor came out of his man cave to unite the Earth. William, thest witness to meet humanity''s true AI with a mission to restore humans turn around and is greeted by a woman who jumps out from her horse to hug him while his battle-brothers, Imperial guards, and Sisters of Battle approach him. ------------------------------------- Meanwhile, The Capital City of the Legen "What do we do? We only have a city defense force, and none of the other lords bother to send reinforcements or messages of any kind." One of the priests of the Holy White Mountain starts to panic and cannot process the uing demise while his fellow priests divide into two separate factions due to disagreement. The first group began to talk about negotiation and even surrendering to the ''Knight Lord of the Metal'' and see if there was a chance of them surviving and, most crucially, maintaining their power and riches. Some even considered changing their religion from ''Holy White Mountain'' to something called ''Emperor of Kind,'' which sounds very benevolent deity to work for. The second group rejects every wording from the first group and maintains their stands on fighting the outsiders. Even if they lost the main force and the hero''s death was damaging to their public appearance, the White Mountain provided them before and will provide them a victory. "We will hold our city and country as one even if we have to spill blood long before the siege begins." One of the priests from the second faction drew a short sword from his concealed robe and pointed it towards the first group maliciously. "You fool, don''t you see we have no other option? We only have half of the main force behind the city walls andcks leadership. Where are we going to get our general for the army to lead? They all went to the battlefield and got captured!" The head of the first group shouted and was about to confront the priest with the sword until both men suddenly copsed with their eyes rolled back and began to shake as if they were experiencing seizures. Others quickly came to their aid, but when they saw two men''s faces, they saw expressions of pleasure. "You folks are still the same hypocrite, just like I remembered. Oh, how I missed this world." A seductive voice of a man rang the main chamber, and personal guards of the church immediately copsed with their hands on their ears. They didn''tst long for their eardrums ruptured and brain liquified, but their facial expressions show very differently from their brutal death. "Show yourself! You are in the holy ground, and Imand you to show your face to us!" The senior priest ordered, and a reply came to him with two Daemtes appearing out from the shadow and ripping the man into pieces. "Oh, honey. Daddy''s home." Arge purple skin humanoid dropped from the high ceiling and twisted his entire body as if he was dancing, synced with a piece of bad music and performing to the crowd. At the same time, therge human drew his two beautiful swords from his waist and started ughtering every member of Holy White Mountain like a bloody ballerina. In a matter of seconds, the main chamber is soaked with blood, and only the butcher stands in the middle, not even a single drop of blood ruining his perfect purple armor. "Now, what is next? Oh, yes. Time for round two." Makato Amano, who recently died and experienced hundred years of warp the Dark Prince could offer, returned home as Daemon Prince of anesh. While he is d to be back as the protagonist of his own story, he invited a few new friends to help him out this time. Multiplerge warp portals appear inside the Legen capital city as a vast band of Noise Marines and daemons of anesh perform their musical performance as their audience sufferers and killed by hundreds every minute. Coming outst from the warp portal, the Keeper of Secret step forward, his/her body covered with old scars, especially stomach havingrge stitches mark as if someone cut him/her long ago. "I HAVE RETURN FOR YOU, THE CHAMPION OF THE ANATHEMA!" Chapter 70: The Holy Host Chapter 70: The Holy Host William took his helmet off and kissed Rana, who jumped into his arms. After being gone for nearly a whole day, the sudden disappearance of the giant white mountain made her panic and fear for the worst. She is the first to jump on her horse and ride towards the mountain before anyone else realizes what has just happened. "You are an idiot; you know that? Worse than my cousin." After kissing William, Rana said to a walking giant with an angry but saddened expression which William never thought to see in his lifetime. The pink blush of her cheek and tears from her eyes gave away what Rana is currently feeling towards William, and he clearly saw the signs. "I''m sorry, but now I''m here, and you don''t have to worry about me going away." Williamforts her gently and puts her over his left arm so she can sit while he continues to walk back to his base. When the couple finally arrived, they saw the weing and somewhat confronting greetings simultaneously. The weing from his battle-brothers, while confronting, came after them when a group of Sisters of Battle (Orders Hospitaller) broke Commissar Cain''s blockade and approached William with rage and more rage. ''Oh, this is not good.'' William saw furious women armed with bolter pistols and needlesing towards him, and he somehow felt defenseless. "Put down the Holy Host, Lord William. We will not tolerate this ''rtionship'' even if you are the Lord Imperator Fratrum." The Sister Superior Sabina Mire gave an order to William, which many of the Adeptus Astartes didn''t take well. This caused both groups to draw their weapons at each other while Lord Creed and Commissar Cain ordered the men to stand down. Even though Imperial Guards see Adeptus Astartes as Emperor''s Angels, their devotion is to the God-Emperor and the Imperial Creed. To which Adeptus Ministorum, mostmonly known as lesiarchy, heavily preaches the good words of the Imperial cult. Sisters of Battle also fall under lesiarchy, and they have a close working rtionship with Imperial Guard more than Space Marines. In short, Imperial guardsmen will side with the Sisters more than Emperor''s Angels (Space Marines tend to fall into Chaos where Sisters mostly don''t). "You dare! You dare to draw weapons at us? At Lord Imperator Fratrum?" Veteran Sergeant Sariel yelled with rage that William thought Sariel might have invoked a ck rage. Meanwhile, Ultramarine, Blood Angels, and the ck Temrs have their weapons aimed high, and some were even ready to turn their weapons at Imperial Guards just in case some decided to ignore Lord Creed''s order. As for the Smanders and Space Wolves, bring out their signature weapons such as twin bolter/mers, power swords, and lighting ws to kill anyone who attempts to make the first move swiftly. The 50 Sisters of Battle are all members of Order Hospitaller and equipped with a power suit armed with medical and surgical equipment. But every member of the Sisters is a seasoned warrior who ''retired'' due to many years of battles and injuries. This means these Sisters are not an amateur when ites to fighting and killing while healing others. They are the literal living meme for the ''I''m a healer, but¡­'' in the world of 40k. "We have a greater calling to protect the Holy Host, even within the Imperium. We are ready to die for her. How about you, mutant?" One of the Sister''sst remarks increased the tension to another level, and multiple sounds of clocking bolters can be heard all around. "Time out! I said time out for the Emperor''s sake. Everyone, lower your weapons right now or Avenging Son help me, I will start bonking everyone here." William put Rana down from his arm and pulled out a golden power hammer. When William activated the hammer, the weapon generated a blue glow and began to pulse. Everyone, including Rana, observed as they all knew the devastating power the hammer could do and that particr hammer could do some severe damage. "You, exin when you said Rana is the Holy Host. Are you saying she is the Living Saint?" William points his finger at Sister Superior Sabina Mire for the exnation. He had never heard of this Holy Host before, but he got the gist of what this is about. "She is not a Living Saint but has the potential to be one. The evidence is right there on her hair. She has the gift of Saint Celestine, a feather from the Wings of Faith." The Sister Superior Sabina Mire''s words made everyone, including Space Marines, guardsmen, and Jurgen, turn their heads around to look at Rana''s hair. Everyone finally saw the feather pinned to Rana''s hair like a decorated hairpin, to everyone''s surprise. Like a vanished illusion spell, everyone''s perception cleared, and they all saw the magnificent feather of the Living Saint. "By the Emperor''s Will. I never imagined seeing that feather ever again." Lord Creed said to himself while grabbing his missing arm with the painful memory of the Cadia. "You see, this is the clear sign from the God-Emperor that the Duchess of Agrus is indeed chosen, the Holy Host. The Living Saint will be with us." The Sister Superior deres the Emperor''s Will as if they are about to embark on the Great Crusade. There are a handful of Living Saints in the Imperium''s history, and many are women with a great power to turn the tide of the war just by appearing on the battlefield. Also, considering that Sisters are die-hard worshipers of the Emperor, they significantly get carried away. When the Avenging Son of the Emperor gave direct order to keep the Living Saint child away from the battlefield, a small group of Sisters kidnapped the girl and took her to the middle of the battlefield, hoping that the child''s power would nullify the Chaos wap energy. This action took the lives of the loyal guardsmen and injured a single Custodes. Let''s just say ''Guilliman finally loses his temper after judging the Sister Superior to the death sentence. "The Emperor didn''t give that to her. I got that feather from him, and I gave it to her." William said to the Sister Superior, and everyone turned their head from Rana to William, to which many didn''t expect to hear that from him. The silence finally breaks when battle-brother Vaskell the Wolf Seerughs out loud. "You, Sisters, must feel stupid now. All of you should have just asked instead of pulling out bolters like every other day. I swear by the Great Wolf King and the All-Father, women, am I right?" The Wolf Seer''sment got deadly stares from every member of Sisters and even women of Astra Militarum. "Brother, I think you should shut up before you turn every woman against us all for different reasons." Sergeant Dioricus from the Ultramarines quietly said to Wolf Seer and quickly stopped him from saying any more rudements. "As I said, I received that same feather from the Emperor himself and gave it to Rana. So, she is not the chosen host of any future living saint. Here, if you trust my words, look at this as my proof." William pulls out an old item from his inventory and shows it to everyone as evidence that he indeed met the Emperor. The ss sphere of golden light nearly blinded everyone around William. The Spark of the Astronomican, the tiny fragment of the God-Emperor''s psychic light in William''s hand, made all 50 Sisters of Battle take one to kneel after witnessing another miracle. From this, no one questioned William''s im that he met the Emperor in his dream and was gifted with the feather of Saint Celestine. As for Rana, her receiving such a gift is never to be questioned by the Sisters, for in Sister''s point of view, William is the chosen servant of the Emperor, and his judgment is not to be questioned for it is the Emperor''s will. "We will ept any punishment, my lord. We havemitted a great sin against the God-Emperor and his chosen." The Sister Superior Sabina Mire made a sign of the Aqu using her hands to her chest and bowed her head. Waiting for her punishment, the Sister Superior epted her faith as the rest of the Sisters did the same. "You will not lose your life for mistakes based on your devotion to the Emperor. I received his gifts long before you were summoned to the New World, and I intend to take everyone with me back to Holy Terra one day. Hear me now and listen. I, William Nullinanis, the Chapter Master of the Legion of cksouls and the Lord Imperator Fratrum, dere an Imperial Crusade. This will be known as the New World Crusade to reunite with the Imperium. I promise you all with my life." William brings out his ck sword from the waist and stabs the ground in front of him, symbolizing the unbreaking promise to his men and women. The deration of the Imperial Crusade ignited the fire within servants of the Imperium, for they found themselves lost in this unknown world. Now, engulfed by the burning spirits and promise from the William gave much new hope, including fellow Space Marines. The entire military camp cheers and division from a few minutes ago is no longer there. The Sisters of Battle swear allegiance to William as an Emperor''s instrument of his will and reposition themselves back to their original duty as the healers and surgeons. William put the bright sphere back to his inventory and turned his attention back to Rana. The Duchess of Agrus gave squinch eyes to William as if she knew what William had just done. "What? I had to do something, or else they would start killing each other." William gave a very innocent smile and tried to change the subject. "I know maniption when I see one, William. You can''t fool me with that cheap trick of bringing everyone into onemon goal. You are lucky I love you, or else I would be very disappointed with your method of leadership." Rana gave William a good scolding and a quick kiss on his cheek. After giving an ambushing kiss, Rana leaves William''s side and walks to her army. "She loves me?" William said to himself and was about to return to his tent when arge group of Space Marines blocked his way. "Brother William, what is this about you being a Chapter Master?" Sergeant Dioricus of the Ultramarines confronts William while every representative of the different Space Marine chapters stands beside him with their helmets off. Some of them have confused looks, and some have questions, but the representative of the Ultramarines had a facial expression of a long lecture about to start. ------------------------------------- "Do you see that?" One of the Catachan soldiers speaks to hism-bead (Vox earpiece) to confirm what he just saw. The Catachans were given orders to eliminate any iing enemy scouts before making it to the main base. They already eliminated half a dozen scouts and a handful of animals acting strangely. "I don''t think those are iing enemy forces. Look, mixed among them. Some are cavalry, and some are simple foot soldiers with no weapons. I think most of them are civilians." The second Catachan said and changed his scope to better look at what is causing them to run away from. "By the Golden Throne, is that what I think it is?" "If you are going to say a ''bunch of naked daemondies are after them'' don''t bother saying it. We need to report this right now. It looks like we are not going to conquer but rather rescue the people of Legen." Chapter 71: The Tactical Genius Chapter 71: The Tactical Genius "Close formation and FIRE!" The roaring sound ofmand echoes when thest civilian from the Legen passes through haps between five primarily formed formations. Within half a second, the 8th Mordian iron Guard Regiment reformed back to one, and with a single smooth motion, the entire front row went down to their belly, the second row went into one knee, and third remind standing with all their weapons aiming at hoards of lesser daemons of anesh charging towards them. The walls ofsguns emit blue lights as extreme temperature coherent photons shots hit iing lesser daemons. The 1,500 Mordian Iron Guards continue their rate of fire without hesitation while lesser daemons continue to charge closer and closer. Before a small group of daemons could reach the line, the Storm Troopers appeared from the left side of the field and ambushed the daemons. Now, attacked from the two sides, the lesser daemons lost their momentum and began to retreat. This didn''t stop the Imperial Guard as they continued to fire theirsguns until daemons ran away beyond their firing range. "Hold your fire! STOP!" The regimentalmanding officer gave hismand after receiving his order from the higher chain ofmand. Standing on the top of the hill, Lord Casten Ursarkar E. Creed lit his cigar in his mouth and began to puff the cigar. Lord Creed observes the battlefield with his binocrs, enjoying the burning scent and sound of the Emperor''s enemy dying. Upon his quick observation, Creed saw arge dust clouding towards him at high speed. With a big smile on his face, Lord Creed orders the vox caster trooper to prepare his troops. "Prepare for the second wave and inform Lord William that we have more enemying. Give the clearmand to the artillerypany and have Commissar Cain ready when I give my order." After Lord Creed gave his order, he turned around and turned his binocr to the right side, towards the small forest, and smiled again. He missed the feeling, the exhration of frontline battle and tension that makes him realize that he is living the very moment. The same feeling, when he fought the Despoiler and exchanged de to de for a short period of time to save the Living Saint. The Despoiler''s facial expression at that moment was priceless, and the realization that a mere mortal stood against the Warmaster was poetic justice for Creed. "Like a riding an assault bike." ------------------------------ "Have the civilian check by the Hospitaller and make sure soldiers of Legen disarmed. Kill them if they refuse." The Veteran Sergeant Sariel of the Blood Angelmands the rest of the reserve guardsmen and his battle brothers. The number of civilians who escaped from the capital city is enormous, close to 480, they were exhausted, and some are wounded from the cuts given by the daemons. The unlucky ones died painlessly as Sister of Hospitaller gave a merciful death instead of letting them suffer from chaos corruption slowing taking their body and mind. "We can help," Rana said to Sariel, and her foot soldiers and knights divided the group of civilians and Legen soldiers while maintaining their hands on their weapons, ready to draw blood if necessary. Meanwhile, William and the rest of the battle brothers gather at themand table, observing the 3D-generated map provided by the cog boys. The image disy is in the ssical color of green with a few additional colors indicating which one is friendly and which one is the enemy. ording to the map, the capital city is burning, and most of the sections are already taken by the anesh forces. There is also intel that forces of Chaos Marines, the Emperor''s Children, join the Chaos campaign. "Traitor Astartes. Let us purge them once and for all." One of the ck Temrs loads his bolter with a fresh magazine with rage equal to his gene father''s, and the rest of his brothers followed. "We will have our turn soon, but we must prepare for the second wave. Lord Creed already prepared for them, but I''m sure forces of Chaos came prepared, unlikest time." Without his helmet on, William said to everyone and focused the 3D map on where arge group of daemons ising at the front line. "Then let us face them head-on. We are more than ready to y the enemies of the Allfather. This will be one for the tales of tonight''s feast." The Wolf Seer said with absolute certainty that all 30 Space Wolves and their 20 Fenrisian Wolves howl like a call to battle. ''I can''t ever get used to that, a real Fenrisian Wolves in the flesh. I think one of them can actually carry my weight, of course, without my terminator armor.'' William thought to himself, but as he was about to object to what Wolf Seer said before, Sergeant Dioricus of the Ultramarine jumped in to stop the wolves from jumping into battle. "This is why we don''t allow barbarians to handle the strategy. ording to the Codex Astartes, we must either nk the enemy or attack their leadership to prevent further advancement. In this case, we have to close any warp portals that allow them to increase their number. I rmend that we send a kill team to eliminate the creature that is maintaining the warp portal." Dioricus points out the red disy on the map, which shows the signature of warp energy rising higher and higher. After seeing the increasing level of the warp energy, even the Wolf Seer agreed to this and was first to volunteer to join the kill team. "We still have two Valkyries that can carry at least eight Space Marines behind the enemy line and to the capital city. I will join the fight and gain their attention while the second team handles the warp portal. Meanwhile, the rest of you will join the frontline and advance to the capital city. The mission objective is to search and destroy. May the Emperor guide you all. The Emperor protects." William put on his terminator helmet, ending the meeting as everyone shouts, ''Emperor protects,'' and prepares for departure. The first kill team is William, Vaskell the Wolf Seer, Space Wolves, and ck Temr. The second kill team is Veteran Cantus of the ck Temrs, his battle brother, and two Ultramarines armed with one heavy bolter and sma rifle. "Load up!" After William finished inspecting the two kill teams, he ordered everyone to jump into two aerial vehicles. Just as William is about to board, Sergeant Dioricus stops him to talk to William. "You have many things to exin, Chapter Master. This ''new'' chapter of yours need to be evaluated before every brothermits to it. By the book." Ultramarine said to William as William turned around to reply. William''s custom-built terminator armor overshadows the Space Marine''s height in power armor, standing almost head taller than Ultramarine. "You will have all your questions exined, trust me. My chapter will bring a new definition of death and terror to Emperor''s enemy, including four powers of Chaos." William''s voice is calm and gentle, but the message within gave a very different feeling. The seasoned Space Marine of Ultramar felt a cold presenceing from William. The feeling Dioricus is currently experiencing is disturbing but unexinable. The closest exnation would be like his very soul is being pulled from his physical body by the icy cold hand. "I will see you at the end. The Emperor protects." Ultramarine quickly says his farewell to the Lord and Chapter Master of the Legion of cksouls and watches two Valkyries lift off from the base camp. ------------------------------ Soon, the battlefield group shakes again as hundreds of lesser daemons and Fiends of anesh charge in full speed as if they have unlimited stamina. The unnatural musk and fragrances of attraction began to affect Iron Guards as many began to lose their focus or ability to lift weapons dues to dizziness. Just as Iron Guards are about to lose entire frontline defense, whistling sounds can be heard from the sky as fast iing projectiles begin to fall from it. ¡­BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! The ground shook, and the whole battlefield turned into a bombardment frenzy as men and women of the 335th Death Korps Artillerypany continued their artillery bombardment like well-oiled machinery. All 15 Basilisks pump out shells onto the enemy as many of the daemons are ripped into pieces as their beautiful but sicking bodies couldn''t endure the Imperium''s firepower. The battle turns into a ughtering field, and Iron Guards regain theirposure as explosions wake them from Chaos spell in disguise as scent. As for the Storm Troopers, have their vacuum sealed helmets that prevent them from falling into the enemy trap and watch the firework, weapons ready in case there are surviving daemons. Just as the second wave began to perish, three warp portals suddenly appeared out of nowhere, and six fully armed Seeker Chariots of anesh came out from it in full speed. Appeared too close for the artillery to fire, the Skeer Chariots charge in full speed as Iron Guards once again fire theirsguns. But without heavy support and firepower, the chariots continue without showing any signs of slowing down. Just as the battlefield advantage turn in favor of the anesh''s side, Lord Creed continues to smile and signal Cain toe out and attack. "Commissar, you may attack." Hearing the Creed''smand, Commissar Cain entirend vehicles to advance at full speed. Riding on the top hull of his Chimera tank, Cain and five troop carrier truck, Land Raiders Crusader, and five Sentinel walkerse out of the forest and make a barricade in front of the Iron Guards. Five troop carriers stopped in front of the front line and lined up on the side of the iing enemy. After the trucks stopped, the back cover reveals the hidden Catachan heavy bolter support teams and a few rocketuncher squads on the back of every truck. As for the Cain''s Chimera and Land Raider, position themselves at the end of each side of the trucks, all weapons pointing at the enemy. "Open fire!" Commissar Cain orders through an open vox box channel, and everynd vehicle unleashes devastating firepower. From heavy bolters to the autocannons, the sheer destruction of the daemons on chariots couldn''t withstand as their full speed prevented them from changing the direction of their course or making aplete stop in time. Nheless, no matter what these daemons did, it wouldn''t matter as their death was inevitable the moment Creed recognized who his enemy was. The tactical genius of the Lord Casten Ursarkar E. Creed easily wiped the three different waves of the anesh''s forces even before the remaining Space Marines managed to step on the battlefield. After seeing no additional enemies approaching either from the capital city or portal, Lord Creed ordered the Death Korps of Kreig to bomb the portals and shut them down once and for all. "Send vox message to the Astartes that they can have the honor of sieging the city. We have done our part in the field brought victory to the God-Emperor. Now, we support his Angels as they face the Archenemy." Lord Creed said to his vox trooper and prepared reserve force for the siege battle. Meanwhile, Sisters of Battle and Rana''s soldiers handle the situation back on the base as many tell the tales of a giant daemon and its followers in heavy armor and weapons. Among those tales, a humanoid figure with unraveling beauty is mentioned but unable to speak his name as those who knew, refuse to speak it. A few days ago, the same name was sung by thousands of maidens and men who wished to be just like him. Later on, the name ''Makato Amano'' is forever erased by the Legen history as they never want to associate with the being who sold his mortal soul to the daemon and became the very thing he was chosen to kill, the daemon prince. Chapter 72: I’m Your True Death Chapter 72: I¡¯m Your True Death "Bowl of Tanna, sir?" Jurgen gave Cain a bowl of hot Tanna tea as Cain watched enemy daemons retreat to the capital city. Lord Creed''s pincer movement changed the entire battlefield within a few minutes, and every Space Marine joined the force to purge the chaos taints. The ck Temrs, Blood Angeles, Smanders, Space Wolves, and Ultramarines approached the frontline and began to fire their bolters, mers and stab anything that was still alive while cleaning the frontline as they moved forward. "Thank you, Jurgen. Where is Lord William? I was expecting him to lead the Space Marines personally." Commissar Cain took a sip from the bowl and enjoyed the unique taste of Tanna tea while sitting on top of his Chimera. Upon his second sip from the bowl, the artillery bombardment begins as the distance between friendly and the enemy is far enough for Death Korps Artillery to begin their fire (While maintaining fire control on friendly units as artillery are aiming for the farthest enemy). "He is currently flying over the city wall, attempting to shutdown warp portal within." Lord Creed appeared out of nowhere and approached the tank while his attendants stood by, opposite Jurgen is. "A special mission. I didn''t know you had separate ns, my lord." Cain got up quickly, saluted Creed, and replied to his answer where William currently is. Creed waved his hand to sign Cain that he didn''t have to salute and continue his talk with amissar. "I didn''t. Lord William decided to handle this matter without my counsel and took two valkyries and hand full of Astartes with him. Currently, the flyers should be circling and deploying the kill team soon. I suspect it won''t be an easy task." Creed bites his cigar just a little bit and enjoys the rush of cigar vor into his mouth. The smell of Cadian grown Lho-leaf cigar spread around the area, mixing the cigar leaf and Tanna tea a unique scent. "Won''t be easy? Is there a new report regarding enemy troops?" Commissar paused from drinking the tea again and asked the question he didn''t expect to ask. After witnessing William''s change and new war gear, there is no way a few Chaos daemons could hurt the Lord Imperator Fratrum. That is unless there is a whole hoard of greater daemons jumps at him at once. "Yes, ording to the Legen soldiers who were nearby the capital building, they not only saw an army of daemons pouring out from the portal but also described arge number of giant men in purple armor, wielding strange weapons and creating strange noise. The forces of Chaos brought with them a Chaos Astartes. This won''t be a walk in the park." Creed said to Cain and turned around to face the Commissar. "I''m guessing you want me to go in there and help Lord William with traitor Astartes?" Cain said to Lord Creed, but to his surprise, his hand wasn''t tingling or experiencing unpleasantness whenever there was a suicidal mission. "No, I need you to join the main force and take the city. I will send a separate group to make sure Lord William is safe and reinforce him any way possible." Creed then left Cain to rejoin the rest of the senior officers while Cain and Jurgen remained with their tank. The siege of the Legen capital city began not from outside of the defensive wall but rather within as the city continued to burn and blood flooded the street of innocent civilians. ---------------------- BOOOOOM¡­! "Mayday, mayday, we are going down. Valkyrie two is going down¡­." The pilot sent his vox message to the first pilot, but the Valkyrie two crashed to the nearby building and to the ground before anyone could respond. Before William could give an order to lunch emergency extraction of the second flyer, loud noise can be heard, but Valkyrie one quickly dodges the iing attack safely. "Turn the flyer around, extract anyone still alive and continue on the mission. You are in charge of this mission now, Wolf Seer." William gave his order through a voxmunicator, which Wolf Seer node his head to confirm that he understood. Still, the pilot didn''t understand what William said, and before he could any question, William opened the rear cargo door and jumped out. Thud! William''s terminator armornded as the ground sank slightly and created a small dust cloud. After William jumped out of the flyer andnded in the middle of the street, the people responsible for the shooting down Valkyries two quickly regrouped and surrounded where a dust cloud appeared. A small group of men, fully armored and armed with unique weapons of war, quickly aim their weapons at the middle of the street and immediately fire everything they had. The mixed sounds of bolter rounds and intense noise echo throughout and shatter any remaining windows as various sonic weapons and bolters devastate the ground floor. "Did we get him?" Noise Marine said to his battle brother as he removed his bolter magazine and reloaded it with a fresh one. "Maybe, that was enough firepower to crush Dreadnought." Second Noise Marine answered the first one with a little bit more confidence but was unsure as he saw a glimpse of the terminator armor during its fall. "We got him; there is no way he would survive the full st of the sonic sters." The sergeant of the Noise Marine ensured everyone and was about to give his new order to track down the second flyer when a sound of something big moved as the ground shook. "My turn," A voice said with loud volume, and a blue glow can be seen inside of the dust cloud, and ''Chung Chung!'' at the same time. Secondster, thebi-sma and heavybi-bolter fired urately and hit the multiple targets simultaneously. The sma st hit two Noise Marines standing on top of the second-floor building while a heavy bolter wipes three enemies in a single swipe. Emerging from the dust, unscathed terminator armor walks out with both arms raised up high as each weapon fire hits bullseyes. The Noise Marines in the terminator''s rear side once again raise their weapons and are about to fire, but they are interrupted by the sudden weapons fire from the armor''s hiddenpartment. William''s shoulder armor tes opened up and hidden small missiles fired, and each of them hit the target''s head, blowing their brain into mash potato. By the time William was done with his target practice, all 16 Noise Marines had lost either their heads or missing most of their body parts. After confirming all hostiles are dead, William reloads his heavy bolter and sma ammo and proceeds to move towards where arge number of life from the sensor indicate. Finally realizing there is the significant presence of the Chaos Marine faction, William vox calls his fire team to let them know what to expect, but for some reason, he couldn''tmunicate with anyone. ''Noise Marines must be jamming the vox frequency after seeing the Valkyries.'' William thought to himself and was about to change his direction when multiple units suddenly appeared from his sensor and came in his direction fast. A momentter, the familiar sound of assault bikes can be heard, and William quickly draws his power hammer (thunder hammer) and activate it. As William''s terminator armor is much bigger and more powerful than standard power armor, the power hammer can be wielded single-handed. Right on time, five Noise Marines riding assault bikes appeared from teh corner as they made the short turn. Seeing iing bikes, William fired his heavy bolter and shot down three before they came close to melee range. "And we have the first swing of the season." William steps sideways and swings his power hammer, hitting the Chaos Space Marine right on the chest, spatting him into a bloody mist, and the assault bike flew away as the impact of the power hammer shattered everything. Thest remaining bike passes William and makes the sharp turn to reposition himself, but before thest Noise Marine could hit the gas to increase his speed and fire his twin bolters, William faced the bike and raised his hammer with two hands. Seeing Foolish loyalists continue to fight in melee, the Noise Marine speeds up and fires his twin bolters simultaneously. To his surprise, the terminator armor withstands teh twin bolter rounds or bother to move at all. Seeing grounded target, traitor marine crack up his bike into full speed, intend to ram William. As assault bikes in full speed can smash through a solid wall, the traitor expects it to at least heavily hurt the loyalist. "For the Emperor!" The Noise Marine shouts his warcry with a mockery and ms the terminator armor with his bike at full speed. But to his surprise, the terminator armor withstood the attack and pushed back just a little bit beforepletely stopping the assault bike. "Yes, for the Emperor!" William shouts his warcry and lifts the bike and Noise Marine without any issue. The Noise Marine panicked and drew his bolter pistol to fire at William, but before he could do that, William mmed the whole bike to the ground and crushed the traitor using his ride. "This is impossible. Who are you?" The traitor asked William while half of his body is crushed under the bike and coughing blood within his helmet. "I''m his hammer and de. I''m the hunter of the traitors and mortal enemy of their gods." With that, William activates his power hammer and his nk ability. Suddenly, the surrounding area felt like void and nothingness as Noise Marine lost his connection to the Chaos and his Chaos god. The absolute feeling of disconnect and wrongness made the traitor no longer want to be around William but unable to move whatsoever. Meanwhile, William lifts his power hammer with both hands and raises it up high above his head, about to strike down. "I''m your true death." William then mmed it at the traitor with thest words,pletely obliterating the Noise Marine and his soul. Chapter 73: The Return of the Protagonist Chapter 73: The Return of the Protagonist After defeating Noise Marines, William decided to take out a primarily gathered enemy force near him before regrouping with the rest of his team. ording to the sensor, there are about 80 life forms, but it could be more since daemons won''t appear on the sensor. ''I''m gonna need Magos Callias to recalibrate the sensor to detect warp entities.'' William thought to himself as he approached his destination as fast as possible (Terminator armor speed isn''t much). Armed back to range weapons, William decided to save his teleportation capability for emergency use in case he had to distance himself from an unknown enemy in thebat. A few minutester, William arrived at his destination and saw something out of a nightmare. In the middle of a city''s open space (Like a town square with a fountain in the middle), 50 Emperor''s Children can be seen with three dozen daemte mixed among them. In total, over 100 hostile enemies are in one ce where they are enjoying a performance of pure passion and the deadly pleasure of skinning arge number of Legen citizens alive. Arge band of Noise Marines is ying bizarre music, the daemtes of the ''She who thirst'' is busy processing human skins and to be used for something sinister while making sure their ''cattle'' stays alive. William saw the aftermath of the process in which skinless individuals are then moved to the audience the strange musical performance. The entire process is some kind of sick butchering and demonstration of sphemy entirely. William had enough and activated his nk ability and range weapons. "Activate nk field generator!" William gave hismand, and the terminator armor began to glow blue in certain armor tes. With the sound of humming noise, the armor amplified William''s nk ability to hundredfold and expanded the range to cover the entire open space. Quickly, William realized how quiet the armor got after three seconds of humming noise came out from his armor. It was as if the machine''s spirit went silent, but William knew somehow that the machine was active in full power. The moment the daemtes and Noise Marines sensed William''s nk ability, they all went into a frenzy. Some even went down to their knees with their hands on their head as if their brain was about to explode. Right away, William step forwards and fire everything he has from his two wrist-mounted weapons at servents of the Chaos. Thanks to his armor''s auto-targeting system and near-infinite amount of ammunitions, William lunched one-person army worth of firepower to which he ughtered half of the enemy within sixty seconds. "SOMEONE KILL HIM! KILL THE ABOMINATION!" One of the Noise Marine took his helmet off and shouted as his eyes, mouth, and nose leaked ck goo. Noise Marines and the daemtes of the anesh depend heavily on their connection to their god, The Prince of Pleasure. Through this connection, every action brings them the pleasure and feeling of the excess, which fuels the anesh back in the Realm of Chaos. Now, after unknown Astartes sever the connection, this brought not only the feeling of loss but also difort of loss beyond imagination. No longer connected to the Warp, the servants of the anesh experience the reality, and currently, they don''t like the feeling right now. This, of course, does not include the lethal level of negative nk frequency, which burns their very souls and takes away any chance of using a warp-rted ability. "Yes, kill the abomination and purge it with holy fire." William broadcast his words and pulled out his heavy mer from his inventory. With a single pull from his trigger, the heavy mer washes away the sins of traitors and daemons they side with by burning into ashes. With their physical body gone, their souls must return to the anesh, but they won''t because they are no longer connected to the Warp. This means both Noise Marines and daemtes were killed by William are truly dead, never to be reborn in the Immaterial. After William cleansed the servants of the Chaos, he deactivated his nk field generator to see how much damage he did. The entire open field is burning as nearby houses catch on fire, creating ck smoke as it continues to burn. Among the burnt corpse of the enemies, William found the burnt bodies of the civilians. William knew he gave them the merciful and quick death instead of experiencing time diluted torture. ''When I''m done with this ce, I will rebuild this entire county with everything I have.'' William thought to himself and turned around when he saw someone unexpected. Standing in front of William, Rana stood as her facial expression showed him fear andplete devastation of disbelief. "You. You killed them all. They were innocent people! How could you do that?" Tears came down, and Rana looked at William as if she had never truly seen him before. William, caught off guard and surprised by seeing Rana in the middle of the enemy line, couldn''t say anything but take a step forward. "NO! Stay away from me. You¡­ I never loved you. You are a monster in human skin!" Rana took a step back and drew her sword from her waist. Now,pletely shocked by what Rana said to William, his head began to spin, unable toprehend what was going on. The only thing he could think of was why and how. ''Why? How and why is she here in all ces? I thought she was with everyone back in the¡­" William''s thought was interrupted when Rana attacked him with her sword, taking each swing harder and faster with a mix of rage. Meanwhile, all William could do was take the hit from the sword while doing his best not to harm her. As this goes on, something sneaks in the shadow and begins to stalk William as he stands alone without realizing who or what is about to strike him. "Why are you here? I was told you were helping the rear guard and assisting the medical team." William said to Rana as he raised his hand to grab her, but to his surprise, his hand went through Rana''s body, and soon the image of her disappeared as if she was a ghost. "What?!" William''s brain went into overdrive, and his muscles immediately took a defensive stance, but it was toote as something big and heavy struck him in the back. The damage was none, but the brutal, blunt force of the unknown enemy pushes William face down to the ground. "Oh, how easy it is to manipte your simple heart. This is why no one likes simp in action stories. They tend to ruin the whole protagonist vibe." A male voice and somewhat high pitch said to William with a pitying tone as it circles around him. Each heavy step told William that his enemy is big enough to push him around while equipped with terminator armor. Most importantly, the keyword of ''protagonist'' gave William who he is facing, and this infuriated him beyond his wildest dream. ''This damn bastard used illusion spell on me the moment I turned off my power. He used an image of Rana against ME!'' He is fueled by his rage and wrath equal to his former father, Rogal Dorn. William used emergency teleportation to escape Makato''s reach and reappeared back on his feet, a few yards away. "You shouldn''te back here, Makato. You used Rana''s image on me, and I will make sure you never do that again." William said to Makato, who is now clearly seen in hisplete form while pulling out a halberd with a golden de imbued with blue energy. "I see you are using my stolen armor and ster it with a bad paint job. Thanks to you, I had to go through the literal hell of one of the Chaos Gods, and now I''m back. After a hundred years in that hell hole, I''m back, much stronger and better looking than ever. All I have to do in exchange is bring you to my handler, and his boss will grant me a full blessing and a life of pleasure." Makato said to William and drew his two purple des from the gold/purple mixed scabbards. Standing a little taller than William in his terminator armor, Makato is slim but deadly to look at. As a servant of the anesh, Makato''s new body is somewhat beautiful as his toned muscles, and natural shape of the body give off perfection. But, as he is beautiful, he is also disfigured beyond terrifying as his skin is now purple and shows signs of forced shaping and deformity. Another horrifying thing that William can tell is that Makato, now a daemon prince, shows different gender parts. More specially, he has tworge breasts and missing critical parts that define the male organ. "You are missing a dick. Are you a full female daemon prince instead of half and a half? Holy shit. anesh actually gave you a fitting punishment." William''s realization and words made Makato angry. His current situation isn''t something he wants to share with others or want them to know at all. This form is what made him suffer for a hundred years, and the only reason he managed to escape that painful faith was his knowledge of who William truly is. "So what? I will get my reward once I bring you in and obtain the physical body of a man. I already got what I want just by spilling little truth about you, William. He knows who you are, the real you." The female daemon prince (Princess? I don''t know, I''m just going with the proper title) gave an evil smile to William, and it took William a few seconds to realize what Makato did to survive the dark prince''s realm. "You didn''t. You actually broke the whole hidden code of Isekai? What did you tell that walking STD with extra step?" William asked his question and took one step forward with his weapon ready. "To survive and return here to take my revenge, I spill the beans. He knows where, when and who you really are. Just like I learned of what Chaos and Imperium are, he knows and understands what is so different about youpared to the rest of the Astartes. I told Tzeentch everything." Chapter 74: Let the Puppets Dance to My Tune Chapter 74: Let the Puppets Dance to My Tune "No, you freaking didn''t. You belong to anesh, not Tzeentch. Why would you betray your master?" William questioned Makato''s words as they didn''t make sense to him. It is clear to William that Makato is the daemon prince of anesh based on his appearances and the legion of that faction he brought with him to the New World. Usually, the betrayal within Chaos is somewhatmon among minor daemons and greater daemons to gain the favor of their designated gods but to actually backstab any of the gods will be a big mistake. Perfect example such as Skarbrand the Exiled One who decided to backstab the Khorne only to be banished by the Blood God, not because of betrayal but rather the method was ''cowardly.'' "Of course, I belong to that horny bitch of a god, but it doesn''t mean I can''t double-dip and expand my options while at it, can''t I? After receiving this ''body'' as my reward, I decided to make a deal with Lord of the Change using my only knowledge about you." Makato said with disgust when he mentioned his current body as his hand twitched. The only thing that matters to him is his desire, and it is clear to William that no amount of damage to the New World and old Earth would matter to Makato whatsoever. "What did he promise? What did that bird-obsessed copious promise to you for that piece of knowledge?" William asks as he activates his golden weapon in one hand and raises his other hand to fire a wrist-mounted range weapon at the daemon prince. "Oh, he did promise me a life of luxury and pleasure, but Lord Tzeentch promised me something I want most. He will personally change my destiny and personally put you in the Crystal Labyrinth." The daemon prince reveals his entire n to William as he raises his two beautiful swords to prepare himself. Two giants faced each other and didn''t make the first move, but just as seemly time freeze for a second, William made the first move by firing his heavybi-bolter at the Makato. Unlike their previous fight, Makato''s fighting style is different as his slim body allows him to move faster than normal eyes can follow. Makato quickly dodges the heavy bolter rounds and gets close to William''s melee range. The two beautiful purple des strike fast as if it was cutting the very air, but as expected, William''s energy shield blocked the iing attack, and at the same time, William counterattack using his golden halberd. Striking Makato''s center, William''s halberd was about to hit the daemon prince, but the tail intercepted it and quickly pushed away. "You don''t think it was that easy, did you?" Makato said to William as his tail tugged the halberd while William matched with his own strength. Meanwhile, Makato continues his vicious melee attack in close range as he pushes faster and more powerful. William attempts to fire his heavybi-bolter, but each time he tries to aim at Makato, his sword redirects the weapon away, preventing it from hitting the target. "You will not win this time. I know everything about that armor and its weakness. Your inventory ability won''t save you this time." Makato taunts William as he gains control of the fight at the moment. William''s shield holds and absorbs the damage, but as he couldn''t effectively attack the daemon prince, all he could do was stand his ground. Unknown to Makato, William forgot to mention that this particr terminator armor isn''t the same one Makato previously used. A few secondster, William saw the kic energy chart fully charged. Hidden away behind the helmet, William activates the armor''s ability Makato didn''t expect with a smile on his face. "Have you ever seen the movie ck Panther?" William said to Makato and unleashed all the kic energy within the terminator armor. The massive blue shockwave of the kic energy sted Makato as he flew away andnded him hard on the ground, in shock and unable to process what just happened. On the other hand, William steps forward as his armor cools down from the sudden temperature rise, which armor transfers to hisbi-sma, supercharging it. "I forgot to mention something. This armor may look the same to you, but this ispletely different from what you previously had. Yours was nothing but a bare minimum of what my armor can do, and this includes a few additional modifications such as the energy shield and kic energy st you just witnessed. Now, prepare to die for real Makato." William then activated his nk ability and made a sizable null zone. The effect of cutting from the warp energy disturbed Makato beyond anything he experienced as his connection to anesh is wholly gone, and his magical abilities are entirely gone. From passive regeneration ability to active magical power such as illusion and energy bolt are gone. At the same time, Makato no longer felt any presence or link to the other Chaos being within this world. In other words, Makato is now alone and debuffed by William''s ability nearly 90% from what he used to be. "What is this? What did you do to me this time?" Makato''s voice went to a high pitch as he began to panic and could not think properly, for his ''normal'' condition went high wire beyond his understanding. "I cut your connection to the warp and Chaos. When you die within my null zone, your soul can''t go back to the realm of Chaos or anesh. As I said just now, you will truly die and be unable to reincarnate. I''m your doom." William struck down his halberd and cut Makato''s waist down, including his tail. "No, please. Don''t kill me again. I lied to Tzeentch. He doesn''t know everything about you. I only told him only half about who you really are." Makato begs for his life as he is genuinely experiencing pain instead of pleasure. Pushing himself away with his damaged hands, Makato crawled away on the ground as William slowly approached with a red reing from his helmet visor. "You lie. I''m certain you sang like a bird a moment you saw an opportunity. It doesn''t matter. I will fix the damage you created, starting with your true death." William raised his weapon over his head to strike down, but just as he was about to deliver the killing blow, something unexpected appeared beyond his null zone. A greater daemon of the anesh appeared from the corner of the building as the Legion of Excess followed behind him. "I have been looking for you little puppet of the Anathema. I have to repay you back for what you did to my perfect body. Prince of Pleasure wasn''t happy of what did to his masterpiece." Keeper of Secret ces one hand on his stomach where arge stitches mark can be seen. The very same ce where William used his ck sword against as he resurrected as Champion of the Emperor during the battle of Fort Stormfist. ''Shit. Of course, Keeper is here as well.'' William thought to himself for not bringing his entire army into the capital city as this entire conflict turned into an all-out war against one of the Chaos factions. Putting his heavy foot on Makato''s chest and aiming his golden de at his head, William attempt to finish at least one thorn on his side. Just as he was about to deliver a finishing blow, another surprise appeared beyond his null zone, opposite of where Keeper of Secret is. Facing anesh''s legion, a giant red wrap portal appears, and the first thing thates out is a gigantic greater daemon William has ever seen. Standing 10 meters tall (32 feet tall), carrying two bloodiest great axes and tattered bat-like wings in his back, the greater daemon of the Blood God roars as his wings stretch and the ground begins to heat up around him. "Skarbrand hates magic! Skarbrand hates the smell of excess and lust! But most of all, Skarbrand HATES pesky mortal known as Wim!" The greatest Bloodthirster of Khorne and fallen champion of the Khorne bring out the heat of the hate as everything around him engulf into mes, including the very ground itself. "You got to be fucking kidding me!" William said to himself as Skarbrand the Exiled One and his Blood Legion of Khorne made their entrance to the New World. ------------------------- Hiding in the distance, using magical spells, and on the shadow, a small figure watches as his master''s nes to fruition. The Changer of Ways and Lord of the Fate gave his faithful servant precise instructions, including a whispering message to the former champion of the Blood God. To bring two arch-enemies into one location, they will fight until one side falls and the other barely survives. It will be at that moment when the Scintiting Legion will make their move to capture the mortal known as William and begin the invasion of the New World. Chapter 75: The Battle of the Three Armies Chapter 75: The Battle of the Three Armies [Please read the Author''s Thoughts for important news] ------------------------- "I will rip the bones from your body and leave your skin to rot! But your skull I will give to the skull-god, and it will be one among the multitude." - Skarbrand, The Exiled One ------------------------- Each four Chaos Gods have their legion of daemons and traitor Space Marines under their gs to spread corruption on the gxy. Among countless daemons, Greater Daemons are the most potent and living embodiment of their respected masters as each of them ledmand legion of Chaos topete on the never-ending Great Game. Nurgle''s Greater Daemons are known as Great Unclean Ones. Massive and bloated disease carriers who could spread the Nurgle''s gifts among mortals whileughing their guts out, literally. Their ability to spread gues not only affects all living beings but could also devastate the environment itself, while their bloated bodies could take tons of damage, making them one of the most challenging daemons to kill in the lore and tabletop game. anesh''s Greater Daemons are known as Keepers of Secrets. Huge and powerful creatures with the appearance of half male and half female bodies who could bring down the bravest warrior onto his knees due to corruption of pleasure and pain. Keepers of Secrets are known for their speed and crab-like ws that could shred metal tes and power armor, but the most powerful weapon is their warp sorcery which could bring down Imperial nobility into a Cult of Pleasure. Lords of the Change are the Greater Daemons of the Tzeentch. These giant bird-like winged daemons are the masters of warp magic and are capable of limited foresight as they ughter enemies in range. Lords of Change attempts mortals and corrupt them by offering knowledge and power of sorcery that only Tzeentch could grant. For this reason, Tzeentch''s faction is full of Sorcerers and uses range tactics to destroy the enemy. Lastly, Bloodthirsters are the Greater Daemons of the Khorne, the Blood God and Lord of Rage. Resembling close to ssic demons of Christianity, their leathery wings, cloven hooves, and a gigantic body of pure muscle, Bloodthirsters exists to ughter and spill an ocean of blood on the battlefield. Unlike other Greater Daemons, Bloodthirsters don''t use warp magic as Khorne considers magic a weakness and not honorable. Because of this, Bloodthirsters are the masters of meleebat and walking manifestation of deaths. Skarbrand the Exiled One is a Greater Daemon of the Khorne and so much more. Once, he was the greatest of all Khorne''s daemons, and his power brought glorious victories among countless battles. In all the endless existence of Khrone, Skarbrand collected and piled more skulls for the Skull Throne than anyone and defended his master''s realm against other Chaos factions at the same time. Skalbrand''s two daemonic axes, known as ughter and Carnage was, imbued from the two exalted Bloodthirsters'' spirits who challenged Skarbrand and failed. Skarbrand is known as ''Exiled One'' because he betrayed his master. Tzeentch, who recognized Skarbrand''s prowess and favor to the Khorne, decided to goad him and turn his loyalty against Blood God. When Khorne''s attention was elsewhere, Skarbrand attacked his master, powerful enough to destroy an army but only manage to chip a piece of Khorne''s armor. Angered by Skarbrand''s actual backstabbing, not his betrayal, Khorne threw Skarbrand from the warp after striping his personality and leaving only his rage. Wondering now with nothing but tattered wings and mindless wrath, Skarbrand rampage in the Materium (Real world) and spill more Blood for the Blood God and collect a mountain of skulls for the Skull Throne in the current 40K universe. ------------------------- "Yes! You are dead now fucker. I am saved. Keeper! Come and save me!" Makato yells his lungs out while William still has one foot on top of him with nk ability making Makato defenseless. With the reinforcement of anesh and another legion of Chaos next to them, Makato, who is stillcking 40K lore, believes he will be saved. William turns his head down and faces Makato, who just realized something is off. "I won''t celebrate right away if I were you. I still have you under my grasp, and we are still quite distant away from the armies." With William, grab Makato''s head with his free hand and lift him, facing him towards two Chaos legions. "Wait, wait." Make protest with all his power, but it was pointless as William began to crush his skull as William focused his nk ability on his hand. The immense power generated from the terminator armor began being unbelievable pain as Makato''s skull slowly made sounds, and his ears, nose, and eyes began to leak ck goo. "Keeper, I order you toe and save ME!" Makato gathered all his strength he could muster as William''s nk ability made him weaker by the second. Still, the voice could be heard as both Greater Daemons turn around to face Makato. Crying and begged as his one eye began to bulge. None of the Greater Daemons moved or showed any sign of consideration as they just stood and watched the slow execution of the Daemon Prince of anesh. When the Keeper of Secret finally realized who was calling him, he smiled with delight and wickedness as he saw his prime target killing stain of human/daemon for him. "Oh, how unfortunate, my dear Makato. Once again, you failed to subdue your target and disgraced the name of ''Prince of Pleasure.'' Don''t worry, my dear man toy, I will avenge your death and aplish what you failed to do. After all, you don''t send humans to do daemon''s work." Keeper of Secret licks his massive pincer de hand as he and his Legion of Excess watch as if it was entertainment. Meanwhile, Skarbrand and his Blood Legion remain silent as their twisted code of honor of duel prevented them from attacking William. Skarbrand even put his two axes down de first and sat on a burning house to witness the mortal duel beneath him. It is a very unusual scene as two very different and hated factions simply stand and watch as Daemon Prince is about to be killed in front of them. Mankato, who just realized what was happening,pletely lost hisst hope as his vision became cloudy with cknessing from his ck Blood. His body could only twitch his limbs due to pain and listen to a cracking skulling from his head. The terminator armor put Makao''s head close to his while maintaining the direction towards the two Chaos factions. "You miss calcted, my fellow Earthling. You should have stayed dead within the realm of anesh. Now you die for real." With thatst word, Williampletely crushes Makato''s daemon head as his massive metal hand is drenched with ck goo as pieces of brain matter and skull explode in his hand. William wasn''t done just yet. After dropping the headless body of the Daemon Prince, William stepped forward and caved the chest, crushing the twisted heart and other organs that used to be human. ------------------------- Ding! You killed your fellow Isekai character who turned against humanity and delivered justice on to him. Since his soul ispletely destroyed and no way of returning to any Divine Realm, his reborn gift (Cheat) will be given to the nearest Isekai character. Congrattion. You received ''Mastery of All Tools'' [Master of All Tools (Passive): A person with this ability instantly masters any tools the moment he or she touches them and brings forth the full potential of the item. From simple frying pan to weapon of war, you will be able to utilize them without prior knowledge or experience. Note: The gift depends on the item and its use, as the effect will differ. For example, you won''t be able to shoot down a dragon from the sky by flicking a needle with your finger. On the other hand, if you fire an armor-piercing arrow at the dragon, your arrow will be able to prate the dragon''s scale and kill it from the sky.] ------------------------- Note: Following the rule of the summons and since the current yer is a Chapter Master of his Chapter. MC can summon Space Marines from the Legion of cksouls under hismand. By ying Makato the Daemon Prince, you receive: [Drop Pod of Legion of cksouls x10: Each pod contains 10 Space Marines from the Legion of cksouls, also simply known as cksouls or Null Marines. Following the Chapter battle doctrine of their own, cksouls use the nk ability to fullness as each pod also contains Librarians who are gifted with warp neutralizing ability of nk.] [Drop Pod of cksouls Dreadnought x3: Each drop pod contains wounded Space Marine of the cksouls who received a second chance to join his brothers on the battlefield. Equipped with a near-indestructible battle walker and powerful weapons of destruction, these dreadnoughts can devastate the enemies of Mankind with heavy support weapons. Thanks to the Chapter''s STC forge factory, each dreadnought is also equipped with an advanced frequency range emitter attached to the back of the dreadnought, which helps expand beyond the normal range of the Chapter Librarians'' nk ability.] ------------------------- William pulls out his second melee weapon and dual-wields them both as he activates his golden halberd and power hammer with his free hand. The golden de of the halberd lit with bright golden light, and the power hammer began to hum as blue energy surrounded the hammer with blue lighting striking the ground and corpse. Witnessing how his weapons are acting beyond their capacity, William points his halberd towards two Chaos Legions and shouts his voice out. "Now, who wants to taste the might of the Imperium and bane of Chaos Gods?" William announces his deration of war and prepares his armor to go maximum power. Hearing this, Keeper of Secret screech in a high pitch as his army prepares themselves to fight the enemy who they came to collect his soul. Meanwhile, Skarbrand picks up his two iconic battle axes and roars to signal his army for battle. With a duel between two mortals over and doesn''t care who the victor is, Skarbrand''s priority now is to flow the Blood and collect the skull for his master, who he betrayed long ago. The two Chaos armies aren''t just facing William but also facing each other to fight since Khorne and anesh don''t like each other. For this reason, both two Chaos Legions won''t mind killing each other while fighting William at the same time. Just as Keeper and Skalbrand pump themselves to an all-out fight, William activates his new reward summons. A momentter, a booming sound of sound barrier-breaking can be heard, and multiple Drop Pods appeared in the sky. Lands behind a few yards away from William, the door to the pod opened as 90 Astartes of cksouls, 10 Librarians, and 3 cksouls Dreadnoughts emerge to position themselves behind their Chapter Master. William amplifies his voice through his armor and shouts his Chapter''s warcry with his Chapter troops behind him. "Run, hide, scream, or fight! It matters not, for true death hase for you!" The moment William finishes his warcry, he and his 10 Librarians activate their nk ability while three Dreadnoughts power up to extend the range beyond city square. The battle of the three armies began as the sounds of bolters, chainswords, hooves, and metal feet charged each other. Note: New warcry provided by Danny_Garcia_3164. Thank you for the improved warcry for cksouls. Chapter 76: Questor Imperialis Chapter 76: Questor Imperialis Boom! The demolition of the heavy wooden gate opened the path as heavily armed Space Marines stormed the capital city. Arge number of Space Marines of different chapters rush through the gate with their weapons ready and prepare to stomp anyone standing in their way. Passing the main gate, the Space Marines are met by an unexpected group of people defending the area facing the opposite direction towards the capital city. A group kill-team of Space Marines are defending the main entrance against a hoard of minor daemons of anesh and Sound Marines from escaping the capital city. "Well, about damn time. I thought we have to do all the work and win this battle by ourselves. Praise the All-father and Great Wolf King." Vaskell, the Wolf Seer, said to everyone after he threw a grenade and fired a few bolter rounds. After redirecting the Valkyrie One to rescue the second kill team, Vaskell and his group also shot down but eventually regrouped with the second team. With both flyers down, the group decided to defend the main gate to prevent any Chaos spawns from escaping the Emperor''s judgment. "We are here now, brother. Let us purge the traitors and daemons back to warp once and for all." Veteran Sergeant Sariel of the Blood Angel greets his battle brother and powers his chainsword to join the battle. The sudden arrival of the massive reinforcement turned the tide as defenders began to push against, and Blood Angel Assult Squad led the charge with their jet pack as it allowed them to jump into behind enemy line. While Blood Angels are busy dividing the enemy with blood-chilling chainswords in their hands, the ck Temrs confront the enemy frontline as enemies are nked on both sides. Armed with powerswords and chainswords, the ck Temrs ughter the daemons as they begin to lose morale and will to fight. The other Space Marines did their parts as Smanders and Ultramarines cover their battle-brothers using ranged weapons to take out and control the flow of the battlefield. Fire of the mer covers the potential blindside of the frontline while bolters of all types put down traitor marines before they could attack with their bolter weapons. With four different chapters working as one single legion, both traitors and daemons of Chaos couldn''t push back or hold the line even though they had arge number. "I''m receiving the vox message from William. He said to push the remaining minions of Chaos to the city square. He also said not to enter the area as he is currently using his new power of nk." Vaskell passed the new information to everyone through a vox link and began to formte with others how to herd the enemy to the kill zone. Meanwhile, a shadowy figure with a magical staff curse to himself as his prediction came way too soon. The destruction of the gate and reinforcement of the Space Marines wasn''t supposed to happen for another 6 minutes. If the flow of time happened ording to the prediction, the gate defenders would have died, and reinforcement wouldn''t receive the new message from their leader for another 3 minutes. This would have allowed Avinon Fatecast toplete his summoning spell to bring forth thepany of World Eaters Berserkers from the Immaterium to trap the unsuspected loyalist Space Marines in the rear while anesh''s minions push in the front. "Damn it all to misty future. I can''t tell the exact prediction as if something interferes with my magic. I guess I have to do all the work now." The greater daemon of the Tzeentch came out of the shadow and began to open multiple warp portals at once. Pushing against each other, the minions of Tzeentch pour through to the New World as various Horrors, mers, the cult of Tzeentch, Soul Grinders, and even the Thousand Sons enter the battlefield. The third faction of the Chaos Gods joins the battle that will be known as nk War as their involvement will be their downfall by the end of this fight. ------------------------------ Bam! Bam! Bam! The roaring sound of the bolters can be heard in the center of the capital city as William''s cksouls unleash Emperor''s wrath at the Chaos daemons. The other sounds can be heard as heavy bolters, autocannons, and sma cannons from the Dreadnoughts unleash their full power to support the frontline. William and 10 Librarians activate their nk ability, which expands the range of the nk field into maximum. The effect of the mass null ability neutralized all of the warp entities, including Greater Daemons, as they felt weaker and their souls blocked from returning back to the Immaterium. The daemons that could use the warp magic (All from anesh''s side) are now unable to generate or cast any spells as their connection is severed and some of the lesser ones explode, taking their fellow daemons with them. While William''s forces charge ahead towards two different Chaos factions, the other two do as anyone would expect as Keeper''s and Skalbrand''s armies attack William and each other simultaneously. Because of cksouls'' nk effect, their range attack spells and any warp magic fueled weapons became useless. This made anesh''s side lose a massive advantage as this ruined their capability to attack in range. Skarbrand, on the other hand, wasn''t having much difference as his army indeed lost connection to the Khrone, but it didn''t stop them from ughtering enemies with melee weapons. Khorne doesn''t believe in range weapons much as he prefers closebat, but this doesn''t mean his legionspletely abandoned range weaponry. Blood Legions use artillery such as Skull Cannons, which is usually used for siege warfare. World Eaters of Post-Herseypletely changed their battle doctrine as theypletely abandoned their long-range weapons, allowed to use bolter pistols for short-range purposes before ughtering their enemy in closebat. "You are MINE!" Skalbrand shouts all his might while swinging his tworge battle axes as he charges towards William. Considering his giant body and tattered wings, everyone would expect Skalbrand to be slow, but to everyone''s surprise, Skalbrand''s speed outran even his minions, who are quick to their feet. Just as Skalbrand is about to increase his speed, something interferes with him as two Seeker Chariots catch up to him and m at the same time from both sides. The des from the chariots'' wheels sparks as their daemonic des did nothing to Skalbrand as he blocked with his two battle axes. Nowpletely stopped by pesky daemons, Skalbrand lifts his weapons at once with his mighty strength and flips both chariots upside down. "Skalbrand hates interference and especially from horny pests!" Skalbrand then proceeds to cut both chariots in half at the same time, killing the daemons of anesh with a single swing of his two axes. The weapon''s impact not only killed the daemons but also shook the ground. This didn''t stop William from reaching Skalbrand up close as he proceeded to take advantage and swing fully charged thunder hammer directly at Skalbrand''s face. ng! The moment a thunder hammer shed into Skalbrand''s face, Skalbrand''s entire body lifted a few inches and flew back towards his iing army. Few poor daemons that couldn''t dodge in time became Skalbrand''s cushion as they turned into a pancake the moment Skalbrandnded on top of them. The battlefield paused for a few seconds as everyone just saw a former champion of the Blood God knockback onto his butt for the first time. "Holy Terra and Emperor''s throne. I felt that hit through my hands." William said to himself while shaking his one hand. William knew his thunder hammer was special since it was made by Mother and the Dark Age of Technology, but he didn''t expect to push the Greater Daemon of Khorne. At first, William intended to stun Skalbrand with his hammer, but the result was much more satisfying and terrifying. "Who''s next!" William decided to push on and continue the momentum as he and his Space Marines attacked dumbfounded daemons and servants of Chaos Gods. Each kill from William''s side is a massive loss for the Chaos as they can''t revive the lost souls, but all good things must end as both sides quickly recover and continue their attack. When the three sides finally got close to the melee fight, the fight turned intoplete Chaos as all sides lost any sign of strategy and turned to an all-out battle for survival. "Foolish brute. Nothing but a muscle and no elegance. No wonder he fell for a simple trick from Tzeentch''s whisper." Keeper of Secret said to himself and quickly passed the giant daemon but loud enough for Skalbrand to hear every word. The Keeper moves towards William''s blindside with a swift movement to deliver deadly payback. While approaching his target, Keeper managed to slew a few of the Null Marines but realized the challenge of killing them was much more difficultpared to the different Space Marines. ''It must be my injuries.'' Keeper thought to himself as he got close enough to reach William, but before he could strike first, something grabbed him from behind, and to his surprise, it was Skalbrand standing on two feet, holding Keeper''s cape with one hand. "Why don''t you say that again? This time say to my face!" Skalbrand, now rage meter fully filled, didn''t care who was standing in front of him. The only thing that matters right now is specific keywords that caught Skalbrand''s attention, including his falling from Khorne''s favor. Meanwhile, William didn''t catch himself in time to realize two Greater Daemons were fighting each close to him. By the time he realized what was going on after killing three Flesh Hounds, it was toote as a random mighty swing from one of the Greater Daemons tossed him across the battlefield. [Kic energy full] "What hit me?" William said to himself, but before he could get up, a dozen Bloodletters jumped on top of him and attempted to kill him but could not prate the terminator armor. A secondter, a st of kic energy shreds the Bloodletters into pieces, and soon William got up covered in blood. ''Talk about a blood bath.'' The irony made William smile a little and turn his attention just in time to block an iing attack from Khorne''s Soul Grinder. The bloody metal w of Soul Grinder lifts William as William attempts to escape the Daemon Engine grasp. Standing tall little over standard Rhino tank height, a massive Soul Grinder attempt to crush the terminator armor with its metal w. Fortunately for William, shielding and indestructible armor held giving enough time for him to reposition his twobi-bolter andbi-sma weapons directly at Daemon Engine''s face. "See youter." The st of the sma and bolters blow the entire upper body of the soul Grinder and fall to the ground, which William eventually free himself after joining the fall. Regaining his footing, William again got into conflict as a few of the Sound Marines attempted to st William with their sonic weapons. Like William''s first encounter with Sound Marines an hour ago, his terminator armor withstood the sonic attack as if it was nothing. "This isn''t possible." One of the Sound Marine said with shock, and others quickly attempted to change their weapon to bolters, but it was toote as Wiliam raised his range weapons and sted them into ashes. With countless enemies constantlying, William didn''t pay attention to his new loots or a new summons. At the moment he needs more reinforcement, and he needed them yesterday. So without looking, William summons everything at once and hopes it will be enough to give him and his Null Marines breathing room. "This is William. I need some fire support in front of me, now." William gave an order through the vox channel but was unsure who was listening. At this moment, it is a dog-eat-dog fight, and everyone is fighting for their lives. He is sure his Null Marines can handle the two armies but the oue will be heavy for William''s force which he won''t let happen. "Order received. Target acquired. Firing the secondary weapon." A new voice replied, and a few secondster, a massive volley of missiles flew over William, hitting arge number of daemons and traitor marines within the significant area. The shockwave shook the entire battlefield and knocked most enemies to the ground. William and anyone else who managed to withstand the shockwave turn around to see who fired the devastating weapons, and to their surprise, it wasn''t from Null Marines or dreadnoughts. Two gigantic figures overtopping every building were behind a few buildings away from William''s army. The biggest stands 32 feet tall (10 meters), and the other stands 20 feet tall (6 meters). Both armed with many heavy weapons are red-painted Imperial Knight Gant and red-painted Armiger Warglive without heraldry marking or g to show which house the knights represent. With a booming sounding from the Knight''s speaker, the Imperial Knight announces their presence to everyone on the battlefield and the entire capital city. "Freede Knight Scion of Wrath reporting for duty and request permission to purge the Chaos taint." "Freede Knight Spear of Olympus reporting to Chapter Master William and ready to cut down traitors." Chapter 77: The Ripple Effect Chapter 77: The Ripple Effect Imperial Knights, also known as Questor Imperialis in High Gothic, is a roboticbat walker smaller and lessbat-capable than Tians. Still, the giant walking mech is a giant walking mech, and knights are 9 to 12 meters (30 to 40 feet) tall war machines of destruction with various noble houses sworn to protect humanity and the Imperium of Man. Unlike Titans, which requires a small crew to help the pilot (Princeps) with an operation to weapons fire, the Imperial Knights only need one pilot. The pilot, known as Princeps, are rare individuals who can bond with the Machine Spirit of the giantbat walkers. These individuals who can perfectly bond with the Machine Spirit are so rare that the Noble houses of Imperial Knights and Adeptus Mechanicus constantly search for them and recruit them into their organization (For the Houses, those individuals are adapted to the family until they can prove their worth). To be qualified to be Princeps is one in ten million, which makes them one of the valuable people among Imperium. Imperial Knights are ancient battlesuits that existed long before Emperor''s Unification war. They were originally created during the Dark Age of Technology asbor equipment to cut the forest down and excavate minerals and metal ores. Yes, the 40 feet tall walking battlesuit of war and family heirloom of the noble houses were actually a fancy version of an excavator from our current modern era. Still, a nearly indestructible mech battlesuit with multiple attachable weapons is powerful, and humans are known for their ability to adapt to any situation, which is understandable to see why high-tech excavators turned into protectors of lost civilization until the Emperor ''liberated'' them. The history of Imperial Knight houses is extensively long and proud even among Imperial nobility. As descendants of the Terran colony starships and noble knight house, the knight house possesses multiple Imperial Knights and can deploy them to the most significant battlefield, earning them influence and favors from the other Imperial factions. An exalted noble house can earn great favor even from the high Lords of Terra and some reach rank of the Imperial heroes with their names written on the holy walls of Terra. Each knight has arge shield with a house crest and banner to show their achievements, which is enough to bring fear among enemy ranks. After the Great Betrayal of the First Warmaster (Which resulted in half of the knight houses joining the Chaos), a new tradition is created known as Freede Heraldry. Abandoning noble house and forging new destiny, Freede Knights are rare individuals who made a personal oath or pact to carry out tasks that will take them anywhere in the gxy. In some situations, thest surviving member of their house will take the Freebalde to seek revenge, a new homeworld, or find a new master to serve. To do this, the first thing Freebalde will do is to take up a new name to mark their status and set out to find the worthy cause or join the battlefield without announcing their presence in the middle of battle. Comparing this to our modern term, Freebalde Knight is a knight-errant (Wondering knight) or Ronin (Samurai without a lord or master). As for our two Freede Knights, they are searching for a new home after surviving the destruction of their noble house and the home by the Orks. Paint their Knights in red to mark their rank as Freebaldes. Two knights found themselves in the New World after traveling to the warp during their third year as Freebalde. After finding themselves in the presence of the Astartes Chapter Master, they decided to join the fight against Chaos and Traitor Marines. --------------------- The massive destruction of the missile volley wiped half of the daemon armies of two factions, but this was only a momentary setback as the two remaining Greater Daemons'' armies began to push once again. Compared to William''spany size Space Marines, the two Chaos factions brought massive forces significant enough to start an initial invasion. "Form up on me and prepare for the second wave. Imperial Knights provide heavy fire support." William gives his order as the remaining cksouls (aka Null Marines) regroup around him while Imperial Knights ready their range weapons. Only five Null Marines were killed butpared to all-out war a few seconds ago, and this was close to a miracle. On the other side, the first wave of daemons and traitor marines ispletely wiped out, and their souls are lost due to the nk area effect. "FIRE!" William''smand once again turned the entire city square into a zing bolter storm while literal superheated fire dropped on the most concentrated group among enemy forces. This time, the daemons and traitors from two sides couldn''t rush nearly as before as a wall of bolters, and heavy weapons prevented them from making a straightforward step forward. The domination of the military firepower is on William''s side, for all of 10 seconds. This is because the forces of Chaos decided to send their heavy weapons as three new giant figures appeared from the second wave. In the middle, Khorne''s Lord of Skulls leads the charge while firing all kinds of cannons while to its left and right, two Defilers join the fight. Forged by the hellfire and corruption of the warp, the giant-sized daemon engines backed the Chaos forces while two factions finally decided to stop fighting each other to kill William''s Space Marines. Khorne''s Lord of Skulls is a super heavy daemon engine of Chaos and servant of the Blood God. Possesses a giant humanoid upper body while the lower side is a literal tank track. This hybrid of monstrosity is powered by the boiling steam from the blood of murders and vents fluids to the enemy, boiling them alive. Lord of Skulls is armed with three primary weapons, one melee weapon, an arm-mounted range weapon for anti-infantry, and torso mounted range weapon to deliver devastating firepower. Defiler is a massive daemon engine in the service to the Traitor Marines. Armed with multiple-range weapons and mounted on six spider-like legs, Defiler is a living machine of the Chaos. The creation of Defiler isn''t some assembly job done by factory workers. The creation of Defiler is done through abination of Dark Mechanicum and Warpsmith as Dark Mechanicum forge tainted raw materials and shape into an abomination while Warpsmith binds the machine with the daemon, to be a defiled recement of Machine Spirit. Once again, the battlefield turned into madness as two forces collided against each other while shooting everything they had. William was the first to make the second contact as his golden halberd cut down everything in front of him while a power hammer shook the very ground. William didn''t stop as he charged into the middle of the enemy rank and activated his kic energy, which unleashed a powerful st all around the daemons and Chaos Marines. Outsiders would predict that William''s forces would lose the fight based on the number with everything going on. On the overview, forces of Chaos outnumber William''s by 4 to 1, which anyone would think is a losing battle. On the other hand, William isn''t ying a number game, unlike everyone else, he is betting everything on the superior equipment and firepower of the STC. Traitor Marines'' bolter rounds couldn''t prate the Null Marines'' power armor as it required more than a few rounds to crack the armor ting. The infamous daemon des couldn''t cut or stab through the same armor ting, while their corruption couldn''t do anything as there is none to spread due to nk effect. A few things that actually managed to hurt Null Marines are heavy weapons and power weapons (If they manage to survive to fire a second shot after making themselves a priority target). Still, with the reinforcement of daemon engines, William''s forces slowly began to have casualties, and William quickly decided to handle the problem. Tanking every Chaos weaponry head-on, William made himself a prime target as he stacked up his kills left and right. Nothing could prate his Iron Halo energy shield, and each step is covered with the blood of traitors and daemons. Each Chaos casualty are lost forever, and none of the skulls went to Khorne. This infuriated Chaos God sitting on the Skull Throne as his number of skull collections are lost to him while Chaos God of Pleasure couldn''t feel anything from its followers (Unable to feel anything offense anesh). Standing alone and surrounded by enemies, William smiled to himself as he felt like a powerful character from one of his favorite games, the Dynasty Warriors. Suddenly, something big came at him head-on, and it literally shook the very ground. In front of William was Lord of Skulls with a bloody ax in his right hand while holding a corrupt heavy bolter in his left. The first thing Lord of Skulls did was to ram the terminator with full force, but this only halted the heavy daemon engine after moving a few feet forward. When Lord of Skulls couldn''t move any further, everyone saw something impossible in front of their eyes. A single terminator armor withstood all by himself and held the ground while denting the ting armor of the Lord of Skulls. With initial speed reduced to nearly halt, William ced his halberd on the ground as a temporary bord and powered up his power hammer. "You have guts and gall to take on Chapter Master. If I remember right, Chapter Master Marneus Calgar of the Ultramarines single handly ripped Lord of Skull''s head off with his power fist. Now, let me see if I can do something simr." William said to Lord of Skulls in front of him and power up his terminator armor to maxim level. Holding his hammer with both hands, William under swings his power weapon like a golf swing or uppercut. The destructive power of thebined power hammer and terminator armor from STC hit true as Lord of Skulls lifted in the air after a powerful shockwave shattered everything within the capital city. The shockwave not only put the majority of enemies down on the ground, but the power hammer''s impact amplified William''s nk effect like a ripple as the shockwave carried away. William wasn''t done as he activated his teleportation and appeared on top of the Lord of Skulls while it was still in the air. Once again, with both hands, William swings over his head and hits Lord of Skulls right on its head like a game of whack a mole. The second impact wasn''t powerful as the first one, but it was strong enough to crush the giant''s head and everything that was neck and shoulder. Hot boiling blood spilled everywhere as it covered traitors and daemons alike, killing some alive while most were distracted by the burning pain. Afternding heavy terminator armor, William creates a small crater, retrieves his golden halberd, and holds his position to cool down his armor. With all kinds of abilities activated at once, William has to stand still for three minutes, or else he risks a meltdown. But being himself and unable to stand quietly, William ces his halberd in one hand like a mighty hero and power hammer over his shoulder. This was very effective as no one dared to approach the terminator armor after witnessing a heavy daemon engine taken out so quickly. "Now, who is next?" William said to forces of Chaos as thepany of Null Marines finally reached him. With one-third of Chaos forces taken down by a single man, the traitors and daemons began to lose their spirit as the frontline began to step backward. This would have been the beginning of one side victory, but it was short-lived as Skarbrand jumped on top of retreating soldiers, crushing them with his massive hoves. Skarbrand, covered with cuts and blood, held his two axes in one hand while holding his recent trophy. Holding in his left hand is the head of the Keeper of Secrets, his face showing an expression of horror and fear as William could clearly see the Keeper''sst moment before one of Skarbrand''s ax cut clean. "Skarbrand is next, and Skarbrand would hate to miss the chance to return the earlier hit from the pesky human. After collecting your head, Skarbrand will seek the one responsible as Skarbrand learned the truth from Keeper. Forget this world; Skarbrand will invade the Realm of the Sorcerer and burn it to ashes!" Chapter 78: Betrayal Chapter 78: Betrayal 10 Minutes Ago Avinon Fatecast, the Greater Daemon of Tzeentch and one of the Lord of Change, is not having a great time as his entire crafted n suddenly washed away like a sandcastle. He and his masterful strategy of maniption and the calcted n were going smoothly as three different factions of Chaos were cornering the mixed batch of Space Marines. With his mighty magic, Avinon cast powerful spells to buff all of the forces of Chaos on the battlefield and mind control them to stay focused on their task instead of fighting each other. It is incredible how much you can aplish when the two most hated armies work together and ughter their mostmon enemy right in front of your face. World Eaters and minions of Skull God as frontline soldiers and anesh''s daemons as quick-strike force halt Astartes from reaching their second military forces within the capital city. Now, with Avinon and his force joining the fight, the Astartes are being pushed back as their number begins to decline. All warp magic-type daemons of Tzeentch have magical barriers that act as a protective shield, and just like their master, they are very perficient with magical ability and spells. Because of this trait, the daemons of Tzeentch prefer to fight in range than in closebat. Of course, this doesn''t mean they are useless in meleebat, but rather out of four Chaos forces, Tzeentch''s are weakest in the glorious melee. With three armies against a smallpany worth of Space Marines, anyone would assume this would be an easy victory. This was exactly what Avinon foresaw with his gifted short foresight before revealing his hidden army and joining the fight. Still, because of this New World''s strange magic and interference from the powers of native gods, Avinon couldn''t see clearly due to the unpredictable flow of time made him impossible to foresee further into the future. Lord of Change''s problem started with his overcharge spell known as The Purple Sun of Xereus, one of the most deadly death spells that could create an orb of a purple vortex. If this spell is ced in the right location, it will wipe out half of the Space Marines, forever lost in the darkness. Just as Avinon was about to reach a critical point of unleashing his masterful spell, a ground-shaking shockwave generated behind him and knocked everyone close to the ground. It also immobilized everyone where they were. The worst part is that this mysterious shockwave carried a psychic null effect that interrupted his vortex spell and made everyone go mad due to the severed connection to the warp. A few things happened at once before the shockwave subsided and was tolerable enough for everyone to stand up. First, 100% of Avignon''s Scintiting Legion lost their heads. Due to sudden disconnection to the warp and inability to control the magic, every minion of Tzeentch explodes like firecrackers, if not lethal walking explosives. Second, Avinon himself managed to withstand the null shockwave, but because all his concentration went to his very survival, he lost control of his overcharged spell. Avignon''s staff holding the vortex spell shattered, and a miniature purple sphere of doom began to go wild. "Oh, SHIT!" With half a second to react, Lord of Change pointed his staff towards somewhere else at random, and The Purple Sun of Xereus appeared where his staff pointed. Unfortunately, this is where the third problem begins. The third problem began with a giant vortex hovering above where minions of anesh and World Eaters meet. Before they realized what was happening, two armies began to float as if gravity suddenly disappeared, and without warning, the majority of them began to suck into the darkness as Avinon''s overcharged spell performed perfectly as it should be (Just not onto ally forces). "We have been betrayed!" "By the blood and skulls! I curse you bird head!" "Where is my ax? I lost my chain ax!" "I don''t feel any pleasure from this!" Two armies cursed Avinon, and his friendly fire of a powerful spell as all of them are convinced that this was a calcted betrayal. By the time the purple vortex died down, everyone could see an immense emptiness in the middle of Chaos armies as most of them perished while none of the Astartes lost anyone. Besides Wolf Seer having a minor seizure due to his connection to the warp, everyone from William''s side managed to survive and was ready tounch a counteroffensive as many of them reloaded their bolters and stared into panicking enemies through bright red eye lenses. ''Fuck me and my hazy fate. I need to retreat.'' Lord of Change thought to himself and took a few steps back while the remaining Chaos forces stumble to reorganize. Unknown to everyone, the null shockwave did something more devastating as every magic spell that was boosting them was now neutralized and no longer united them as one. The loss of unity and one mindset made the remaining Chaos armies turn against each other, making this all-out war once again on every side. The all-out fight begins with the sound of bolters as Space Marines fire their bolters without hesitation. World Eaters took the heavy casualty as they were busy fighting both Space Marines and minions of anesh, while Legions of Excess did everything they could to cut down World Eaters. "Screw this," Lord of Change turned his back from the battle and ran towards where he could cast a spell without interruption. With his magical staff shattered and destroyed, Avinon must cast a warp portal to make his escape and to aplish this will require some help as he pulls out scrolls and ingredients required to cast the spell. Lord of Change could feel the vulnerability andck of overwhelming magic he is supposed to possess. "This should be far away enough for me to make a portal," Avinon said to himself and began casting spells. After long secondster, Avinon managed to create a warp portal and was about to make his escape when out of nowhere, giant Bloodthirster and armless Imperial Knight breakthrough a random house and were about to crush onto Lord of Change. The only thing Avinon could say before mming into two iing giants was simple words. "Oh, fuck my fate," ---------------------------------------- "Skarbrand now knows the truth, and he will make everyone pay for their treachery. Especially that foolish Lord of Change, I will personally burn his realm and shatter every pesky mirror." Very angry, Skarbrand deres his war against the one who tricked him into betraying his master and his shameful banishment as an exiled one. Meanwhile, seeing the head of the Keeper still hanging in Skarbrand''s hand, the minions of anesh are without general and losing morale to continue their fight. Seeing an opportunity, the daemons of Khorne reposition themselves and attack the weakened daemons of anesh, butchering them and collecting the skulls. As for William, he knew Skarbrand would not simply leave the New World as he is very well aware of how much Skarbrand takes great pride in fighting a powerful opponent, and William proved enough to Bloodthirster that he is worthy of Skarbrand''s skull collection. Before Skarbrand could continue his dialogue on how much he will spill blood, William gave his direct order through voxmunicator to Freede Knight Scion of Wrath. The 32 feet tall (10 Meters) Imperial Knight Gant quickly follows the order given by the Chapter Master and repositions himself behind the building across from where Skarbrand is. BOOOOMMM! A loud sound of booming mechanical sound disoriented everyone around them, and they were unable to see the iing metal giant with mega-size chainsword and chain hand. As big as Imperial Knight is, it was surprising how it could move quickly and able to crush anything standing in its way. Freede Knight Scion of Wrath appears on the battlefield in full scale after breakthrough arge building and charging at distracted Bloodthirster. Unleashing every type of ranged weapon while cranking a massive mega-size chainsaw, Scion of Wrath stomping mouse-size enemies with each step. When the two giants finally met, the ground shook as they pushed against each other while their deadly des sparked against each other. Mega-sized chainsaw and Skarbrand''s ax met with a screeching metal sound as their melee weapons ced each other in a stalemate. Imperial Knight''s engines boosted the power as it began to push Skarbrand a little bit, but this only made Bloodthirster angry. Greater Daemon''s iron-like muscle bulks twice its size while greater daemon starts to breathe fire from his mouth. "Skarbrand will not be overpowered!" Bloodthirster put away Keeper''s head and grabbed his second ax to arm himself fully. The twin axes known as ughter and Carnage began to make a difference as Skarbrand pushed the metal giant into the middle of a battlefield. Skarbrand lifts his right hand with his mighty strength and strikes down Carnage at Scion of Wrath''s left shoulder. Seeing the iing attack, Scion of Warth repositioned his chain hand and grabbed Skarbrand''s right hand before it could hit the Imperial Knight. Activating chain hand, Freebalde''s hand shreds Skarbanrd''s daemonic flesh. "AAAAHHHHH!" Skarbrand howls in pain as his right wrist is mped down to the chain hand''s grip. This didn''t stop the Skarbrand from punishing his enemy as he still is the greatest of all Bloodthirsters of Khrone even though he is exiled one. "Blood for the Blood God and Skull for the Skull Throne!" Skarbrand, using his mighty brute strength, extended both of his arms, surpassing the length of Freede''s arms and bending metal itself like twigs. Pushing beyond what Imperial Knight could muster, Bloodthirster frees his left hand from the mega chainsaw and quickly strike Scion of Wrath''s right arm off. "Now, Die!" Skarbrand then decapitates the knight''s left arm using his left, freeing his other hand. Now free to strike down his enemy, Skarbrand raises his two axes above his head and is about to strike down towards Imperial Knight''s head, but he is interrupted by a second Freebalde before he can finish the first one. The second Freede Knight Spear of Olympus is a smaller Imperial Knight known as Armiger Warive. Designed to be a quick-strike battlesuit walker, Armiger Warive is fast but heavy-armed with a thermal spear (Arge Melta weapon) and chain cleaver to break the battle line. The thermal spear fired ance-like beam of superheated energy, and a top-mounted mega bolter cannon hit Skarbrand as Spear of Olympus stood between Greater Daemon and Scion of Wrath. The heavy weapons push back the Greater Daemon a few steps as Skarband uses his axes to shield himself. The entire scene looks like some sci-fi movie scene as William watches silently as he waits for his terminator armor to finish rebooting. A few secondster, William''s armor finishes the cooldown and reboots itself, giving William aplete analysis of the battlefield as the armor picks up new updates of the entire battlefield intelligence. [Null effect still active. The number of enemy forces decreased to 48%. Warning: Unkown warp energy detected on the outer edge of the Null zone.] ''Hidden enemy with warp magic? Sneaky bastard.'' William thought to himself and found the direction where the warp energy was gathering. Realizing the gathering warp energy isn''tplete yet, William decided to crush mysterious warp energy by dropping a few metric tons of Greater Daemon and a walking mech suit. "Freedes! Push that Bloodthirster in this direction! I will order artillery bombardment right on top of this zone." William sends the new intel and instruction to the Freedes as he reengages in battle as a few of the World Eaters approach him. "Understood. Executing given order." Scion of Wrath desire to continue its fight, crank up its engine and charge Skarbrand with its shoulder first. Following Freede''s example, Spear of Olympus did the same, and two Imperial Knights body m against Skarbrand again and pushed Bloodthirster onto the targeting zone. Pushing through the house and outside the Null zone, this moment merged with Avinon''s situation as Skarbrand mmed into Lord of Change just when the warp portal opened. "Chapter Master, the Greater Daemon is outside of the battlefield. Feel free to give artillery bombardment order." Scion of Wrath quickly updated William as both Imperial Knights retreated from the targeting zone. "This is William. Fire every artillery at this location until I give the order to stop. This is priority one order!" William didn''t bother with reason and used hisplete authority to takemand of the Krieg artillerypany. "As youmand, my lord." Krieg Commander answered William, and a few secondster, sounds of iing artillery shells could be heard. When the shells hit the targeting area, it turned into a zing firestorm as the shells exploded all around, destroying and setting everything on fire. The bombardmentsted three whole minutes, and by the time William gave amand to stop all fire, nothing remained as even the warp portal itself disappeared after receiving the overwhelming firepower of the Krieg''s weapons. ---------------------------------------- Three minutes ago, "Get off me, you oversized muscle brain!" Avinon shouts with pain in his voice as he pushes away Skarbrand''s body to his side. Avinon could feel pain all over his body as he was still weak from the null effect. ''I''m so close to escaping. Just a few more steps.'' Avinon thought to himself and used his broken staff as a cane to support himself. Just as he was about to reach the portal, he lost his bnce as a bloody ax cut clean one of his legs. "You are not going anywhere, little bird. After finishing my business with a pesky human William." Skarbrand stands up with one of his leather wings broken but possesses enough strength to threaten Lord of Change. Skarbrand continues talking as he crushes the severed leg with his own feet. "You will take me to your master''s realm after I finish my business collecting William''s skull. I need to return the favor." The moment Skarbrand finishes his sentence, a whistle can be heard, and a massive bombardment hits two Greater Daemons. The shells'' impact hurt already wounded two Greater Daemons and sent them into the warp portal as it shut itself down a few momentster. With three Greater Daemons either dead or gone, the remaining daemons of the three Choas Gods slowly vanish as their material flesh deteriorates and dies off. In the end, William''s forces are victorious but with a high cost as many Space Marines are either killed or require immediate medical support. Freebalde Knight requiresplete repairs from the Adeptus Mechanicus, which will take years as resources are limited. With the capital city of Legan conquered and won the Battle of Null, William gained a temporary base of operation as his Imperial Guardsmen, Sisters of Battle, and natives of this world entered the city to witness the aftermath of half of the city destroyed. Chapter 79: I Have a Plan Chapter 79: I Have a n For defeating the forces of anesh, [Valhan Ice Warriors x1200: Proud and hailing from frozen ice world of Valha, Valhan Ice Warriors are masters of cold warfare and known for their stubbornness. After a long history of Ork invasion, Valhans appoint themselves as an enemy of the Greenskins and seek thousands of Emperor''s worlds where Orks infestation is the heaviest. As the name states, these guardsmen casually enjoy hazardous cold weather like summer heatwave while others consider the same a full winter season.] [Null Marines (Formerly from Blood Angel Chapter) x42: No longer cursed by the ck Rage and Red Thirst, these newly born Null Marines are the pinnacle sons of the Great Angel. Like their gene-father, Primarch Sanguinius, Blood Angels possess angelic beauty and the might of heroes that many could easily recognize, Space Marines, among other royalists. Blood Angels are also known for their swordsmanship, that even impressed Jaghatai Khan and White Scars. Taught with arts and diverse cultures of many worlds, Blood Angels practice perfection in creating art and any forms ofbat.] For defeating the forces of Khrone, [Banede x4: Astra Militarum''s iconic andrgest super-heavy tank that shakes the very ground when it rolls towards Emperor''s enemy. This mighty house-size tank requires a whole ten people to use full armaments as the very entrance to the battlefield, making this tank the primary target immediately. Banedes are equipped with Mega Battle Cannon, Autocannon, 3 Heavy Bolters, 2 Lascannons, and forward-mounted Demolisher Cannon.] [Null Marines (Formerly from Space Wolves) x40: ''Fluff for the Fluff God!'' As one of the rivals to the World Eaters, These Null Marines (cksouls) are former members of the Space Wolves who found themselves in the New World and joined the new chapter founded by William. Still honoring their heritage, these Null Marines decorate their armor and weapons with runes, wolf furs, and brew robust ale that could kill the mortal man and test the dwarf''s legendary endurance.] For defeating the forces of Tzeentch, [Centurio Ordinatus of Adeptus Mechanicus x 45: Separate department of the Adeptus Mechanicus that focus on the development, maintenance, and operation of war machines of Imperium. Adeptus Mechanicus being Adeptus Mechanicus, these Admechs focus most of their time on Omnissiah''s gifts and tend to every machine of every branch of Imperium. As keeper of knowledge, Centurio Ordinatus makes weapons and possesses unique weapons to defend against those who seek to destroy them.] [Null Marines (Formerly from Imperial Fists) x45: The first sons of Rogal Dorn and one of the First Founding Chapters to be a Fleet-based Chapter even though they see Holy Terra as their homeworld. Imperial Fists are the master of siege, but unlike how ordinary people believe, they can execute every type of warfare as they see war as a scientific aspect. Immovable during defense and precise strike in offense, Imperial Fists possess a driven, single-minded focus, making them an unmovable object on the battlefield. Living up to their Gene-Father''s belief, the Imperial Fist believes in discipline, duty, and unyielding will to fight for the Emperor and bring the door of doom to the enemies.] For defeating three Greater Daemons, [cksouls Honour Guard x30: Equipped with STC weapons and armor, these personal guards of the Chapter Master are chosen within elite among elite veterans. Each Honour Guards are the hero of their tales, proving their loyalty and deed among battle-brothers. While the color of the armor is the same as others (Primary: ck Grey, and Secondary: ck Blue), their decorate color is red (Instead of silver) to show status and ability to protect and serve the Chapter Master.] [cksouls First Company x1: Known as Void Souls, the firstpany isposed of one hundred terminator armor units with years of experience and tested through baptism by war. Each member of the firstpany is a veteran, and only from the firstpany will the Honour Guards recruit if they need to. The firstpany''s role is simple but most important, to spearhead against Chaos forces. When needed, individuals or a small squad from the firstpany will take on special tasks given by the Chapter Master to remove threats or even part take secret missions unknown to even captains of the entire Chapter (This will be where they prove themselves and be the hero of their own story.] [No third reward: Skarbrand is the one who slew the Keeper of Secret. For the tease, the reward would have been Astraeus x1. Sorry, Lol.] -------------------------- The sudden emergence of the Chaos armies brought down the capital city of Legen and the entire country into civil war. When the news of the destruction of Holy White Mountain and the death of all senior priests, the lords of different major cities who were loyal to the religion began to move, and some even imed the crown that they did not possess. Many lords and nobles with decent-sized armies prepared for conquest, and some even formed alliances that started to look like formidable forces. On themoner side, many began to panic and abandon the religion that only existed less than three years ago. Most turned to old religions and their gods such as Tyr (Law and Justice), Kossuth (Fire), Sune (Beauty and Love), Uthgar (Physical strength), etc. After hearing about the county''s fall, many also left the country, taking refuge in neighboring countries. After a few days of refugees leaving thend, many nobles took action to prevent them from leaving asmoners are needed for the wheels of war. The news also reached the surviving members of the old Legen royal family (A total of four) who hid in a neighboring country with their wealth. Seeing their chance to return to their rightful position of power and as destiny, they make their preparation with help from the host king and nobles. Opening their remaining wealth, which they took with them during the rebellion, former royals hire many mercenaries, willing adventurers, and even foreign armies to retake their homnd from the tyrant known as William. -------------------------- Ten dayster, after the Battle of Null, Duke Arthur Silverledge of the House Silverledge marches to the capital city with his two thousand strong. With the entire county in turmoil and few survivors speaking of death and a ruined capital city, Duke Silverledge hurried his military forces to im the city as his own, cing himself as a king and salvation to the Legen. House Silverledge''s whole wealth and resources were spent for this moment as Arthur gathered all his men and every branch member, including his own eldest son as his right-hand man. ording to Duke''s spies, there are no patrols nor any sign of rival forces, which surprised him since he expected other nobles to make a simr move just like his. ''Maybe this William took down others. I''m sure I''m not the only one heading to the capital, but where are they? I remember hearing a rumor of hundred strong calvary men heading towards the capital city three days ago, baring the house g of Red Belmore. Is it possible that something happened to them?'' Duke Silverledge''s mind was swamped with thousands of possibilities as his sons and other family members could only wonder what their head of the family was thinking. The army of the House Silverledge continues their march when over the hill, they see two men in the distance, one sitting on a fancy chair in the middle of the road while the second one stands behind him like a servant. In the middle of the road, a single table is ced with two chairs facing each other. Next to the table is a g pole with a white g hanging, which indicates a sign of peace or negotiation. A single man in his 40s upies the fancy chair with unusual clothing and a strange ck hat with a red line around the edge. The second man is holding a tea kettle, but his clothing is more strange as he is wearing heavy winter clothing in the middle of summer. "Sir Jerome, go there and see what those men want?" Duke Silverledge gave his order, and a single knight rode his horse to see what strangers wanted. After reaching the table and short minutester, Sir Jerome returned with a strange expression on his face. Duke and others wait as Sir Jerome exins what the strangers want. "My lord, the stranger invites you to have a peaceful talk. I didn''t see any signs of enemy forces or hostilities, but it stranger did express strong signs of a possible enemy force." Sir Jerome informed his lord, and after a short moment of consideration, Arthur decided to talk to a stranger with Sir Jerome and one more knight beside him. "Hello, isn''t today the most beautiful day? Where are my manners? My name is Ciaphas Cain. Lord Commissar to the Astra Militarum and head of the foreign rtion. You can call me Commissar Cain. Oh, and this is Ferik Jurgen, my personal aide." Ciaphas Cain introduces himself and his aide, who afterward gestures to Duke Silverledge to sit with him. "I''m sure you are a little confused and concerned with why I''m casually sitting here in the middle of the road and enjoying fine tea. Do you want some? It''s called Tanna, and it has a unique taste if I say so myself." Commissar Cain politely signals Jurgen to pour the second teacup, but before Jurgen bothers to move, Duke Silverledge ms the table as if this entire situation is an act to mock him. "I''m not here to sit down and have some tea. Do you know who I am? I''m the Great Silverde Arthur Silverledge. I y ogre with my sword and liberated fine townfolks of my father''snd before you were even born! I demand a safe passage to the capital city!" Arthur shouts his great deed as if it meant something to Commissar Cain and Jurgen. Cain simply smiled at him and his knights while Jurgen just stood still. After taking a small sip of Tanna tea, Cain ced the cup down and gave off a serious look, which Aruther hadn''t seen in a very long time since his father scored him for his immature behavior as a kid. "Do YOU know WHO I am? I''m a freaking Lord Commissar Cain of the Imperium. I have over a thousand men and women of Emperor''s finest and am ready to kill all your men with a single word from my mouth. You are not the only one who came here and demanded passage to the capital city, and at this very moment, my lord William is rebuilding the entire city as we speak. So, I rmend you quietly listen to what I have to say before drawing weapons out at each other." Commissar Cain said to three men before him and afterward took his cup and finished it. Right away, Jurgen refills the cup and ces a sandwich in one of his jacket pockets, and steps back. "I don''t know what this rank of ''Lord Commissar'' is, but I''m sure this isn''t how ''Lord'' addresses higher noblemen such as me. Bring out your men! We are done with childish charades." Arthur quickly got up and drew his sword from his hip, but before he could raise the heavy sword up high to strike down the man in from of him. Seeing the surprise attack mile away, Cain did the same and drew his chainsword and parried the iing de without starting his chainsword. Jurgen dropped what he was holding and pulled out hissgun, and the two knights pulled out their weapons, but everything paused when the sounds of twosgun fire blew two holes in the two knights'' foreheads. "What? Hidden archers?" Arthur said with surprise and was about to push his de against Commissar Cain. The strange de with a hundred tiny metal teeth indeed locks Arthur''s sword, but he knew his magical sword could break the strange sword as it is imbued with sharpness and toughness. "How foolish and idiotic," Commissar Cain quietly said to himself and turned his chainsword on. With a loud engine within chainsword cranking and tiny metal teeth beginning to move, the magical sword started to spark, and within secondster, the de broke as if it was made out of a wooden stick. "NO! My sword. Symbol of my house, how is this possible?" Arthur cried with shock as he attempted to step back, but Cain quickly swung his chainsword and decapitated Arthur''s head from his shoulders before he had a chance to. Meanwhile, hundreds of soldiers of Valhan Ice Warriors and Death Korps of Krieg came out of concealed positions surrounding the enemy army and took them as prisoners of war. Many attempted to fight back, but those who did were quickly killed withsguns, and many surrendered right away. "Another day to start the peaceful transition. Right, Jurgen?" Lord Commissar Cain put away his chainsword as he watched his 3rd army of prisoners of war escorted away by two armies given to him by Lord Creed only five days ago. "Of course, sir. More Tanna, sir?" Jurgen approached the Commissar and gave him a cup of Tanna tea after putting away hissgun. With a regiment of Valhan Ice Warriors as reinforcement, Cain was delighted to resupply his dwelling Tanna leaves that Jurgen brought with him. On the other hand, Jurgen didn''t show any signs of happiness even though he was Valhan Ice Warrior, but as his duty is to the Commissar Cain, he did his best to make sure Commissar Cain was fully served and watched out for. ''I wonder what Lord William is doing now?" Lord Commissar Cain, a recently promoted to senior Commissar by Lord Wim and assigned to ''negotiate'' peace with nobles at any cost, wonders as he watches guardsmen set up more visible stations as some even bring out vehicles and walkers into positions. -------------------------- "So you are telling me that this Luffy is made out of rubber and searching for a treasure called ''One Piece'' to be king of the pirates? What a silly name for a treasure. Why named after a dress?" Rana said to William as she enjoyed the well-earned time off with a man who was two heights taller than her. They are currently residing inside one of the rebuilt buildings where it used to be a fancy hotel for the wealthy merchants. It is William''s base of operation until Admechs and a few of the Null Marines (Formerly Imperial Fists) finish the city rebuild (With significant upgrades and adjustments). "That is what bothers you? Not a man who can transform into a dragon or inds in the sky but a name of the treasure? I see that your priority in my story is a name rather than how strange the world is." William was surprised how Rana simply ignored the epic story and wondered about the entire franchise''s name. Of course, William also wonders about the name as he couldn''t finish the show or manga as he was in the middle of the Wano arc beforeing to the New World. ''I''m sure I will find out eventually, or else I just have to rip entire reality and get myself there to find the answer.'' William thought to himself and thought of possible ways to jump into a different reality, but in the end, it was foolish to dream as he knew his only path was to the 40k universe. After all, he has thousands of people tomand and fulfill his promise to send them back to the home universe. "You know me, William. I''m all about details, and names are most important. They hold great powers, and I''m sure you know that very well." Rana points it out and refills her drink with one of fine wine. "So, how are things with repairs and setting yourself as the new ruler of a nation?" Rana asked William teasingly as she knew the difficult road William must take. Ruling a city itself is a difficult job, as she saw her father do all those years ago, but ruling the entire country and not to mention changing the ruling authority is a near-impossible task. Then again, Rana saw the impossible be possible countless times as Wim charged head-on with his brothers beside him. "It is going ahead of schedule, actually. I had my librarians check every corner of the entire city inside and out to purge the Chaos corruption while having Lord Creed oversee the entire operation with his forces. As for citizens who survived, I have Sister of Battle, both Order of Our Martyred Lady and Order Hospitaller check them out and make sure they follow the new rules Imanded. You will be surprised how 100 Sisters can handle a few hundred citizens at once." When William mentions the Sisters, Rana winced as she remembers her experience attending their religious service. Let''s just say Rana learned a lot about God-Emperor and his chosen sons who remained loyal to him. "You have no idea. You are lucky to dodge their invitation." Rana quietly said to William as she kissed him on teh cheek and took back her seat as the giant next to her continued his story of this rubber man. -------------------------- "No, no, no! You must have this upgrade by the order from Lord William. By the Machine God, how did you manage to move without the proper ritual of maintenance?" One of the Tech-priests stops the dreadnought from running away while others supervise the transformation process of the Space Marines. With Lord William''s gift, Admechs took charge of all mechanical-rted operations, including the Null gene-seeds imnting process, as Chapter Master gave them various machines from the mythical library of STC. With five fully automated pods big enough for Space Marines to get into, more than a few Adeptus Astartes from various chapters already went through the surgical process without a single fatality. At first, the introduction to the old technology created a bit of debate within Adeptus Mechanicus as recently summoned Tech-priests went against the moment they learned the origin of where these blessed gifts came from. Thanks to Magos Callis''s full confession, the argument subsided, andter all are convinced that this was a true gift from the Omnissiah as William banished the ''Mother'' (The designation of the machine without a soul won''t be identified, which is the term ''AI'') into entirely different gxy without a method of returning to the Emperor''s gxy. There is also debate about that thing''s mission and how it wasn''t mentioned in Mars'' library of knowledge, but the topic was shortly talked over before moving to different subjects of importance such as repairs to the Imperial Knights and building forge to start production. "This is fine. Start ritual of modification at once." One of the Magos said to lesser Tech-priest as others join to start upgrading the dreadnought. This one, known as Brother Raduriel, holds the highest respect among Adeptus Astartes since he was the first one to join Lord William''s crusade in this New World. In fact, after this upgrade, it will be Brother Raduriel who will be one of the advisors to Lord William''s war council. "Let us begin and pray to the Omnissiah for his deliverance to all machines." Brother Raduriel went through their first modification from the standard dreadnought to cksouls dreadnought. -------------------------- "Have the west section guarded by the Catachan Jungle Fighter and make sure they report back every 8 hours. I don''t want another radio silent for the whole 27 hours again, or else they will have to report back in person next time. Make sure the northern section is¡­." Lord Creed gave clear instructions to his senior officers as they went over the capital city map and divided the entire forces to guard the region. Knowing what came next, Lord Creed took the first initiative and already spread the forces suited to their geological position. Already, Creed received a report from the Lord Commissar Cain regarding hostile nobles and their armies as they all attempted to reach the capital city using the northern road. As most of the roads to the capital within Legen are spread to the northern region, Creed sent two guardsmen regiments, including Cain, to secure the path against anyone. Of course, Creed instructed Cain to reduce killing everyone since they needed leverage against noblemen and the people they are governed. Every day, more and more prisoners of ware to the capital city, and Creed makes sure all of them are well taken care of, including introducing them to Sisters of Battle to learn more about the Emperor of Mankind. ''This is a child''s gamepared to what is going on after Fall of Cadia. Right now, all I can do is make sure we are one step closer to getting back to the homeworld. Even if it takes another fifty years to aplish it.'' Lord Creed thought to himself after dismissing the officers from his war room. Lighting himself with a new cigar, Creed touches his shoulder where he used to have an arm. It pains him to remember thest moment as his home broke. His entire life and career were to defending Cadia, and he knew he failed his life mission when ckstone Fortress from the sky. Still, there was a rumor of fellow Cadians still fighting within the broken as a glimpse ofsguns could be seen from the space. "I will go back and rescue any survivors even if it costs my life. Cadia will live once again as long as a single Cadian serve the Emperor and Imperium." Lord Creed made a promise to himself and once again went over the Legen map to review any potential weakness within his defense line. -------------------------- Somewhere in a higher realm, "Ok, hear me out. I know I''m a stranger to you all, but I think it is best for everyone if you hear my offer." A golden child stands in front of various higher beings of the New World as he tries not to get killed. In front of him, beings of higher authorities of their respected domains and alignments are present with their weapons and magic ready to explode. "And why should we listen to you? Foreigner deity who invaded our realm and not only that but also brought his archenemies into us!" One of the very angry-looking human deities welding a holy sword points at a golden child as many others nod their heads in agreement. "Hey, hey. They didn''t follow me for the record. I''m the one who warned you guys about them and even directed chosen warrior in the right direction. Even though that guy happened to be one of my soldiers from my world." Golden child counter with excuse good enough to hold others from smiting him. His action until now shows others his intention to save this world, not to mention putting away invasion armies without help from natives deities of this world. "Halt. He is telling the truth, and we have avoided this matter long enough. Maybe it is time for us to intervene even though this would break the agreement between all gods and wrath from the One Who Is Hidden." One of the goddesses said as she pushed down the holy sword away from the golden child''s face. "Thank you. At least someone hasmon sense. I mean, what a great insight into a greater view of the whole realm." Golden child said with the best of his diplomatic tone as he cleared his throat to get everyone''s attention. "To be clear. My n will sound insane and possibly suicidal, but if this goes perfectly, it will save both of us trouble once and for all." Star Child went into a long detailed exnation of his master n. By the time he was done, all gods had erupted into chaos as their voices generated massive lighting and thunder. "Who in the right mind will do what you told us? Your n is a literal disturbance to the bnce of everything and could unleash our mortal enemies to the lower nes." A female elven deity expressed her concern as she couldn''t believe what she had just heard. "Well, I know a certain few, and most of you all have a few promising individuals at disposal." Male dragon deity said to others while exhaling a white smoke from his mouth. "As long as you guys sent them to my guy, it will be fine. I hope thest one doesn''t cause disastrous problemspared to the other three. Just make sure small portals are shut down by the time we gather our heroes." Star Child said to everyone as the meeting between the gods of the two universes continued. Chapter 80: Peacekeeping Chapter 80: Peacekeeping The capital city is mainly repaired and made some improvement after third weeks. The city''s size expanded three times, and with the help of the Null Marines (With Admechs), the capital city could hold arge number of citizens, including the rest of the reinforcement. During this time, William received war supplies from the Crown Prince, and Countess Shaw was more than enough for everyone to feed everyone and provide every needed item for daily activities. In exchange for a fort and city full of natural resources, Countess Shaw kept her promise and sent everything from food to rebuilding materials such as processed woods and skilled workers. As for the former citizens of Legen, they are given a choice between staying to bing the servants of the new regime ruled by William. Most of the regr peasants stayed since the capital city was their home, and following the trend of a new government taking over every few years, this didn''t surprise them or took much difficulty to readjust. The prisoners of war and former military members of the previous government were all given the same choice, just like everyone. As William could guess, most people who held power and position of some authority before attempted to sweet-talk their importance, but Lord Creed saw this miles away and had them exiled or strip their rank, position or power in public. Those who didn''t recognize the situation didn''t survive a few dayster as the lowest of low criminals took advantage and attempted to make a few coins. Overall, William''s new base of operation was going well. Many Null Marines patrol the city and hold themselves as defenders of the mighty Chapter Master. The remaining Imperial guardsmen maintain order beyond the city limit as Lord Creed works tirelessly to stop anyone from reaching the city. Sisters of Battle, including the medical team work day and night to spread the word of the God-Emperor and even request Admechs to construct a temple for them. This action secures the Imperium''s religion and prevents other religions from reaching natives of this world as sisters make sure no temples of other gods stay standing. This didn''t make some citizens happy, but after seeing what sisters could do, some fled with what they had, and some changed their religion after being fully convinced, thanks to the nuns on power armor. Admechs, on the other hand, were most busy and somewhat living in their own world as they followed every instruction from William''s decree, which was being supervised by the former Ultramarines. Understanding Admech''s ability to harvest natural resources and destroy everything around them, William appointed Sergeant Dioricus of the Ultramarine to oversee the production and construction of the city. Macragge, the homeworld of the Ultramarines, is known for its government and proud home of the greatest Astartes in the Imperium. But they are also known for their maintenance and preservation of natural beauty while the whole produces weapons of war. For this reason, William made sure former Ultramarine maintained his watch on Admechs and brought out codex whenever he wanted, as long as it was not towards William. The city continues to go through repairs and expand. On the other hand, William coordinates the next threat, which is a civil war between the remaining Legen nobles. Rana warned him of this, and William was well aware that no nobles of this county would ept him as the new ruler. But one thing these nobles forgot was that Legen was no more, and William hadplete supremacy when it came to war, economic, and geographic position. As of now, a country known as Legen is divided among the remaining nobles. No other invaders came with their armies because of fear of uniting entire noble houses to fight back. William is the only one who managed this because he was the one who caused the fall of the entire county, and no nobles wanted to unite against him under someone''s g. In short, William is one of few major yers within the Legen civil war and possibly the only one who actually has the military power to take the entire country for his own. -------------------------- Inside the Capital City Pce, Throne Room, "So, I have to send one of my champions to maintain my honor?" William said with a question mark on his head while the rest of the group watched a single messenger sent by one of the noble houses with an important message. "The noble house of the Ironhills sent their challenge of a duel. If you deny this challenge, this will dishonor your name and position, but the rest of the house will stand behind the Ironhills while the lord of the house takes front against you. If you ept, you must send your knight against theirs three days from now." The messenger exins the situation and waits for Lord William''s reply, just like everyone else in the main hall. One thing is for sure, William''s Space Marines are taking this well as they all voice out and volunteer themselves as William''s champion. "ept their request and let us handle them, Chapter Master." One of the new Null Marines in terminator armor said with a victorious voice as he ced down his power hammer next to him. These new Null Marines are the ones William summoned and happened to be lieutenant of the firstpany. Hearing this, others voice their reason to be sent out as new and old Astartes gave good reasons. "Silence!" William''s voice echoed through the entire chamber, and everyone went silent. Every ranking Null Marines turned their attention to William while Lord Creed and other senior officers of the Astra Militarum kept their mouths shut. Their years of experience gave them some advanced insight into keeping their opinion when the situation demands it. As for Sisters and Admechs, they stay in the back to see what Lord Imperator Fratrum''s decision will be as they will follow him in this New World. "Messanger, I will ept this challenge and meet Ironhills outside the city wall. I warn you that if one of them breaks our agreement of duel or attack without good reason, I will ept this as a deration of war and will attack within my rights. Now, return to your master." William dismissed the messenger and sent them away. After the outsider left the throne room and closed doors, no one dared to speak or make any noise as William''sstmand still stands. "Now that messenger is gone with my answer; I need to know who will be the best suitable person for this duel. I know you are eager for some action after a few weeks of peace, but I can''t have my entire chapter go rampage like some mindless World Eaters." William''sst word made every Null Marines flinch as they didn''t want to bepared to the old''s traitor marines. It is true that they thirst to fight but still have a sense of self-control and will to deliver the Emperor''s judgment to his enemies. "Chapter Master, who would you deem worthy of taking this challenge?" Veteran Sergeant Sariel, former Blood Angel, spoke patiently as he and others waited. Former Blood Angels indeed cure their two curses and return to their prime as Great Angel''s sons, but they still seek real fight and test their new abilities as cksouls. "It is clear to me that I can''t send First Company or my honor guards to solve this problem. I need someone who can handle this matter with strength and diplomacy. I will not have this event turn us into barbaric invaders or greedy raiders. We will continue our crusade, but this will be called something else to maintain our name and honor." William exins his reason and thinks to himself as he taps his finger on his forehead. This situation requires careful hands, and sending a fleet of tanks won''t solve the problem, unlike the video games he yed in his previous life. "If this is not a crusade, what else would it be? My lord, you must hold a position of power in this world to take us back to our own world." Lord Creed finally said to William and reminded him of his sworn oath he made after returning from the ark ship. The room again filled with side conversations while William went into deep thought. A few secondster, William finishes his thoughts and lifts his power hammer slightly to make three banging sounds on the floor, regaining everyone''s attention. "Lord Creed, I remember my oath to you all, and I will fulfill that promise, but we need to identify our current goal. To unite thisnd, we require the people of thisnd to support us. For this reason, I won''t call this civil war a crusade or liberation. This isn''t significant enough or worthy enough to call it that. Let us call this ''Peacekeeping.'' Yes, we are Peacekeeping." William then stands up from his throne made out of stone and waves his hand to dere his new decree. "I, Chapter Master of the cksouls and Lord Imperator Fratrum, will maintain peace of thisnd and enforce Emperor''s will unto anyone against him. I hear by name these marines to step forward and keep the peace." William then said the names of a few Space Marines to represent him for an uing duel between cksouls and Ironhills. -------------------------- Three dayster, "You can''t be serious. How can you call that a knight?" Standing in front of 5,000 soldiers, a knight with shiny armor, holding a silvernce and mounting a fully armored warhorse, said aloud while everyone was stunned to describe what they were seeing. Standing on William''s side, an Imperial Knight Warive holds position while hundreds of Null Marines stand behind it. After the house Ironhills'' army gained passage to the capital city, they expected to see defenders holding a position within the city''s walls, but to their surprise, they were outside of the wall with a metal giant in front of them. What''s more absurd is that the metal giant is the official opponent of the house Ironhills and will be representing William''s side. "For your information, this is Imperial Knight, and rider is fully pledged knight of the Imperium. The difference is nothing but a different point of view on things." Arge man in fancy power armor exins to the Champion of the Ironhills. The champion at first brags his achievement in front of everyone to make himself more confident and regain everyone''s faith in him, but once Imperial Knight was appointed as his opponent, his bragging didn''t help at all. "Well, I suppose there is size difference and different weapons to consider. I guess it is in your right to have a different opponent." The Null Marine scratches his chin and signals Imperial Knight to stand down. Seeing this, everyone from Ironhills'' side exhaled their breaths as if they had just survived the death itself. "I will be your opponent. My name is Bolic Firehammer of the cksoulsm, formerly member of the Smanders." Bolic said to the knight and stepped forward, keeping a fair distance between him and the rest of his battle-brothers. The distance between Bolic and the knight isrge enough for the knight''s warhorse to charge at full speed and for Space Marine to hit with a bolter. Ironhills'' knight, seeing his opponent is now someone with metal armor, once again went on his achievements, including how he led arge group of knights to y monsters and a Warband of Orcs. This impressed everyone on his side, but no admiration came from William as they weren''t impressed with the story. When bragging was done, the knight positioned his infamous magicalnce at Bolic and paced his warhorse, which quickly galloped. Seeing iing warhorse and fully armored knight, Bolic pulls out his trusty heavy mer and starts the ignition with a hiss sound. The knight, who spent a massive amount of coins to enchant his armor and weapons, didn''t worry about small fireing out of Bolic''s weapon as his armor was enchanted with fire resistance. Just about when the warhorse reaches the range of the heavy mer, Bolic aims his weapon at the knight and his warhorse. With a slight pull from the trigger, the former son of the Vulkan unleashes a massive stream of mes with fearsome speed. The me of the heavy mer hit the warhorse but believing his armor, the knight didn''t change the horse''s direction or attempt to stop (It won''t help him at this point anyway). Both warhorse and knight are lost to the me as Bolic continues to pull the trigger. By the time Bolic stopped his weapon and watched the me die down, everyone saw who was the victor and loser as there was no trace of a warhorse or knight within the burnt ground. The ground is scorched to the point ground itself turns intove, and everything glows red. Bolic turned off his small me from the heavy mer as everyone on Ironhills'' side remained silent as if they couldn''t believe what had just happened. Their champion, who was previously famed for his bravery and strength to fight monsters, vanished into the mes. They knew they had lost, and their life now belonged to William, who is infamous for his tyrannical authority. "The victor is Lt. Bolic and to Chapter Master William. Drop your weapons and surrender. You had no chance of winning from the beginning." Sariel announced and raised his powersword to takemand of Null Marines in case the other side refused to surrender. His expectation of fighting didn''te to fruition as all soldiers and nobles from the Ironhills immediately surrendered to William''s forces. "Yes, we are Peacekeeping," Said William as he returned to his pce as Rana and other senior officers, including Lord Creed, followed behind him. Chapter 81: Visit from the Becketts Chapter 81: Visit from the Becketts Four Weeks Later, Capital City Pce Training Arena, "Let''s try this again," The 9-foot tall man said to his three opponents, and each of them took a fighting stance of their fitting to weapons they carried. Three men are armed with Space Marine power armor, and each is holding a chainsword, power hammer, and power sword (Without power or chainsword engine on). As for a 9-foot tall man, he was shirtless and wasn''t wearing any power armor except for his ordinary pants and iron gauntlets. He was holding a ck power sword without power turned on in his hand. With two fully armored Space Marine in front and the third one in his back, an average person doesn''t have a chance to survive this fight, but the man they are fighting isn''t ordinary. Outside the training arena, a small group of nobles anddies watch the entire event while knights stand behind them as their guard. But due to the strange and astonishing scene, they all forgot and watched closely, just like everyone else. The fight started with one of the Space Marine charging head-on with his chainsword. Aiming for the head, the chainsword came down fast and powerful, but the man moved aside and used his weapon''s handguard to twist his opponent''s hand and attempt to disarm the Space Marine. Seeing this, the second and third Space Marine jumped in a secondter to overwhelm the enemy but foreseeing the iing attack, the man used the first Space Marine''s body as a shield and blocked the second attacker. Kicking both Space Marines with incredible strength, the man pushes two opponents out of his way and immediately ready himself with a third attacker. Using his ck sword to parry the third Space Marine, the man uses all his strength to push the Space Marine and attempt to trip him with his right leg, but before he could do that, the first and second Space Marines recovered quickly and rushed towards the man. This time, two Space Marines were going for abo attack to hinder their opponent, but to everyone''s surprise, the man simply grabbed the third Space Marine and tossed him like he was lumber. Weighing nearly a ton, the one of the Space Marine went down after catching an iing battle brother. The one still standing, wielding a power hammer, swings his weapon left and right with precision. Each hit from the hammer would have killed any man, but his opponent countered with his sword and blocked a few iing attacks with ease, even without the power field. Feeling the extension of time within this fight, the man blocks the iing attack with his own and deflects the entire weight of the hammer back at the Space Marine. With the enemy''s hammer pulled back, the man quickly turns his sword another way around and uses the sword''s hilt to grab the Space Marine''s neck. With a slight pull from the man, Space Marine''s neck is pulled, and with it, his entire body as his upper and lower body loses bnce as his neck, the middle is being pulled in the opposite direction. With his enemy''s face approaching him, the man makes the small jump and uses his right leg to kick the Space Marine''s helmet. The man wasn''t wearing any fancy metal boots or his signature power armor, but his brutal strength was enough to put down thest Space Marine into the ground. Seeing this, everyone, including knights, was speechless and unable to process what they saw. A man, a 9-foot giant of a man without his armor, managed to defeat three of his warriors who were armed and equipped with armor, lost so quickly. An inexperienced and average man would say the man got lucky or had his speed thanks to not wearing his heavy armor, and his swordsmanship is simple for others to copy. Unfortunately, they wouldn''t realize how much precision and timing it requires to fight three opponents without seriously hurting them. The quick reaction after recognizing which enemy is making the first move, anticipating the second and third enemy, and making a quick decision to counter the iing enemy while instinctively using his strength to measure the amount it requires to make the attack sessfully. Use ofrge greatsword to counter heavy weapon attacks and swiftly change the weapon to make a situation where the man has the advantage. Finally, doing all this without seriously hurting his men or himself this entire time. It requires a calm mind, battle experience, and years of practice to understand what his own and opponents'' weapons are capable of. The man has shown masterful demonstration and a small piece of what the Chapter Master of the cksouls can do. William, putting away his ck sword, helped his battle brothers and gave a few quickie key points when ites to fighting an experienced warrior in meleebat. Since the 40K universe is full of named characters who is master of des andbat, this is a perfect demonstration of how to fight them when needed. This will require years or maybe half of Space Marine''s life to master it, but one day this would save their lives when faced with one of the named characters in the future. "How in the world did he do that? It seems impossible to fight and survive one warrior, but he managed to do this himself. Not to mention this was his fourth demonstration. Isn''t he tired at this point?" One of the noblemen from the Alderim spoke what everyone was thinking. Others acknowledge the nobleman''sment, and while youngdies stare, some blush behind their fans due to William''s physical appearance. Rana was the only person who wasn''t hiding behind the fan or overwhelmed by his physical strength. Giving deadly stares and being unable to do anything as noblewomen are her family members, she invited them to meet William in person. Rana''s father and her brothers are high-ranking noblemen who rule Rana''s home region under Alderim''s royal family. After realizing William''s campaign in Legen was taking longer than expected, Rana invited her family members to visit her so she could introduce William to them. The whole thing turned into abat demonstration when they saw William''s military might. William, who wants to show off what he is capable of to Rana''s family members, decided to show grand entertainment by introducing vital senior members of the chapter and officers, including Lord Creed. Eventually, this formal meeting turned into abat exhibition after one of Rana''s brothers asked William if his achievements were true, including the ying of the vampire lord. "Sir William, every story and rumor about you is true. I couldn''t believe there is a man who aplished all those deeds and didn''t receive proper recognition from King Benton." Rana''s father and close rtive of King Benton said to William as he is officially impressed with William. Even after witnessing William''s military forces and the new capital city construction, Rana''s father didn''t approve of this William until he saw for himself. Now, he is certain Rana chose the right man for herself and the Alderim. "That is certainly true, father. When I heard that my dear sister was following a pdin of different religion, I couldn''t believe why and for what purpose. Now, I see why Rana decided to be an advisor and representative of the Alderim in this conflict." Rana''s oldest brother, the heir of the Beckett family line, said with an approving sound while others node to their agreement. "Well, he is more than just a pdin, you see. William is¡­" Before Rana could finish her sentence, a newly upgraded dreadnought, Brother Raduriel, spoke with a clear and loud mechanical voice for everyone to hear. "Chapter Master William is one of the Emperor''s chosen. We will follow his footsteps to the end of the known worlds, and from hismands, we will destroy the Emperor''s enemy. In the era of dark times, we serve the Imperium and Emperor''s servants as he has given us tools to do so. Emperor protects!" The moment Brother Raduriel finish his sentence, every cksouls shouts, ''Emperor protects!'' which startled everyone who isn''t familiar with 40k. "By the creator and gods! The statue spoke!" One of thedies who was introduced as Rana''s youngest sister screamed and fainted after realizing the giant metal statue she thought turned out to be alive. "Medic!" Lord Commissar Cain called one of the medics standing by to help the poordy. Men and women of the Beckett family''s faces turn blue as they also were shocked and unable to believe that the fancy statue was a working construct. This gave a cold realization that William hasve not only the manpower and potential knowledge to craft some kind of golem. "My apologies for Brother Raduriel''s direct approach. He didn''t mean to harm any of you. After all, you are Rana''s family, and I hope to build a close rtionship in the future." William said apologetically and did his best to show diplomatic guile. Medic and a few knights helped the fainted woman and took her to the pce. "Why don''t we go back to the pce and enjoy a refreshment since dinner time is almost here? I will have one of my brothers care for thedy until she can join us." William signal one of the servants to show the way while Null Marines escort everyone into the pce. The servants were hired locals who previously had experience with high-ss work. Everyone was screened for potential spies or assassins and their loyalty to the new ruling government ruler. Inside the pce, the masterwork of arts reced marble stone statues and other decorations of the previous owners. The pce of the cksouls is designed close to a ssic gothic theme as an entire pce is built to show an artistic feeling of grimdark and a somewhat viin-like feel of it. Looking from the outside, a person can tell the pce is more than just a fancy ce where royals live. The entire exterior of the pce is now built to survive orbital bombardment and thest line of defense against anyone who decided to siege the fortress. Yes, the pce is now a fortress, and it is twice the size of the previous building, and the massive size of the defensive walls can withstand the artillery bombardment (This William knows because Null Marines who were former members of the Imperial Fists and ck Temrs tested it). After a rigorous two days of testing, the pce defense was set to build, and everything else was added like some massive lego set. The entire project to build the fortress took many weeks and many raw materials from the other areas, but the effort was worth it. Considering this is the headquarters of the cksouls and where Chapter Master will make his critical decisions, the builders used all their knowledge and previous experiences to build a near-perfect fortress. Aside from the superior defense, the fortress has various rooms. From massive kitchens to feed hundreds and maybe thousands of people to full strategy room with built-in equipment (Provided by the Cog boys), the fortress has rooms for everything. For the grand interior of the fortress, the builders did what they did best: decorate the whole ce from top to bottom with skulls, different styles of arts of the Imperium, and more skulls. First, the arts were created and sometimes crafted by former Blood Angels and Smanders. From the infamous full-size portrait of the Emperor of Mankind in his golden power armor to the great battle scene dedicated to Cadia, the fortress is filled with masterwork arts and statues. Second, the skulls weren''t real but rather stone carved or painted images since William didn''t want to benefit one of the Chaos gods with skulls harvesting. Still, the work was done beautifully, like skulls and a more gothic style of decoration brought forward what living in the 40k would be like. What is more surprising is that some Catachans managed to hunt big games and stuff them to show magnificent disy. Some were fearsome beasts, and some were nightmarish beast monsters. William could guess that he won''t have any monster issues for a while since jungle fighters went a little crazy handling unknown creatures. Lastly, the fortress is more than a defensive structure or military headquarters for everyone. A random person can tell that the interior, from the corner of the walls to the massive pir supporting the ceiling, tells some kind of religious message or representation. Cleverly, the fortress is also a temple to worship the Emperor of Mankind and was even blessed by the Sisters of Battle with holy water and incense from the mers. William could guess which the previous chapter did this since he came to this world as one of them. When Becketts enter the pce (Fortress), the iconic g of the Imperium Aqu is the first thing to wee the noble family, and soon their faces change direction every second to absorb the beauty of the ce. Feeling much better and somewhat experienced with the fortress, Rana shows her knowledge of the ce by answering any family member''s questions. Eventually, everyone arrived at the entertaining room, where the fortress staff had already prepared snacks and drinks for everyone. Entering a beautiful and overwhelming room, Becketts explores the massive room as William excuse himself to clean up and eventually join everyone until dinner is ready. --------------------------------- [The story continues as one particr member of the Beckett family experience a life-changing event this day.] Maria Beckett, age 23 and the youngest daughter of the Beckett family, finally woke up to realize she was sleeping in one of the mostfortable beds in her life. Looking around the room, Maria saw exquisite decorations and paintings of some unknown battles as she got her half of the body up from the bed. If she didn''t know where she was before waking up, Maria would have guessed that this was Alderim royal pce and she was lying in the king''s private room. Before Maria could call anyone outside the room, giant golden doors opened wide, and a most beautiful man entered the room. Not tall as Lord William, but the man is still warrior built with his iron-like muscles and beautiful long blonde hair. The stranger was wearing casual clothes, but after looking closely, Maria realized the man was wearing some kind of white and golden robe. "Who are you?" Maria carefully asked the stranger as if she was dreaming. The man''s face was perfect and more beautiful than William''s. Sure, Lord Willliam was indeed manly, but this man was manly and beautiful beyond anyone Maria had ever seen in her life. The stranger responds to Maria''s question just after his eyes and hers met. Approaching the bed gracefully and well mannered, the man standing next to her kneeled and answered her question at her eye level. "My name is Leonidas Astandro, senior apothecary to the Legion of the cksouls and your doctor until you are well enough to rejoin your family. I''m here to serve you," The man said his name and exined his reason for being here, but the only thing Maria managed to understand was the man''s name. "Leonidas Astandro. Sir Leonidas Astandro¡­" Maria''s voice faded away as she continued to mumble Leonidas''s name as if she was infusing that very name into her mind. Meanwhile, the former Blood Angel and apothecary of the legion prepares as he grabs a simple medical device to check his patient''s health. After scanning Maria and checking her overall health, Leonidas confirms that there is no problem and Maria is in perfect health. In case of the previous loss of consciousness mighte back to hurt her, Leonidas makes a small dose of medicine to boost Maria''s general health and mind. "Now, this might hurt a little bit, but please bear with me for a quick second," With that, the doctor injected Maria with medicine proscribed and produced by the scanning device. Without realizing what was going on, Maria received technologically advanced medicine that, unknown to her, is part of the collection of the STC library William acquired from the ark ship. The medicine immediately helped Maria as nanobots within liquid medicines quickly went to work, and the first thing it did was help Maria''s mind to focus more clearly. "Thank you. I didn''t even feel it at all. I''m Maria Beckett, and I''m sure you know my name already." Maria quickly hides her blushed cheeks with one of her hands as she attempts to start the conversation moredylike. She was trained to be more presentable and nobledylike in her entire life as she represented her family name. Beckett is one of the most well-known names after the royal, and she can''t jeopardize the years of training because she is in bed next to a handsome guy. "I''m d to hear. If you are feeling well, I can help you get back on your feet and escort you to where your family is. I assure you that I will be next to you until you are well." Leonidas''s words hit directly towards Maria''s heart, and her temperature went high, but thanks to the nanobots, her body readjusted to average temperature and continued its work on repairing and exterminating the hidden virus within her body. "Yes, thank you. What a gentleman you are," Maria slowly moved her body and raised her right hand so Leonidas could gently raise her to her feet. If others saw it, this scene would mistake for a romantic scene from a novel or y, but it wasn''t. For Maira, it was, but for Leonidas, this was an extra assignment given to him by Chapter Master himself. ''You can keep your knight, Rana. I now have my prince, and he is much better looking them yours.'' Maria thought to herself and moved beside Leonidas as they gently walked towards the door like a newlywed couple. --------------------------------- Royal Dining Hall of the Fortress, William sat in the center of the table while a guest of honor sat next to him on the left and Rana on his right. Everyone else took their designated seats (Including Maria and Leonidas since he is high ranking member of the Astartes). This also includes officers of the Imperial Guardsmen, representatives of the Sisters, senior Tech-priests, and captains and lieutenants of the cksouls (Without their power armor and everyone armed with rudimentary weapons hidden). The mood of the dining hall is lively, unlike the interior design of the hall as former Space Wolves and other easy-going personalities cheer and celebrate the deeds of the newly founded Astartes chapter. Meanwhile, Sisters, Tech-priests, and uptight Space Marines maintain their disciplines as they only spoke when certain subjects rted to their interest came to light. Mostly weapons, tactics, and research of the STC, the conversation between these three types didn''tst for Becketts or the officers of the Astra Militarum. Meanwhile, servants continue to bring food after another and refill various kinds of alcohol to the guests. This didn''t stop William from receiving endless questions from the head of the Beckett family, Archduke Godfrey Hodge Beckett. Rana''s father is a veteran of the battlefield and overseer of the lower-ranking nobles under his authority, asked multiple questions from military strategy to William''s early history as an adventurer. Considering one of themanders of his military forces and the first daughter to fallen for William, Archduke Godfrey is interrogating and measuring William''s character. Archduke Godfrey doesn''t care if a man wields power or possesses considerable wealth. If that man failed to protect his daughter from any threat, including himself, then Archduke Godfrey will consider that man unworthy of his daughter. "So, tell me, Lord William. What is your thought on the current event that you yourself started? ording to my spywork, not only every nobles house is forming alliances, but even the former king of Legen is on his way with a massive mercenary army backing him." Archduke Godfrey knew the typical answer he would receive, especially if they were cocky and full of themself, but to his surprise, William put down his spoon after taking the first scoop from the soup he was served with. William then turned his head toward Rana and grabbed her hand before she could take her first sip from the same soup she had received. Unlike everyone''s soup, this particr dish was given to only William as the chef''s rmendation, specially made only for him. Rana received her portion of the soup because she requested hers at thest second after William''s bowl was filled. "William, what''s wrong?" Rana asked William surprisedly as she dropped her spoon due to William''s hand holding hers. Seeing unusual activitying from the master of the fortress, everyone''s attention went to the center of the dining table. Even Lord Creed put down his cigar as he saw something he didn''t expect to see from Chapter Master. Finally, William let go of Rana''s hand and took her soup bowl to his side. Everyone observes as Chapter Master finally opens his mouth to exin his action. "I''m tasting something tingling within my tongue, and my body is reacting with an increase in body temperature. I believe I''m poisoned." Chapter 82: Let the Hunt Begin Chapter 82: Let the Hunt Begin "Poison! Hurry, we need a healer NOW!" Archduke Godfrey immediately called for help when he heard William''s words about him being poisoned. Not only is the man his eldest daughter''s lover but a mightly military leader of an unknown religion. If William dies from the poison on the same day the entire Beckett family was invited, they could end up being a suspect, and it could lead to another war where Alderim has no chance of winning. No one moved an inch. Everyone except Rana was panicking, and some of the Beckett family turned pale due to the horrible news, but none of Lord William''s men, including military general and officers, moved or showed expression of any concern at all. ''Have they gone mad? Why aren''t they doing anything? Wait, is this a possible military coup? If it is, what have we got ourselves into?'' Godfrey quickly turns his head left and right to see if anyone will do anything at all. If his theory is correct, they are superiorly screwed and would be political prisoners. Slowly reaching for his ceremonial sword, Godfrey swears on his family name that he will do everything to protect his family, even if he can buy 10 seconds for everyone to escape. Just as the Archduke was about to touch the hilt of his sword, William suddenly stood up from his seat. "Lockdown the fortress. No one is leaving, and track down everyone who left the fortress 30 minutes to one hour ago. Lord Creed will be handling the security of the fortress, and Lord Commissar Cain will take charge of identifying and counting all staff members." William gave a quick order, and every member of Astra Militarum followed their two leaders, leaving the chamber. Seeing this, Godfrey eased his hand as his theory was wrong, and William was still inmand. Still, the poison inside William''s system is a big concern but considering his massive size, it would take timepared to the ordinary man. "Lord William, you need a healer now. The poison¡­" Godfrey said, but before he could finish his sentence, his youngest daughter, Maria, stood up from her table and over-spoke her father with excitement. "Sir Leonidas can help Lord William. Can''t you?" Maria said to the young man next to her while everyone''s attention moved from William to this new person who hadn''t spoken this entire time. Godfrey and every member of the Becketts saw a very handsome and beautiful man in his formal clothing who got up and approached the main table with a strange device in his hand. "Is he a healer?" One of Rana''s brothers asked with curiosity as he couldn''t believe another giant of a man with a handsome face might be a healer. A giant man with arge wolf pelt and armor full of rune symbols answered the young Beckett''s question. "Not a healer but much worse. A damn apothecary with blood obsession." Man in wolf armor said with a bit of irritation as he drank arge mug of powerful alcohol. He continued after finishing his drink. "I say. All Lord William need isn''t some fancy medicine to cure his poison. His body can take care of that! So, why not drink a mug of Mj?d and let his body continue to heal? Just like a Wolf King did when he sumbed to injury and decided to finish eight barrels of Mj?d before returning to the battlefield." The Wolf Seer, who is now one of the senior members of the cksouls librarian, raises his empty mug high, which the rest of the former Space Wolves follow as they cheer to remember the great deeds and tales of the Wolf King. "Wait, his body can do that?" The eldest son of the Godfrey asked as he couldn''t believe what he had just heard. Poisoning of certain key nobles and military generals is somewhat rare but unheard of as history is full of assassins and backstabbing from close allies. "Sure, we all can cure ourselves of poisons of all kinds. As long as it is not an extremely potent kind like the one that idiot is currently drinking." One of the Astartes with a square chin and military haircut answered the first son''s question. He wasn''t most handsome or beautiful, just like the one Maria is clingy to, but his appearance and physical appearance can tell he was an experienced warrior. Even though he wasn''t wearing his armor, the man was carrying arge greatsword with a blue color hilt and the white symbol of the U on the sword guard. "Ha, you are way too uptight, Dioricus. Loosen it up for one second, and you will see there is nothing to worry about. Here have a ss of wine if Mj?d is too much for you." Wolf Seerughs aloud as if he has already forgotten about what happened a few minutes ago. This remark made Dioricus and a few former Ultramarines re at their battle-brother of former Space Wolves, but knowing them, it is incredible that fight didn''t break off right away. "Enough with side talk. Leave the room if you want to be useful." Captain Bolic Firehammer of the firstpany quiets down everyone while waiting for Leonidas to finish his examination. After a few more secondster, Leonidas finish his scan and pat William''s shoulder with a smile on his face. "The body already purges the poison. The tingling sensation from Lord William''s mouth was the indication that his body had already released antitoxin and built immunity to that poison. Lord William, please maintain from making the exchange of fluid for the next four days. Your body is currently producing powerful antitoxin, and it could kill a regr person if it identally enters their body." Apothecary exins it to William and is about to step away from him when the doors to the chamber open, and arge group of Sister of Battle (Both from Order of Our Martyred Lady and Hospitaller) rush in with their bolters in their hands. Behind thedies, everyone can see Commissar Cain and Jurgen following them with the defeated face as their attempt to secure every person is interrupted by the Sister of Battle. William could guess that Sister came here right away a moment Lord Creed initiated lockdown, and the Commissar once again failed to stop overzealous women from leaving their quarters. William wanted to invite Sister Superior Sabina Mire to the event, but she couldn''t make it due to her busy schedule of healing and religious services to themon people. Considering their origin and background of 40k lore, William was ok with their current activities as healers, not religious fanatics. Well, for now, that is. "Sister Superior, Lord William is fine, and you don''t need to worry about¡­." Dioricus approaches with a shiny smile to stop the Sisters, but just like Commissar Cain, his square smile doesn''t stop them from passing him as Sister Superior''s sharp re stop giant Astartes. Seeing this, Wolf Seerughed while drinking, making him spill most of his drink onto himself. ''So, even great codex doesn''t have instruction on stopping raging women. Thank you, Lord Guilliman, for the great instruction manual .'' William thought to himself and took his seat to show there was nothing to worry about, and everything was under control. Meanwhile, all Becketts were again in panic (Except Rana and Maria) and amazed to see arge group of warrior women in ck and red armor overpowering Space Marine with a simple re. "Wee, Sister Superior. I hope you didn''t bring half of your number just to take care of me." William wee Sister Superior Sabina as she gave a hand signal to stop everyone behind her. Sabina quickly scanned the room and went to her knee while holding her bolter. After witnessing William''s ''miracle,'' Sabina and her sisters did this every time, which made William a bit ufortable. Even after exining to her that she didn''t need to do this, she continued and didn''t seem to stop at any point. So, William gave up and just let her do as she wished. On the other hand, Rana was visited by them every day and even had special bodyguards until she disbanded them with a white feather in her hand. That convinced Sisters and followed the order like writing on the stone, but unfortunately, when Sister found out Rana''s army had magicians was aplete disaster. Long story short, William had to give a special decree to stop the Sisters from going fire crazy and send them away from the capital city for two weeks before they came back with cooler heads (With the report of arge number of monsters and small armiespletely obliterated by them). "Lord William, I know you are testing my faith. Our belief is stronger than ever, and I know Emperor''s Angel doesn''t fall from the simple poison from this New World. We are here to do our duty to protect you and the Emperor''s holy host." ''Oh no, not this again.'' Rana said to herself as she could see Sister Superior was using this moment to ce a permanent bodyguard on her. "You know that my honor guards are more than capable of protecting me, right?" William said to Sister Superior, but it didn''t go through her as she made a counterargument. "That is not enough, my lord. Assassin managed to break into our defense and managed to poison you. As your advisor and Emperor''s servant, I must follow my duty with my life." Sister Superior said with a dedication to her mission, and after that, every sister behind her spoke in unison. "Let the Emperor''s servant protect his realm and his people. Burn the Heretic! Kill the Mutant! Purge the Unclean!" ''By the throne. I swear, I need to do something quickly, or else they will burn the city down to ashes just to find this assassin.'' William thought to himself and decided to solve the problem first before deciding who would protect who. "Wolf Seer!" William called not-so-drunk Astartes. "Yes, Lord Imperator Fratrum." Wolf Seer approach the table a few feets away and bow with his right arm across his chest, giving a respectable bow. To Godfrey and everyone else, the man covered with wolf skin wasn''t drunk or showing any sign-off as they knew that man was the first to consume most of the drinks tonight. "I know how infamous warriors of Fenrisian are with tracking and hunting skills. Gather your wolves, hunt this assassin down, and bring it to me, alive. That is unless Sisters somehow manage to find the assassin first." William said to Wolf Seer amusingly as hisst word made this into a hunting game. Hearing this, both Wolf Seer and Sister Superior raise their heads at once with excitement. Someone willplete this task, and the assassin who is hiding within the fortress will wish death, no matter who finds them first. Sister of Battle has experience when ites to fighting and hunting down heretics, mutants, and unclean, but Wolf Seer has one significant critical advantage, which is a pack of Fenrisian Wolves. Hail from the homeworld of Fenris, Fenrisian Wolf is a fearsome wolf-like beast with near-human intelligence and size that could match even Space Marines. These wolves are big enough for the Space Wolves to ride them intobat and follow wherever their masters go, for they are loyalpanions. It is said that the legendary Wolf King himself was raised by the mother Thunderwolf (A powerful type of Fenrisian Wolf) and her cubs. After returning to civilization, Leman Russ marched to war with not one but two wolves apanying him everywhere he went. Following this tradition, Space Wolves have the loyalpany of wolves with them no matter where they go or who they have to fight. "I see. Then, I will personally hunt this assassin down before wolves do." Sister Superior immediately left the chamber with her small army following her. Knowing how effective the Fenrisian Wolves are, Sabina made her first move before Wolf Seer could process his brain. "That damn woman, at least give me a warning before running away." Wolf Seer said aloud with no worries and put two fingers on his lips. Making a sharp whistle, he summons his loyalpanion; a momentter, a ck-maned wolf enters the chamber after literally breaking the wooden door with his two front paws. "By the heaven and divine! What is that beast?" Godfrey yelled with fear when he saw an enormous wolf he had ever seen push through the thick doors and one push. "His name is Midnight, and he is the pack leader," Wolf Seer answered Godfrey, and before Archduke could say anything to what Wolf Seer said, 29 more wolves entered the chamber. Following them, the rest of the former Space Wolves enter a room with weapons ready. Seeing the rest of the pack in the room, Midnight howled, creating a chain reaction for the rest to follow. The eardrum tearing sound cut shortly thanks to Wolf Seer takingmand of the whole pack and leading them to the hunt. "Follow me, my wolves! We have an assassin to track and hunt!" With that, 30 wolves and cksouls left the dining chamber, leaving the smell of beasts behind. "Ok, so who wants to change location before they alle back with an assassin? I was told this time around is the perfect season for a night party." William made his announcement and ordered his honor guards to escort everyone to the backyard, where the much bigger open ground was avable for everyone. Before leaving the chamber, William sends a vox message to one particr person specializing in infiltration to find the assassin. If William were a gambling man, he would bet this person would find the assassin first before others do, making this much more interesting for his guests. Chapter 83: Name That Gods Will Know Chapter 83: Name That Gods Will Know Deadshade is a man of an exciting life with a particr set of skills. When he was only seven years old, before earning his nickname as Deadshade, he killed a man with a simple steak knife after the man attempted to steal his only coin out of drunkenness. Of course, this was a very traumatic event for a young boy but growing up in a slum, his perception of life and harsh reality hardened his mind to make something out of it. With the taste of first blood under him, the boy pursues the path of de for hire and soon attracts the attention of the city''s underworld organization. After bing a novice in the organization, the young man found his calling through the art of assassination and espionage. It turned out, that the young man was natural when it came to stealth and acrobatic, which gave him tremendous advantages no one could match. Seeing a potential within the organization, the council of shadows decided to invest arge amount of resources to create the greatest master assassin in the history of their organization. At the age of 13, a young man trained in higher education above the average peasant would. By attending an academy for nobles and wealthy merchants, the young man adapted to the situation and blended in with the higher ss as if he belonged there. For five years, no one knew the truth or suspected the young man to be a slum rat or lower ss as his act was wless until the end. After graduating with honor and making several connections with the noble houses and wealthy merchants, the young man''s proper training started. The mastery of stealth and blending could do so much without drenching his hand with blood as a young man spend four years with several masters of various skills to learn. From the art of des to poisons, the young man expanded his skill sets beyond what ordinary assassins could learn in their lifetime. By the end of his training, he was ready, and to ensure he was loyal to the organization, he killed his masters and anyone who knew his identity. With his training finished and passed beyond his masters, he discarded his name and epted the new name the counsel gave to him, Deadshade. Deadshade shook the underworld for many years and brought countless coins to the organization. From the humble killing of a minor nobleman who didn''t pay protection to the assassination of royal blood, Deadshade''s de was drenched with blood and poisons as his legend grew. By the time assassin passed his prime, he had multiple pupils under his wing, and very few managed to stay alive to follow him during his mission given by the council. Deadshade didn''t take anyone under his wing to train them and pass on his knowledge. Taking an example from his dead masters, Deadshade teach each student one set of skill that would match their natural talent but withhold the rest. None of his pupils learned everything from their master, and those who survived continued to hone their skills to the point they became masters of their own set of skills. Few did attempt to take their master''s life, but with limited skill under their belt, Deadshade returned the favor and separated those loyal to him and those who are to the organization. With all his achievements and stories that would pass on for generations, Deadshade wants one thing and one thing only. It is to mark one for the history book as a legendary assassin and ce his name among gods, forever remembered by everyone. At this moment in his life, one particr request came to him caught his attention. An exiled royal family with a considerable amount of gold coins sent the enormous bounty of the king''s ransom. The assignment is very political but would set organization for hundred years and will help Deadshade aplish his life goal. The task is to kill the warlord known as William and bring down his grip on the Legen capital city. ''Finally, someone who can help me reach my name among gods.'' Deadshade was thrilled to kill the man who is also on the same path to ce his name among the divine realm. After gathering the necessary information and tools for the job, Deadshade assembled all his pupils with him and went on a mission he will never forget. --------------------------- "Save me!" A man in dark clothing screamed as a gigantic wolf bit off most of his lower body with a single bit. Without warning, a giant wolf came out of nowhere and attacked the man as if he was a tiny mouse caught in the act of stealing the grain. From a single bite, a wolf, if a person can call it, bit off arge chunk of the stomach and munched as if he was soft jerky. "Please. Oh, gods, anyone, please help me." The man cried out with hisst breath, but it was quiet as a whisper. The creature finished its first meal, returned right away, and bit the man''s head, crushing the skull with a cracking sound. [In the name of gods, what is that thing? Master, what do we do?] One of his pupils, the master of a dagger, asked her master with hand gestures as everyone else stayed hidden. Stay focused and follow the rules on the job. Everyone knew to use hand gestures tomunicate or receive orders. [We move on. While the creature is distracted, we escape before guards show up to investigate.] Deadshade gave his instructions and was about to move from the shadows when the loud sound of ''BAM'' came behind the wolf and hit the female pupil he wasmunicating with. The pupil who was Deadshade''s student for nearly seven years exploded immediately as her entire chest now had arge hole, and part of her bones became shrapnel, wounding two more who were close to her. Out of six pupils, Deadshade brought with him, already four are down, unable to recover them, while two next to him are shocked as they made a slight sound of panic under their breath. "Come out, little rats. I can hear your heartbeats and smell your breath. You should know not to venture into wolves'' den and expect to survive." Deadshade turned his head to see who had said that, and he immediately regretted his action instead of running away. Behind the giant wolf, thergest man Deadshade had ever seen walked in with some kind of metal crossbow in his hand. What made Deadshade regret wasn''t the man''s formidable size to fight a bear or war te that would weight wagon, but his ferocious appearance. ''He looks more like a wild barbarian than a knight.'' Deadshade thought to himself and pulled out his poison-throwing knives. Following their master, the two remaining pupils pull out their respected range weapons with poison-coated ammunition. Three men throw/ fire their poison weapons at the knight, but to their surprise, the giant knight pulls out a shield with a wolf symbol on it out of nowhere. The two pupils'' weapons bound off, and only Deadshade''s dagger stuck onto the shield. Seeing this, the knight withdraws the shield and pulls out the dagger from the shield with his other hand using two fingers (While holding the bolter simultaneously). "Hmmm, smell just like the poison in Lord Wim''s soup." The knight sniffs the dagger and tastes the de with his tongue. ''What is he doing? That poison is from one of my own forme.'' Deadshade was surprised to see a knight stupid enough to consume poison from the de that was aiming for his life a few seconds before. But before he could organize his thoughts, the same loud noise could be heard from the opposite sides, and the two remaining pupils met the same faith as their bodies exploded. ''Shit, how are they keep finding us so quickly? The concealment magic should have made us invisible.'' Deadshade quickly changes his position and moves within the shadows. At the sametime, he quickly turned around to see who fired the strange weapons, and to his surprise, it was a single woman in full body armor, including a strange white helmet. "Lord William said he wanted the assassin alive, but he didn''t say how many. Now, ept your faith and stay still, or I will hit a vital part." The woman in the full suit of armor aimed her bolter, but the giant wolf jumps in front of her to prevent Deadshade from meeting his maker. "Damn it, woman! That was my prey before you came here. I smell the damn assassin before you could detect him with your fancy thermal sensor." Wolf Seer shouts as he aims his bolter at the Deadshade. Sister''s reaction is expected if Deadshade knows when women are told by brutish men what she can and can''t do. "You savage Astartes are nothing but shame to the Emperor''s name. All you did before I came in is to feed your pet wolf and drink on the job!" Sister Superior changes her aim toward Wolf Seer and his wolf as she points out that Wolf Seer was indeed drinking this entire time from his ale canteen. "Well, if you didn''t kill the other two, I would have secured three prisoners instead of one. Why don''t you leave this to the real servant of the Emperor, and you instead go hunt some mutants or heretics?" Wolf Seer put away his ale canteen and changed his aim to the Sister as his wolf began to growl. This didn''t scare Sister Superior as she pulled up her helmet visor and growled back at the wolf, which started to back off a little bit. ''What the FUCK is wrong with these people?" Deadshade quickly kills his presence and makes his escape while two warriors and a best are distracted. The standoff between Astartes and Sisters of Battle continues after the master assassin managed to escape as the rest of their respected group joined in, creating more problems than a simple case of an assassination attempt. --------------------------- The Roof of the Fortress, ''Ok, I just need to jump and glide out of here. Forget about this job. I''m retiring.'' Deadshade extends his clothes to connect the parts so he can glide among the winds when he makes the jump. This particr idea of escape was created by someone named Makato, who provided design and method to the organization in exchange for eliminating a specific group of adventurers rival to his group. Just as Deadshade was about to jump, sharp pain flowed into his body as if he was stabbed in his legs and arms. Unkown to the master assassin, a sniper from the far distance fired four rounds with precision to prevent the assassin from escaping without killing him. Laying down on the rooftop before losing consciousness, Deadshade saw a woman in a dark skin suit approaching him and looking at him as if he was a lesser being, as if his life work wasn''t worthy and noticeable to her. ---------------------- Mechanicus Laboratory and Workshop, [What is your wish, Lord William? Our time is more important to unlock Omnissiah''s gifts than modifying this flesh.] Magos Callias asked William with a bitter tone as if William had just interrupted the tech priest''s lecture. "I just need you to get information from him before he ''expires,''" William said to Magos Callias while two assassins dropped a wounded man still breathing and alive. [He won''t expire. My scan indicates this man''s wounds are nonlife-threatening as his organs are still functioning within 47 percent. I rmend giving it to Sister of Battle since they are experts in torturing and information gathering.] Magos Callias scanned Deadshade quickly as possible and pushed the responsibilities as if this was an irrelevant task. "I would if Sisters and Space Wolves actually followed my order instead of brawling among each other. Both groups are under heavy repent for theirck of discipline." William sighed, remembering his judgment which took two hours and strict sentencing for both groups. [You could just consume his flesh and assimte his knowledge. Your Omophagea gene-seed organ is more than capable of gathering all the information you need to find your killer. Of course, I was informed that consuming the brain would be much more effective than flesh. Let us test this theory.] One of Magos''s metal arms changes shape into aser scalpel while his facial expression somehow changes from irritation to excitement. "Hold on. I''m not eating human flesh. For Emperor''s sake and mine, please extract all the information. In exchange, you can turn him into a servitor." William protests and holds his hand to stop the mad tech-priest from making William into Hannibal Lecter. [That is the most efficient method to serve the Omnissiah. I understand, my lord, but please remember to use your full potential instead of holding back.] Magos express his concern and retrieve the nearly dead master assassin into his custody. ''My full potential?'' Magos''sstment made William wonder about his biology as Space Marine and if he is indeed using the full ability, it provided. Aside from his nubility, physical strength, speed, and endurance, William never used acid spit or Omophagea to acquire knowledge from other sentient beings. ''Maybe I should get a small bite,'' The thought came to him automatically as if it was the idea of getting a midnight snack. Without William''s knowledge, he became more Space Marine while losing his emotional state as a human from Earth. Not correcting his thought, William followed the Magos by himself while sending his assassins away for different duties. --------------------------- From the elimination of master assassins: [Null Marines (Formerly from Raven Guard Chapter) x40: Master of stealth and shadow, these Null Marines specialize in infiltration and sabotage behind the enemy line. As sons of Primarch Corvus Corax, the former Raven Guard possess an unnatural ability to blend with darkness and speed to remain stealthy. Holding rank among the original founding chapter, these Astartes continue the fine art of Wrath-slipping and the lesson of tactical data collection to evaluate the enemy before striking them down. Due to their military doctrine, these Astartes have their armor painted ck as their primary color instead of ck grey to blend with the environment suitable to them. Each member possesses a set of lighting ws, chainsword, jetpack, and bolter rifle with long-range scope.] --------------------------- Note: cksouls'' colors are, Primary armor color: Dark Grey Secondary armor color: ck Blue Decorate color: Silver or gold Symbol: Number zero with the letter I in the middle. Power hammer behind the zero with the head of the hammer engraved with the Aqu of the Imperium of Man. [The number zero symbolizes the Nubility of the Chapter, while the letter ''I'' doesn''t represent a connection to the inquisition but rather one unity of all Astartes as cksouls ept other Space Marines. The Power hammer symbolizes the powerful strike at the enemy of the Emperor, but it also represents the symbol of hope to rebuild the Imperium and stop the stagnation it is experiencing. Finally, the Aqu within hammerhead is to show undying loyalty to the Emperor as cksouls follow his teaching of Imperial Truth, not Imperial Creed.] Chapter 84: Joint Operation Chapter 84: Joint Operation ''That was way too close.'' William forcibly stops himself from consuming the brain piece of a master assassin while Magos Callias stare at the Chapter Master, who is about to eat the piece of enemy flesh. [Is something wrong? Lord William. This is the part of the piece you did wish to consume, isn''t it?] The Tech-priest double-checked the part of the brain since he was the one who dissected it. Of course, this was all done after Tech-priest used his machines to import vital information from the master assassin, including who was his employer. With every piece of information retrieved, Magos Callias was about to create the first servitor of this world when William requested to have a piece of the brain. Without realizing what he asked for, William received arge chunk of the brain and was about to devour it when his sense returned and stopped frommitting one of the taboos of his era. "No, Magos. Everything is fine. I have all the information about the assassin and who funded my death. Here, you can take this back and continue working on him." William returns the piece of the brain to Admech and turns around to leave theboratory of the Magos Callias. The reality and realization that he no longer has control of his own body and mind disturbed him as well. His own theory that Space Marine''s subconsciousness might still be around within himself gave a cold chill to which William began to feel fear. A fear that no Astartes should ever feel thanks to their design, but William is different, and he knows it. ''I''m William. I know who I''m and what I''m.'' William reminds himself of his origin and what he is or was. Until now, William didn''t struggle with his situation or the fact he is bing an insensitive person. His identity collides as two different personalities within one person''s mind fight against each other. A young adult from a real-world where magic, monsters, Chaos, and Astartes are nothing but fantasy and science fiction for entertainment. Great writers of many generations write stories for others to imagine the scenes and further the mind to the creativity to other worlds. An Astartes of the Emperor of Mankind, a gically created superhuman warrior who fights against the terror of all kinds and knows no fear. A being from the 41st millennium, where humanity is no longer recognizable to the 21st century Earth was created by the tabletoppany in Great Britain. Nothing but a grimdark science fiction story and recement for many who are disappointed with thetest Star Wars trilogies. This is the conflict within William''s mind as his second personality is slowlying back and influencing William. William doesn''t know if this is the original mind of the body he now possesses or a remnant of the mind fused with William''s when he woke up in this body. ''I need an answer before going absolute crazy like ck rage or Dorn''s darkness. I need a psyker or someone who can see through my mind.'' William passes through servants and lower-ranking tech-priests as his status ensures everyone moves out of his way. ''I''m William, and I''m from Earth.'' ----------------------- "I know our time was short, but I know my feeling for you is real. You have greater calling and duties for your God-Emperor." Maria Beckett said to Leonidas with weeping tearsing down her eyes. For the past few days, the youngestdy of the Beckett got to know former Blood Angel Astartes and enjoyed hispany while she and her family stayed in the capital city. Of course, she also learned a few new things about Leonidas, including his mission to the Chapter, past duties, and previous life on Baal. The one thing he didn''t tell her was his curses from Blood Angel that are no longer raging within him. Thanks to the new gene seeds provided by the Chapter Master, every member of the Blood Angels no longer experiences the two ws, but it still remains within them, dormant and ineffective to influence the Sons of Sanguinius. Sanguinius, ''The Great Angel'', ''Brightest One'', and an ''Emperor''s Hawk Boy'' were one of the sons of the Emperor and Primarch of the Blood Angels Legion. As a 9th legion of the Emperor''s Astartes, the Blood Angels possess the heritage of their gene father Sanguinius, including his charisma, loyalty, and curses when he perished from Horus''s hand during the final hour of the Horus heresy. "It was my pleasure to serve you as your apothecary and guide to my lord''s pce. Unfortunately, we couldn''t spend more time due to military conflict." Leonidas expresses his worry as heforts her with his hand on her''s. They stare at each other in the eyes until someone next to Maria clears his throat to get both of their attention. "Ahem. Yes, thank you for taking care of my daughter, Sir Astandro. Maria, I believe we are ready to leave (For the past 10 minutes)." Archduke Godfrey said to his daughter and smiled the best he could to move his youngest daughter to hop into the carriage. All this was happening after everyone said their farewells and was about to leave, but Maria held the entire departure due to the youngest being the youngest and naive to love. "Yes, of course, father. Farewell, Sir Astandro, and please remember me even though we can''t be together." Maria Beckett said her farewell to the apothecary and got into the carriage. Leonidas waved his hand to send Maria farewell while every Astartes, including each captain of cksoulspanies, watched the whole thing dumbfounded. "Hey, Leonidas. What was that all about?" Captain Sariel of the 3rdpany asked his senior apothecary as the rest of the Astartes focused their ears to listen. Captain Sariel, the former Veteran Sergeant of the Blood Angels and one who criticizes the codex, waits for Leonidas to reply. "Captain. I''m following the example of Sanguinius by not breaking the fairdy''s heart and soul. All I did was escort thedy around the pce and spend some time with her without being rude. Some of our brothers need the teaching of the Great Angel." Apothecary said to his captain while looking at the group of former Space Wolves (5thpany), Ultramarines (4thpany), and Imperial Fists (2ndpany). "I see." Captain Sariel replied with simple words and returned to his duty to maintain his side until the end of the ceremony. Meanwhile, three former chapters of the Astartes grunt and do their best to ignore the insulting from the apothecary. It is one thing to fight among the Astartes brothers and another when you are participating in a ceremony where Chapter Master personally wishes farewell to guests. "Well, he isn''t wrong, you know." Captain Dioricus said to Wolf Seer and Captain Tyreus of the Imperial Fists. All three men and the rest of the Astartes were wearing their helmets for the ceremony, so theymunicated through a private vox channel which gave privacy and no interruption. "What do you mean?" Wolf Seer asked as if he didn''t know what was going on. All he cared about at this moment was his third lunch and how thirsty he was for an ale. "He means talking to regr humans, Wolf Seer. To show humanity and express our emotion to lesser beings." Captain Tyrus of the 2ndpany said as if it was the obvious answer to the question. "Yes. As Emperor''s Angel and inheritors of his gic heritage, I believe we should be more active toward Imperial citizens as we watch over them." Captain Dioricus said without mentioning the codex, which surprised even the Wolf Seer. "What? Like our brothers of Smanders? I don''t know about that." Wolf Seer answers Captain Dioricus and takes a sip from his helmet''s rehydration tube he modified to contain his ales. "Enough, let us focus and discuss this matterter. I believe Chapter Master already knows we are talking among us." Captain Tyrus quietly ended the conversation and returned to his role as representative of the pce security as others did the same. Eventually, the carriages and knights of the House Beckett left the capital pce, and a report of the convoy leaving the city wall came. "That went well. So, what is up with your sister? She was all romantic about farewell. It is not like she will not see Leonidas for the rest of her life. You know she can visit." William said to Rana while Duchess herself sighed with a long exhale as if she was holding her breath. "She is always like that. Maria tends to be a bit dramatic in her romantic experience, and she writes a considerable amount of journal about it. I guarantee you that she will be telling her story with her friends like gossip of the century." Rana said to Wiliam and signaled hermanders to dismiss her troops. William scratches his chin and wonders how bad it can be with gossip among noble daughters anddies. Yearster, Maria Beckett''s remarkable romantic series known as ''Angel and Me'' became the best-selling novels in the majority of countries. The novels were so popr amongdies that they eventually turned into theater ys and based the poem''s structure for the poets and musicians for centuries. Agester, this very novel inspired the creation of new religion and the birth of the new diety of love and romance in the realm of divinity with a very simr feature to Sir Leonidas. ----------------------- A few dayster, "Yes, I''m going to end this matter once and for all with a single swoop. Gather your troops and battle, brothers. By the end of this week, we will finally reunite thisnd under Emperor''s name." William said to gather members of his military leaders after giving specific instructions to each and everyone, including what they are expected to fight against. After retrieving the critical information from the master assassin and how the former royal family is hiring an army of mercenaries, William decided to take out the head of the snake and entire bodies at once byunching the first strike against major cities controlled by the remaining noble houses. Very few already came to William and surrendered peacefully and pledged their service to the Emperor of Mankind and to William. With the majority of the nobles still against William and his authority as the absolute leader of thend, William decided to make the first move this time by sending all his forces at once. Each major city is controlled by the noble houses and their personal military army, around 1500 to 2500 strong. Now, having enough numbers of Null Space Marines and heavy firepower to back them up, William made his final preparation this whole time. "Eachpany and guardsmen will hold the city they are assigned to. I don''t expect much resistance from the city, but to prevent any error, I will ce rear guards to support the front in case they need additional support. Each of you is also given a significant amount of supplies to take care of the citizens, including after taking over the city. I remind you that you are not to massacre the people unless they revolt to an extreme. I remind you all that this is peacekeeping, not extermination." William cleared his order to everyone and made sure each and every member of the senior staff understood the mission objective. "Finally, when we are done with your assigned city. We will regroup here at the fortress where the former royal family is currently staying. With their remaining riches and resources, the royal family hired arge number of mercenaries and supplies tost a year or more. I will not have one of us attack this location without second and third armies backing them up." William finishes his operation n and waits for others to ask any questions. To his surprise, no one has any questions about the mission or aftermath of the city''s upation. That is until Rana raised her hand to ask. "Where am I on this n? I don''t see myself or my troops on the map." With that, everyone turns their heads to see William. "I didn''t want your troops to join this because I want this to be done by mine. But, after receiving multiple requests and personal protests from one of the senior staff, I decided to have you and your knights join the operation." William pushes the button on the table to add an additional symbol, a yellow lioness, to the symbol of Sister of Battle. "Sorry Rana, but you will be helping Sisters of Battle to take the city in this mission. May the Emperor protect you, and please stay away from their me weapons. They tend to overuse them to maximum power." Chapter 85: The Sisterhood Chapter 85: The Sisterhood "I''m not wearing that," Rana said to three Sister of Battle after looking at the battle armor they provided for her. After receiving the instruction to join Sister of Battle and their crazy campaign to one of the major cities ruled by the Legen noble, Rana decided to see what kind of ally she would be partnered up such as weapons and tactics. To everyone''s expectation, Sisters didn''t disappoint her at all. Upon arriving at the Emperor''s Church and being weed by the Sisters in power armor group, Rana was escorted to the primary meeting room, where she and a few of her officers met Sister Superior of the Order of Our Martyred Lady and Sister Superior of the Order Hospitaller. Sister Superior of the Our Martyred Lady wore ssic power armor of ck color with red clothes under the armor. Aside from the armor, she also has a few purity seals and tons of golden chains with double-headed eagles and a golden cross with skull symbols. In short, Rana and others can tell this Sister Superior was a veteran among veterans. The Sister Superior of the Order Hospitaller also was wearing power armor in a different color. Instead of ssic ck, her power armor was white with golden decoration and chains to show her service records and symbols of Imperium. Additionally, she was missing an arm and reced it with a cybeic arm with a veryrge needle under her wrist. If no one knew who she was, everyone would assume she was some kind of integrator or assassin based on her appearance, not a medical healer. When Rana entered the room, two Sister Superiors bowed their heads and weed the Holy Host even though Rana rejected the title. Still possessing the feather of the Living Saint, Rana was the chosendy of the Order even though she isn''t a member of the Sisterhood. Under William''s exnation, all Sisters know Rana''s position as a true calling from the Emperor and dere their mission based on what she will do and act. Rana realized this toote after William gave her the assignment and won''t be joining her during this campaign. While Rana and Sister attack the city, William will be doing the same thing on the other side of the Legen map as his target will be a major port city, critical to supply chain and military position. As Chapter Master, William will take his personal honor guards, which are 50, half of the numberpared to thepany size, but each guard is strong enough to fight 4 Space Marines, ording to William. Of course, the problem isn''t his safety or losing the fight but rather is there going to be a port city left when he is done with them. That is the question Rana and others have. "But Lady Beckett, this is our finest power armor from my Order, and your safety is the priority to us. Is this armor not to your liking?" Sister Superior Sabina Mire of the Our Martyred Lady said regretfully as she expressed concern for Rana. Meanwhile, Sister Superior Sore Drake kept quiet and watched the whole situation in silence. "No, it''s not the armor. The problem is the literal furnace on the back of the armor. Why does it have a fire furnace strap on the back with two torches?" Rana points out the issue as the rest turn their heads to look at the problem. Indeed, the Sister of Battle''s ck and red power armor has a massive ck furnace with two torches on the back as decoration. It looks fearsome and heavy just by looking at it, and the torches aren''t even lit yet. Sister Sabina answers Rana''s question right away after discovering the problem. "That represents the Emperor''s fire to purge the heretic, mutants, and unclean. As a Holy Host of the Emperor, you have the right to carry this into battle and spread the cleansing of our mortal enemy." Sister Superior Sabina exined to Rana as she approached the power armor and pushed a few buttons on the back in, which immediately ignited the torches, and raging fires flooded the room with tremendous heat. "Please turn that fire off," Rana ordered the Sister, to which she turned the device right away, but the heat remained as the entire meeting room now felt like a summer heatwave. Rana continued after the fire was gone. "I appreciate you are giving me this gift, but I''m just fine with my armor and don''t need to carry the entire cksmith workshop on my back. I don''t think my horse can support my weight on that." Rana exins her reasoning for rejecting the power armor while motioning everyone to take a sit. This was supposed to be a meeting to organize and n for the campaign, not a weapon demonstration. Everyone took their respectable sits while two Sister Superiors did the same. "I told you this won''t work." Sister Superior Sore whispers to Sister Superior Sabina with a small smile as if she won the bet. "Don''t you think you won this, Sister. " Sister Superior Sabina said to her counterpart as she took the sit. The meeting began, and for the next two hours, they discussed everything from types of weapons to a logistic supply line that could support if the battle turned into a siege. After two hours, the meeting ended, and everyone was ready to leave when Sister Superior Sabina stopped Rana. "I understand you are not familiar with our ways but consider potential enemies we are about to face. Until now, we faced daemons, traitor marines, and Xenos. To continue working with us means facing this kind of danger every day. You are not a member of the Order, and it is forbidden to share the wargear, but because of who you are and importance to him, we are offering this to you to protect yourself from our mortal enemies. So please, ept the armor not for us but for Lord William." Sister Superior Sabina said to Rana while the rest of the sisters behind her kneeled. The final act of desperation hit Rana as she couldn''t simply reject the armor after such reasoning from Sister Superior. Indeed she faced daemons and warriors of simr caliber to William type. She almost lost her life when she was captured and fought a daemon who devoured the mages of her army like it was nothing. To conclude, Rana needs to upgrade her equipment and in front of her is a very tool she needs to help her follow where William is heading. "Please rise, I understand, and I ept your gift. So please, don''t result in lowering yourself even for me." Rana helped lift the Sister Superior Sabina and motioned her hand for everyone to get up. Once all of the sisters got up from their kneeling, Rana walked towards the power armor and turned around to face the two Sister Superiors. "I''m gonna going to make some changes starting with that furnace." --------------------- Two Days Later, Two armies left the capital city and marched to the city they were assigned to take over. Over 2000 soldiers from Alderim and 100 Sisters of Battle took over the road as their very presence pushed anyone blocking their way. Especially, the Sisters have new types of vehicles thanks to the Mechanicus tech-priests as they are now issued with three Rhinos and one Immtor, a battle tank exclusive to the Adeptus Ministorum armed with heavy mer and bolters to provide support. Unknown to Sisters of Battle, Admechs utilize the STC technology to produce various types of equipment to support the growing number of William''s army. Besides Sisters of Battle, Admechs supplied both guardsmen and William''s Space Marines with additional equipment and parts to repair them. Since ammunitions are resupplied by killing the enemies, Admeches focused their full attention on repairs of the Imperial Knight and the construction of heavy vehicles. In front of the army, Rana wore Sister''s power armor with few changes. The heavy furnace with two torches is removed and reced with a standard power pack. The primary color of the armor is ck, but the secondary color is white instead of red. The dramatic change was her helmet; instead of the ssic Sabbat helmet variant, she is wearing a helmet design simr to William''s chapter, which has a long red visor instead of two eye holes. It took Rana a whole day to get used to her power armor and basic instruction on operating the voxmunication. Unfortunately, she didn''t receive the standard bolter gun from the sisters even though she got the training. Because of this, Rana instead gotspistol with three extra energy packs next to her standard sword on her waist. As for her mount, due to her power armor''s weight, Rana can''t ride her warhorse without killing it. To counter this problem, Sisters of Battle provided her with a g vehicle Rhino tank so she could ride morefortably for the journey. To Rana''s surprise, the vehicle has plenty of room for her and three other officers to sit. As well as enough firepower and armor to withstand anything Legen Noble can throw at them when they reach their destination. Meanwhile, Sister Superior Sabina smile under her helmet while riding her Rhino tank in front of her rival Sister Superior Sore''s Rhino. "Please stop smiling. I can literally hear your giggles through the vox channel." Sister Superior Sore said to Sabina on their private vox channel as Sore''s Rhino followed Sabina and the rest. "How can''t I stop smiling when soon to be Emperor''s saint is with us? We are not only protecting Lady Beckett from the enemy but fulfilling the set path she will soon walk towards, and we will be there to witness the miracle while hunting down traitors and Xenos alike." Sabina said to Sore with a victorious and joyous voice. "You are just happy that she is wearing your Order''s armor instead of mine. Unfortunately, my Order''s armor is not suitable for frontline battle. Still, you should have talked to Lord William first. He would have provided fitting war gear for the Lady Beckett." Sore said to Sabina, but it didn''t matter as Sabina was busy aplishing her personal mission of serving the Holy Host. --------------------- Meanwhile, The city of Eyham, the most significant trade city of Legen and the richest, is under new leadership as arge band of giant knights walk the street and kill anyone they can find. These knights are fully covered with armored and carrying wicked weapons, but strangely, their armor and weapons don''t seem to match. The symbol of the two-headed eagle is scratched, and certain colors of the weapon or armor don''t match with the rest of the set. Inside the city castle, a family of nobles hides behind the barricaded door while a group of noble house knights armed with spears, swords, and shields stands their ground. This is thest standing, and everyone they sent to fight the intruder never returned. Only their screams verified their demise as heavy footsteps came closer and closer. ''Bang, bang, bang.'' The barricaded door finally broke as the wooden bar lock snapped and opened wide for the intruders to enter the room. A small group of giant knights entered the door and ughtered the house knights with strange weapons with loud noises. The chainsword cut down anyone standing in their way while the bolter gun exploded few who attempted to run away. Finally, the ughter ended as bloody bodies soaked the expensive carpets, and the smell of stench filled the room. The leader of the invading giant knights approaches the terrified nobles in silence. Standing tall and equipped with the best war gear, the leader of the band of knights finally stopped a few feet away and spoke with a few simple words. "We havee for you." With that, the leader of the Knights and the rest begin their work as each adult noble are skinned alive while their children watch with terror in their eyes. Chapter 86: Fear the Night as We are the Lords Chapter 86: Fear the Night as We are the Lords Four Dayster, Rana''s army and 100 Sister of Battle traveled northeast towards a major city known as Eyham. ording to the locals from the capital city, Eyham is one of the significant trade cities and provides arge number of foreign goods through multiple trade routes the city is connected with. Due to this reason, the Eyham was well known for its riches and diverse cultures for the merchants to have ess to many trade goods in one location. "We will camp here tonight. Tomorrow, we will arrive at Eyham so start setting up the camp and post guards for the night." Rana gave her orders, and many of her officers followed them ordingly as soldiers began to unpack camping equipment to set up a temporary camp. Meanwhile, the Sisters of Battle did the same but without the need of talking to each other as they knew what they must do. The Sisters of Our Martyred Lady secure the area first while Order Hospitaller opens up the tank cargo to unpack necessary equipment for the camp and medical tents. Each night, Order Hospitaller provides a free medical check for Rana''s soldiers but also checks for unnatural signs like Chaos corruption. As for Our Martyred Lady, they provide the first security check until soldiers are done with setting up the camp in which they will take over the night watch. The only reason Sisters didn''t take over the night duty was because Rana order them to rest since they are the most powerful forces within the group and they are still human, unlike William''s Astartes. "So far there is no resistance or scouts from the Eyham. It is very unlikely that we missed them or the enemy forgot to send them ahead. Is it possible that they intend to set up a siege battle from the start?" Sister Superior of the Our Martyred Lady, Sister Superior Sabina said to Rana while everyone sit around the campfire to eat their dinner. Tonight, the camp cooks were serving boar meat soup with freshly baked bread on the side to which many of the Sisters dly took the rich meal instead of eating standard ration bars. "You are right. There is no way Eyham''s militarymanders forgot to scout over two thousand soldiers before reaching the city. I fear we are walking into a trap or ambush." One of Rana''s officers said after chewing a piece of bread from his hand. The rest of the officers simply nod their heads or silently grunt with an agreement to understand the situation. They also sent a few of their scouts ahead but they only received ''all-clear'' signals which it didn''t go well with everyone. "Something is wrong and we are not seeing it. Double the guards tonight just in case. I will not fall into novice mistakes such as night ambush from the enemy because we have gottenfortable. Make sure the rest of the soldiers are fully rested and ready to depart first thing in the morning." Rana finishes her dinner and retires for the night. The rest of the officers eventually return to their tent for the night while no animals made any noise. As silent night slowly moves along with the stars, a dark cloud came quickly and darkened the night sky. From distance within the forest, one pair of red eyes watched the campsite. The red glowing eyes study the camp while more glowing red eyes appeared from the darkness. By the time the first red eyes are done studying, more than 50 pairs of eyes waited, quietly and patiently but nurturing the desire to murder mortal beings. "Tonight, we feast upon the flesh of the daughters of the false Emperor." ---------------------- The night attack came without any sounds at first. Few of the night guards simply disappeared from their position before others realized what just happened. Unfortunately for them, they also vanished from the shadow as dark blue giant knights shed their throats with ws or sharpen fingernails to feel the warm blood from their victims. By the time rest of the guards realized what happened, it was toote as the entire camp was surrounded and there was no need to sound the rm as the sound of bolters thundered the night. "Cut down! Let them know the fear and terror of the 8th legion!" The leader shouted through his helmet as the rest of his brothers cut down anyone with bolters, chainswords, and power weapons of different types. The initial first defense went down easy as 50 Night Lords crushed the bodies with each footstep and began to advance towards the next inner area of the camp when suddenly, tents fall to the ground, and arge wall of tower shields blocked their way. Behind the thick tower shield, Sister of Battle stood tall with their bolters in their hand, all aiming at the traitors Astartes. "Fire!" Sister Superior Sabina gave amand, and immediately 100 Sisters fire their bolters as Night Lords are caught with their pants down. Not realizing that their enemy foresaw a possible night ambush, Night Lords attacked the enemy camp and got themselves in a tought situation. It ismon for the Night Lords to attack the enemy when they have the advantage over them. After all, Night Lords are not warriors but murders of their homeworld, Nostramo. "Fall back. Fall back!" The leader of the Night Lords gave an order just as he use his brother next to him as a human shield. Others did the same with fallen brothers, while few of them fell from the bolter fire. "Send in the minions. Let them soak the bolter rounds while we retreat." With an element of surprise gone, Night Lords retreat to the forest while new units advance to cover them. Arge number of Chaos Cultists rush towards the tower shield and the bolters as if their lives didn''t matter to them. Many of the Chaos Cultists didn''t carry any range weapons, instead, they were armed with crude melee weapons. The first wave of cultists went down easily as bolters cut them down, but soon tower shields were tested as bodies after bodies pushed against them with the sheer force of raw strength. "Bring out the heavy mer and bolters." With themand, three Rhinos and one Immtor appeared from the back of the Sisters and unleashed heavy firepower upon the enemy mob. The heavy mer did a marvelous job as the row of enemies simply went down as their skins melted and screamed in pain beyond imagination. The moment of victory didn''tst for the Sisters and the soldiers as Night Lords regain their confidence and lunch a secondary attack. With all sides blocked with walls of shields, the leader of the Night Lords sends in shock troopers of his own as 17 Raptors flew over them using jetpacks while generating high pitch screeching noise. Afternding behind the enemy line the Raptors began to ughter anyone standing in front of them with chainswords and bolter pistols as foot soldiers armed with swords and shields couldn''t fight against Night Lords. The screeching noise also affected the soldiers as the noise disoriented them from fighting properly, making them easy prey to be ughtered. "Heavy troops, charge!" Rana gave themand and hidden soldiers armed with long halberds charged the Raptors before they could escape. As expected, the halberds didn''t prate the power armor of the Night Lords Raptors but it held them down on the ground long enough for the Sisters to unload bolters and meltaguns to bring them down permanently. Unfortunately, the Raptors did their job as damaged from their bolter pistols did kill a decent number of soldiers with tower shields and the remaining cultists managed to break the shield wall. Even though the Sisters continue to put down cultists, many of them simply sacrifice their bodies for others to reach the crucial points. When a few of the cultists finally reached the key points, they crawl under the heavy vehicles and detonated explosives around their bodies. When four heavy tanks went down and were inoperable this was the precise moment Night Lords were waiting for as the remaining 8th Legione out from the shadow and charge into battle once again without any worries. ---------------------- "They areing once again. Send in the remaining front-line soldiers to push back the minions while archers take out the ones in the back. Sister Superiors, refocus your weapons at iing knights instead, your weapons are the only thing that hurt them." Rana reorganizes her defensive structure of the army and sends in newmands to prioritize enemies her soldiers and Sisters can handle. Previously, Rana didn''t give the order to fire arrows since she knew these knights possess simr armor to William''s but after the enemy changed front line units, she unleash all her soldiers against cultists. "Yes, Holy Host." With simple acknowledgment, both Sister Superiors signal the remaining Sisters of Battle to change the target and aim all their weapons at iing Night Lords. With heavy support gone, Sisters took it upon themselves to salvage any heavy weapons from the vehicles and mount them on the makeshift tripods to lunch counter-attack against Night Lords. Two different fights were waged at the same time as Chaos Cultists went face to face against Rana''s troops while Night Lords and Sisters of Battle fired a barrage of bolters as their distance gets closer and closer. With each side going down every second, Rana sends her heavy cavalry from the far side as knights armed withnces and swords onto Chaos Cultists. She nned to quickly finish the Chaos Cultists and move to Night Lords to overwhelm them. Rana realized her mistake after sending away arge portion of the cavalry when suddenly a group of Night Lords in terminator armor appeared out of nowhere and began to ughter soldiers in the rear formation. Leading the kill team was the giant terminator armed with a power sword of a different color. Holding a green de and hilt, the leader of the terminator squad slices the head of Rana''s horse and knocks Rana from her horse. Landing hard on the ground, thest thing Rana saw was the power sword going through her armor and onto her stomach as the Night Lords'' terminator spoke to her with a cold whispering voice. "Ave Dominus Nox, little mortal. Cry his name for we havee for him." Chapter 87: In Midnight Clad Chapter 87: In Midnight d "My sons, the gxy is burning. We all bear witness to a final truth -- our way is not the way of the Imperium. You have never stood in the Emperor''s light. Never worn the Imperial eagle. And you never will. You shall stand in midnight d, your ws forever red with the lifeblood of my father''s failed empire, warring through the centuries as the talons of a murdered god. Rise, my sons, and take your wrath across the stars, in my name. In my memory. Rise, my Night Lords." - The Primarch Konrad Curze Legiones Astartes, known during the Great Crusade is the primary force of the Emperor when he embarked on the space to unite all humanity. Originally all Earth born, they eventually mixed their legions with natives of their designated Primarch''s home when their gene-father was founded. Space Wolves have Leman Russ and his people of Fenris Smanders have Vulkan and his people from Nocturne Blood Angels have Sanguinius and people from Baal And just like any other legions, the 8th legion of the Night Lords have their gene-father, Konrad Curze, the Night Haunter from the formerly known as Nostramo. Night Lords are famous for two things. First is the use of terror tactics to cause massive panic and devastation to social order. It came to a point many that other legions consider bad taste in their mouth to work with Night Lords during the Great Crusade as it is against their military code to use terror itself. Night Lords are legion of ''small budget'' when ites to conquerings and they tend to spend a good amount of time torturing their victims. Second is their allegiance to the Chaos after Horus Heresy. Unlike Death Guards who serve Chaos God Nurgle and Thousand Sons serve Tzeentch, Night Lords are Chaos Undivided which serve no particr Chaos gods (Few individuals or a wholepany tend to worship one or more Chaos, Gods, on their own, but the majority of Night Lords doesn''t). Because Night Lords don''t follow true allegiance to one of the four Ruinous Powers, they tend to work as pirates or mercenaries to the other traitor legions and participate in ck Crusade. Many of the Night Lords see worshiping of Chaos God as a weakness and seek to walk on their own path of justifying their action which is the desire to kill and taking pleasure in ughtering weak prey. It is said that Night Lords of Post-Heresy will wage a proper fight when they outnumber the enemy and have a massive advantage. Due to massive losses during Horus Hersey and the destruction of their home, Nostramo (By Konrad Curze''s order), Night Lords can''t increase their number due to ack of resources and support from the Ruinous Powers. Even their battle gears are mostly outdated equipment that needs constant repairs or are stolen from in foes of loyal Astartes. Many of the Legiones Astartes fought Great Crusade fought and conquered after with an honor. Imperial Fists and Ultramarines fought with knightly honor while Sons of Horus, Emperor''s Children, and many others held traditional military tactics. Each victory was a gift and expansion of the Imperium under the honorable name of the Emperor. Night Lords didn''t do this as it wasn''t their nature. After the 8th legion reunite with Konrad Curze and left Nostramo to join the Great Crusade, the noble houses of the Nostramo decided to send their worst of the worst to the 8th legion to be the next generation of Night Lords. Over the years, Night Lords eventually corrupt from the inside, and are no longer honorable warriors of the Imperium. They are thieves, murderers, and traitors with superhuman abilities which tarnish the 8th legion''s name. When Konrad Curze found out, he decided to teach a lesson to his sons by ordering the exterminatus on Nostramo, forever destroying the taint of sins. This quote simply ces the Night Lords'' nature and who truly they are in the gxy. "Because the Wolves kill cleanly, and we do not. They also kill quickly, and we have never done that, either. They fight, they win, and they stalk back to their ships with their tails held high. If they were ever ordered to destroy another Legion, they would do it by hurling warrior against warrior, seeking to grind their enemies down with the admirable delusions of the ''noble savage''. If we were ever ordered to assault another Legion, we would virus bomb their recruitment worlds; ughter their serfs and ves; poison their gene-seed repositories and spend the next dozen decades watching them die slow, humiliating deaths. Night after night, raid after raid, we''d overwhelm stragglers from their fleets and bleach their skulls to hang from our armour, until none remained. But that isn''t the quick execution the Emperor needs, is it? The Wolves go for the throat. We go for the eyes. Then the tongue. Then the hands. Then the feet. Then we skin the crippled remains and offer it up as an example to any still bearing witness. The Wolves were warriors before they became soldiers. We were murderers first,st, and always!" - Jago Sevatarion ----------------------------- "No! Save General Beckett!" One of the knightmanders shouts out loud as heavy knights take arms to attack the Night Lords'' terminator squads (Five in total). The brave heavy knights of the White Lions are the elite soldiers of their own rights as they are selected and trained to wield magical weapons. Their duties are to protect the general and officers of the army from the enemy and to be tools to push closing enemy with unstoppable closebat. Unfortunately for them, their years of honed skills and heavy armor couldn''t withstand the devastating firepower of the terminator armor and power weapons. "ughter them all!" The leading terminator freely gave the order and the rest of them unleash close melee weapons of all kinds to begin butchering. Four des of lighting ws, a power sword of different marking from Astartes chapters, and a power fist obliterate the first wave of the knights as their armor shreds like butter to a hot knife. Still, even with the huge advantage of weaponry and armor, terminators were outnumbered by thousands as shortly after knights and even foot soldiers managed to push closer. "AHHH! My eye!" One of the terminators stumbles back while a long sword piece through one of the helmet''s eyes lenses. Immediately, the wounded terminator turns around to grab the knight who harmed him and crush his head instantly without giving second thoughts but this show of small weakness revealed their weak spot as knights and foot soldiers stepped back and hundreds of spearmen move forward, creating a wall of spears. "Aim for their eyes and gaps between armor! We must save the general!" Silvi Greenheart, Rana Beckett''s second inmand gave hermand and cast ''Entangle'' to bind the enemies with weed and vines, making them unable to move or able to turn around. Hundred of spearmen push forward closer and closer with increased speed but this only gave terminators to switch their weapons from closebat to range as they aim their storm bolters at the iing spearmen. "Pathetic fools. Fire at will." all five terminators open fire and hundreds of bolter rounds hit the spearmen. The sheer terror and devastation of killing stopped the approaching soldiers as they fell left and right with the unlucky one surviving the nightmare with missing body parts. Secondster, arge wall of stones rises from the ground, blocking terminators'' storm bolters and remaining spearmen. Silvi Greenheart and the rest of the mages managed to cast the spell ''Wall of Stones'' to protect soldiers but it was temporary as each second chip piece of stone by the second. Just as the wall of stones is about to fall from the bolter rounds, Night Lords forgot to pay attention to their rear side as arge group of women in power armor return from the frontline with fury and wrath equal to the near end of Age of Apostasy. Forty Sisters of Order of Our Martyred Lady and Hospitaller charge with bolters, mers, and meltagun hot and ready to go. "Kill the heretics! Kill the traitors! Save the Holy Host!" Bolters and other weapons of the Sisters hit unsuspected terminators in the back and took out three of them with one of his power packs exploding after receiving a hail of bolter rounds. Three remaining terminators including the leader who stabbed Rana with a power sword each stood back to back to fight back but this wasn''t enough as suddenly, arge number of knights on horseback with glowingnces appear around from the wall of stones. While spearmen took heavy casualties and a wall of stone stopped the storm bolters, clerics cast the spell ''Bless Weapon'' onto knights''nces, buffing the weapons and huge weapon damage. This wasn''t the only spell Rana''s magicians did as mages also cast ''Shield'' spells to protect the front line of knights from iing bolter rounds as the shield spell deflect the majority of the rounds. With knights with magic protectioning in high speed from the front and Sisters attacking in the back, the remaining terminators are overwhelmed even though they fought back with everything they had. "Emergency teleportation. Now!" The leader ordered his remaining squad to fall back but it wasn''t enough time to retreat as iing bolter rounds put them down onto their knees and mers wash their concentration with pressure. It was at this moment when knights with blessednces reached the three terminators and impaled them through their helmets and other weak spots around the armor. "Kill them all!" "For the Emperor!" "For the Holy Host!" The destruction of the Night Lords'' terminator squads ends with blood and fire as each of them fell with multiple wounds from various types of weapons. This small victory was costly as six enemy terminators managed to kill hundreds of soldiers and Sisters with a sudden teleportation ambush. The frontline was still in battle as the remaining soldiers and Sisters hold the line best they could while attempting to regain the breached position from the enemy. With a regained foothold, the remaining forces charge ahead with Silvi Greenheart taking themand while Sisters from the Hospitaller and clerics managed to reach heavily wounded Rana who was holding the sword on her stomach. Barely holding her lifeline and managing to slow down her bleeding, a normal person would have already perished from the power sword. Rana on the other hand managed to stay alive this entire time thanks to her power armor as automatic medical injections within the armor activated the moment Rana''s vitals went haywire. In a sense, the power armor saved Rana from certain death but the rest is up to others to save her life before it fades away. "Stay with us, Holy Host. We will heal you right away." "We have to move her to a safer ce." One of the clerics said to Sister but it was immediately rejected after both of them saw Rana''s wound. "If we move her she will die. We have to do what we can to stable her before even thinking of moving her." Sister Superior Sore said to everyone and ordered a few of the Sisters of Battle to make a defensive position while she and others went to work. Meanwhile, clerics cast ''Prayer of Healing'' and other healing spells to bring back up Rana''s HP. With both groups working together, Rana''s facial expression and pale skin slowly return to normal but the battle isn''t over since the frontline began to push back by the Night Lords and their cultists as their reinforcement finally arrived. Three Chaos Obliterators finally made an appearance as their hybrid monstrous bodies of machine and flesh make their way into the frontline as they absorb the damage like it was nothing. These former Night Lords techmarines lose every sense to the point of insanity as their machine bodies are now infested with ''technovirus'' and fused with the bodies as each of them is now walking infestation and sphemy against Machine God. Behind Obliterators, arge metal walker slowly approaches the enemy as Chaos Dreadnought of the Night Lords or simply known as Helbrute armed with a heavy bolter and power fist makes the entrance. Simr to Obliterators, Helbrute is covered with Chaos flesh and corruption all over the body as each step it took, eyes around the body twitch with pain. The walking corruption of the machine and a former Night Lords, now tombed in his own metal coffin spoke with a mechanical voice to announce its presence. [This night is ours as we are the ''In Midnight d'' and Lords of the Night. You fool, Taradreel, I told you to wait for me. Do I have to do everything?] Chapter 88: To Be Martyr Chapter 88: To Be Martyr [You fool, Taradreel. You don''t deserve to lead my 31stpany when you can''t follow my advice.] The Night Lord''s Hellbrute (Dreadnought) spoke through the mechanical speaker as he and three Obliterators enters the battlefield. The speaker was loud enough for everyone to hear every word including Rana''s side as the enemy''s heavy units began to fire their weapons without concern for friendly fire. Few of the Night Lords who were in closebat with Sisters got caught on heavy weapons fire from their ally as heavy bolter rounds shred them in the back. This surprised everyone from Rana''s side, but unlike them, the rest of the Night Lords move aside as if it was normal and continued their assault on the Sisters and remaining soldiers. The four heavy units move on with heavy footsteps with each one crushing fallen traitors Astartes bodies and cultists alike. ''That damn walking machine tomb Naralor. If you regain your sanity temporarily, you could at least avoid friendly fire. This is why I don''t want to use him and his band of Chaos mutated unless it is open warfare.'' Taradreel, the current captain of the Night Lords, 31st Company said to himself and ordered his men to reposition themselves due to the iing disaster. Just like every other Night Lordspany after Horus heresy, 31st Company is also below half of its former glory. With less than 50 Night Lords under hismand, Captain Taradreel is somewhat betterpared to others. Still, their exile to Eye of Terror was just like others, outgunned, outnumbered, unable to recruit a proper recement, and scavenging for everything including salvaging the fallen battle-brothers equipment or loyalist Astartes. Former Captain Naralor long before he was forceful tombed into Dreadnought was just like any other Night Lords'' captain. Full of himself with arrogance and stink of Chaos corruption of the Blood God. After escaping from the Imperium''s counter-attack after the death of Horus, the 31st Company ran tail with the rest of the traitors but because they were low on everything, Captain Naralor ordered his battle-brothers to attack fellow Astartes''s ship in a much more critical situation. To no one''s surprise, the targeted ship belong to the Emperor''s Children, followers of the anesh and way behind the rest of the fleet. Night Lords being Night Lords, they followed Captain Naralor''s order and board the ship. To their surprise, Emperor''s Children fought Night Lords with everything they got and managed to wound Captain Naralor who first believed Emperor''s Children was an easy target. The victory was costly, but the 31st managed to salvage everything from the ship of the Emperor''s Children. Due to his injury, Captain Naralor was forced to enter the Dreadnought to preserve his life and continue to serve the Ruinous Powers. From then on, Captain Naralor was no more, and Hellbrute of the Night Lords was raised from the darkness, to be mocked and punished for his arrogance. In normal circumstances, Hellbrute is a being who sufferers from eternal insanity and desperation for the end of his life. As for Captain Naralor, his Chaos corruption was both blessing and a curse as his blood rage from the Blood God kept him alive but easily lost in the rampage during battle. In a rare circumstance, he regains his sanity and remembers everything before his entombment. For this reason, Tech-adepts of the Dark Mechanicum have to remind him every time they awaken him for the battle. The only use of Hellbrute is now to use it as an expendable heavy unit and leading figure for the rest of the corrupted united to follow. Besides that, Taradreel considers them loose cannons on the tactical battlefield, just like the situation they are in right now. "Kill that abomination!" Sister Superior from the Our Martyred Lady shouts her order and immediately, half a dozen Sisters armed with bolters rush head front towards four enemy heavy units with no concern for their lives or safety. Meanwhile, the rest of the sisters who can provide support reposition their weapons to provide firing support. (If there is one thing Sisters are well known for is bing martyrs and bing a great example to the rest of the Sisters. This tends to get out of hand and for some reason, everyone is okay with it.) The heavy firing support from the Sisters paused the four units from responding to the correct action which gave the six Sisters the opportunity they needed. Four Sisters fire their bolters with a precision aim towards gaps such as shoulders and knees. Because they had gotten close, two of the Obliterators managed to hit three Sisters with their melee weapons. Two went down when the first Obliterator swing his power de horizontally, cutting two Sisters in half even though they were equipped with power armors. One of them somehow managed to survive the lethal wound and with an iron will, crawled towards the Obliterator while her white dyed with blood red. The Obliterator saw this and finish the job by raising one of his feet and stomping on the Sister''s head. Crushing her skull with crunching and slushing sounds afterward. Third Sister received a blunt hit from the Obliterator''s power fist from the side instead of a direct hit from the fist. Still, the damage was powerful enough to break everything including power armor, and sent her flying. Sister died before shended on the battlefield as her eyes and mouth gushed out blood. Three reaming Sisters didn''t hesitate from the loss as they move with greater motivation. All three switch their range weapon to melee as three chainswords roar with powerful engines. With their des out, the remaining Sisters use their speed to their advantage and get close to three Obliterators. Because of their slowness, Obliterators decided to take the first few damages until they can reposition themselves for a better kill but this was their one andst mistake as all three Sisters pull out something from their bottom of the power armor power packs. In their hands, the Sisters pull out three identical pins with their free hands and spoke in unison before ending their life. "For the God-Emperor! For the Holy Host!" Three melta bombs maically attached to the bottom of the power packs detonated with immense heat as three Obliterators caught up on the st. All three Obliterators received point-nk damage and when everything simmer down, most of the bodies are melted or disintegrated to nothing. Therge melta explosion also sent many of the Night Lords to halt as they all got knocked back into the ground. As for the Hellbrute, the massive walking tank did receive some damage from the explosion but it sent Obliterators first to deal with six Sisters, it was still operational. [What a foolish decision to sacrifice themselves.] Hellbrute said to himself and move forward while the remaining Night Lords got up and use Hellbrute''s massive body to use it as a walking shield. Meanwhile, the rest of the Sisters and soldiers of the White Lion reinforce their defense after eliminating thest cultists from the frontline. With their wall of shield done for and heavy vehicles support gone, the rest of the soldiers and Sisters went to old school defensive position. Rana, on the other hand, was still wounded and for some reason, healing spells aren''t working. More they pour the medicine and spells to heal, the wound seems to remain open and the purple vines began to spread. "What is going on? Is this some kind of poison?" One of the priests said as she cast ''cure poison'' to stop whatever was causing the problem. Secondter, when the light died down, everyone redirect their eyes to see if the purple vines disappeared but to their disappointment, the spell did the opposite effect as now the purple vines are spreading twice as before. "This isn''t some regr poison. This is more potent and supernatural. It stinks of 14th." Sister Superior Sore of the Order Hospitaller said to everyone and proceed to dig deeper into her medical pouch. After a few moments of searching for the ss vials, Sister Sore found what she was looking for. In her hand, she was holding three different colors of ss bottles and inserting them into her medical gauntlet with needles attached. Just when she was about to inject Rana with a cure to the poison, a single shot of bolter round hit Sister Sore''s medical gauntlet, destroying the cures and the entire left arm. The second bolt shot hit Sister Superior''s head, killing her instantly as her head exploded. From the opposite side of the battlefield, standing on the high ground for a better advantage viewpoint, Captain Taradreel of the Night Lords 31stpany lowered his bolter sniper rifle and gave it to another Night Lords next to him. "These fools have forgotten why we are here in the first ce. We made a deal with Ruinous Powers to eliminate the target so William will experience pain. Now, have everyone push towards where the target is, by the time we get there the poison from the 14th will finish the job and we can im her head. We will have our reward and done with Ruinous Powers once and for all." ---------------- Rana''s mind began to fade as the wound from the power sword and poison of supernatural kind slowly drained her life. No medicine or magical spells made any changes as her life force was eventually consumed by the void. As people around Rana did their best and cry her name, Rana''s soul finally left her physical body and by the time she realized what just happened, Rana was standing in the golden room full of expensive decorations and delicious-looking desserts on the table. Rana didn''t panic but remained calm and check herself to see that she wasn''t wearing her armor but rather a white dress with golden leaves. With no weapons on her, Rana grab the closest to the weapon, and just when she was about to raise it high to protect herself, a warming voice call her name. "You have nothing to worry about here. I won''t harm you since you are my first follower of the New World. Unfortunately, you didn''t get to use the feather I gave to William. How about it? Following the standard rule, I will grant you another chance to live your life in the other world." The golden figure said to Rana with a big smile as he got up from the chair he was sitting on and approach Rana. "Who are you? Are you one of the divine beings who are here to wee me to the afterlife?" Rana said with a quiet voice and put her makeshift weapon down. With tearsing down her eyes, she realized that her life with William is over before it begin. She will never feel his warmth and enjoy the thrill of the battlefield next to him. She had many things she wanted to tell him and do, but in the end, her destiny ended as one of the casualties of a war far away from where William is. "As you can guess, I''m not your local deities. My name is Numen but you can call me Star Child, one of therge fragments of the Emperor of Mankind. It seems you and I need to talk." Chapter 89: Sanctus Imperator Renatus Chapter 89: Sanctus Imperator Renatus The military momentum died quickly as it came when Night Lords trample over the first two lines of soldiers with ease and ughtered anyone who stand in their way. The soldiers of the White Lions did their best to slow down the devilish knights with full midnight d but none of their standard weapons work or did new firearms since Astartes power armor is just too tough. It would require a heavy weapon to hurt them and at this moment, all three tanks armed with heavy weapons are gone thanks to the cultists. "ughter and capture the weak ones for processing." One of the Night Lords said to his brothers after crushing the soldier''s head with his hand. Much as Night Lords love to spread terror and fears to the vulnerable, they also enjoy the art of tutoring helpless victims. This is the true nature and tradition of the 8th legion which started from their gene-father, Konrad Curze. ''Fear teaches one''s mortality while terror reminds individuals of their ce in the world.'' This is the basic principle of the 8th and each of the Night Lords cherishes mastery of fear and terror. Night Lords advance further and further and each advancement is a heavy casualty on the other side. It didn''t stop with regr soldiers from the White Lions, many of the knights who ovee the fear of death attempted to break the enemy''s advancement. With their courage and chivalry, the knights of the White Lions managed to gather a significant amount of shattered knights into one and coordinated to make one final push against the approaching Night Lords. "For Alderim! For King Benton and for General Beckett!" The leading knight shouted and the rest of them followed as they made the triangle formation and charged head first with their war horses. With thundering sounds of hooves and a few of the knights blowing their war horns, the knights of the Alderim and White Lions hail down towards Night Lords. Equipped with spears,nces, and swords, the knights increase the speed of the war horses and have no fear in their eyes. [Forget the peons and target the riders. Target everyone and fire!] Former captain and Hellbrute of the Night Lords spoke to his battle brothers and redirect his range weapons toward iing knights on horseback. Busy killing weak and non-threatening soldiers, many of the Night Lords took few moments to follow the order but enough of them received and changed to range weapons to fire upon the iing enemy. Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Without any coordination, Night Lords fired their bolters at will without a second thought. Countless bolter shots hit the knights and their war horses as many of them fell hard to the ground, killing them instantly and tripping anyone behind them as an obstacle. Still, the knights continue their advancement and without a show of hesitation, enough of them managed to reach the Night Lords. The first thing Night Lords in the front felt was the impact ofnces when they hit their power armor. The weapon wasn''t durable enough or powerful enough to prate the armor itself but the brute force itself was strong enough to push them back. After the initial impact of thences, the second thing followed as the high-speed impact of the war horses hit the Night Lords like a truck. The collision force from the war horses was powerful enough to trample a few of the Astartes and even on the ground. Still, in exchange for a small victory, many of the knights and their mounts received terrible injuries due to mming into Astartes. In total, 49 knights out of 120 managed to hit the Night Lords in the frontline and halt the advancement for others to reorganize. As for the Night Lords, only 9 of them fell from the attack not because of the knights'' weaponry but rather the impact of the war horses and already damaged power armor during the fight against Sisters. Those who managed to survive the fall after colliding with the Night Lords struggle to get up from the ground and arm themselves. It was at this point the realization of their error came to light as the remaining Nights Lords began their work to pay back the insult from primitives of this world. The Hellbrute deliver more damage to the survivor as his power fist and bolter weapons shred the knights before they could get up. The war horses also faced the same fate just like their masters as Night Lords didn''t care what was their target and began butchering everything in front of them. Few of them got up to get away from the hostile enemy while their master is still hanging on to them but it was pointless as the bolter shots prevented their escape. While courageous knights are getting butchered, the Sisters andmanders of White Lions reorganize to prepare for the iing attack. Sisters of battle already lost one of their Sister Superior due to a sniper shot and lost 48 Sisters during this fight. White Lions, on the other hand, lost more than half of their numbers and their general is already dead to which their goal at this point is to prevent the enemy from capturing her body. "This will be ourst defensive line. If we have to die from this fight, let them fight for it!" Sister Superior Sabina Mire of the Our Martyred Lady said to everyone while holding a bolter gun. The remaining Sisters position themselves behind the surviving tower shield soldiers and some managed to retrieve heavy weapons from the damaged three tanks. Meanwhile, soldiers of the White Lions moved Rana''s body to the back and position themselves with every weapon they had with them. This also includes one particr weapon that wasn''t tested until now. Gifted by Crown Prince Benton, this weapon was experimental but possess the potential power to kill even Astartes. "Load the weapon and prepare to fire. We only have one shot and we will make it count." Commander Greenheart gives the order to make the preparation as dozen crew members move the heavy weapon and reposition the wagon. Greenheart knew she only have one shot and will do everything in her power to make it count no matter what. Soon, Night Lords finish their work with the knights and move forward to extend their entertainment. At this point, they lost every sense of aplishing their goals and proceed to enjoy showing the true nature of the killing. Behind advancing Night Lords, Hellbrute tosses away a dead war horse to a side and follows his brothers to lose himself. It''s been a decade since he fill his blood lust for Khorne and collected skulls to continue his biding to the skull throne. When Night Lords finally reach the final defensive line, they all stopped to face theirst victims. Meanwhile, Sister Superior Sabine orders all of the Sisters to ready their weapons and have all soldiers hold their positions with tower shields. [This is yourst moment to breathe and savor it. None of you will live to tell the tale of today¡­] The Hellbrute spoke through his speaker horn but couldn''t finish his sentence as suddenly a shield wall opened in the middle and a singlerge cannon appeared from behind. With no hesitation, Commander Greenheart shouts, "Fire!" and one of the crew lit the cannon. The 68-pounder cannon aiming towards Hellbrute fired the cannonball and head towards the Chaos corrupted metal giant. But because this weapon was experimental and wasn''t tested, the cannonball missed the Hellbrute and hit one of the Night Lords and others behind him, killing them in the most unusual way in the history of the 8th legion. [Well, that was unexpected.] Hellbrute turns its upper body to see the damage and return to its original position. With a single signal from his voxmunicator, the rest of the Night Lords charge with weapons high, and at the same time, Sister Superior Sabine gave the order to fire at will. The final battle began with a big bang and once again, two armies face each other with everything they have. The tower shield fell from the formation left and right as bolter rounds explode the moment they hit the shield wall. With gaps open, traitor Astartes broke in through the defensive line and face the Sisters, who were ready to fight them in melee. The rear heavy support focuses their fire at Hellbrute while soldiers of White Lions throw everything they got including smaller artillery fire to support the frontline. Hellbrute on the other hand didn''t like the idea that a 68-pounder cannon ball almost hit him and decided to fire his bolter at the cannon. The hail of bolter rounds from the power fist devastated the entire artillery line as a few of the rounds hit the barrels of gunpowder, creating a huge explosion and killing arge number of soldiers and crewmembers. ---------------- Among chaos on the battlefield and deaths, many engaged in the fight didn''t notice the glowing light in the rear line as healers and Sisters of Order Hospitallers saw a miracle they are about to witness. First to notice the white light was one of the healers from White Lions and the rest began to realize as Rana''s body generate warming light and began to float in the air. "By the Emperor''s light and living saints." One of the Sisters whisper to herself and just when she finished her words, the light went brighter and blinded everyone at once. The powerful light was impossible to see with their naked eyes and by the miracle, the wounded soldiers and Sisters in the makeshift medical tent began to heal and some managed to regrow their missing limbs. As for Rana, her wound and poison that took her mortal life vanished without any trace. The light also removed her damaged power armor and reshaped it into something else with a color of gold and green. With a wound from the power sword and deadly poison from the 14th legion gone, Rana''s body began the transformation as her physical body became bigger and much more powerful than before. When the light dimmed to a manageable level for everyone to see with their eyes, they saw a very different Rana Bassilo Beckett. Her height is now 6''5 feet tall (195.58 cm) with dense muscles that could match the strength of Sister in the power armor. Rana''s blonde hair is now tinum color and her eyes changed from blue eyes to emerald green, matching the secondary color of the armor which is green. As for the armor, Rana is wearing a different kind of power armor entirely. Equipped with a golden te and green silk-like cloth on her hip, Rana was wearing golden power armor simr to Saint Celestine but missingrge white wings in the back. With signature wings missing, a noticeable thing about the armor was the style itself. Around Rana''s neck is a ck ruff and shoulder guards are shaped like a lion''s head with holy scrolls in its mouth. The hamlet hasrge wings on the sides with a green visor that could be ced down to protect the face (Simr to the Valkyrie helmet). As for the weapons, Rana was holding a medium golden shield with the emblem of the Sisters and Imperium Aqu in her left hand and arge great sword in her right. The newly reborn Saint of Imperium spoke for the first time as she raise the sword up high for everyone to witness. "Behold, my Sisters. I deliver a message from the Emperor himself. ''Search and destroy all traitors. For you are the righteous de against the corruption of the ruinous powers!''" Once again, the bright white light shine upon her body and began to expand beyond the rear line. When the light hit soldiers and Sisters, their wounds healed just like others before and strength returned as if they had a full day''s rest. Eventually, the light reaches the Night Lords and for some unknown reason, their helmet and visor didn''t protect them from power light. The blinding light damaged the Night Lords'' eyes as their sensitive eyes couldn''t handle it and were blinded by it. Once again in their lives since Horus Hersey, Night Lords saw the Emperor''s light, and it didn''t shine upon them to be their salvation but rather as a beacon of the downfall of the 31stpany. Chapter 90: Lioness of Holy Terra Chapter 90: Lioness of Holy Terra In the world of 40k, the Imperium of Man faces eternal war against the forces of Chaos and its followers. Once the servant of the Chaos is in, such as daemons and traitor Astartes, their souls will return to their master''s realm and go through the process of respawning. Based on how they were defeated, the time it takes toplete regeneration will be various, also there is a factor on if the servant has favor from the Ruinous Powers which will greatly help them recover. The only real way of killing servants of the Ruinous Powers is few and rare to aplish this. One way to truly kill them is to use ancient artifacts that can kill not only the physical body but a soul as well. The Emperor''s ming sword is a good example of delivering true death to the daemons and a named Chaos Astartes. Currently, Emperor''s loyal son, Roboute Guilliman wields his father''s sword and leads The Indomitus Crusade to reunite the divided gxy while facing his traitor brothers on the battlefield. If the ancient artifact is hard to obtain, then the next option is to have a person who is Untouchable or moremonly known as ''nk'' ability. If you are next to a person who has the nk ability, it will be very ufortable, and most likely wants to leave right away, but this same ability will save you from the enemy who possesses psychic power in the battle. As a nk can nullify every psychic power in the area and psychic powers are linked to Warp, it gives a rare opportunity to permanently deliver true death to the servants of the Ruinous Powers. This is why Emperor has an army of Sister of Silence who all possess nk genes and work next to Custodes to protect the Imperial pce from the forces of Chaos. With Ruinous Powers having a vast amount of souls and the ability to respawn countless soldiers, the Imperium of Man faces a never-ending war against Chaos. From simple servants of cultists to Greater Daemons of Chaos Gods, Imperium of Man needs every help they can get and the Emperor sends his greatest avatar to help humanity. Enter the Living Saint, the servant of the Emperor of Mankind and living symbol of the lesiarchy. Over the millennia, Imperium had many saints who are extraordinarily and some were simply appointed by the priests from the lesiarchy to boost the morale of the people. Saints who were appointed by the Imperial Cult can anyone who achieve greatness for the Emperor and Imperium such as turning the tide of the battle against forces of Chaos to bing more than the hero of the Imperium. Unlike Saints of the Imperial Cult, Living Saints are very rare and almost always are a woman (Mostly from Sisters of Battle). When Living Saint appears on the battlefield, it will literally turn the tide of the battle from near loss to victory as mere presence itself will boost morale, turning Emperor''s servants'' broken will to iron. Living Saints are Emperor''s avenging angels and have the ability bestowed by the Emperor to deliver his judgment to his enemy. Carrying their own ming sword and massive wing, Living Saints are the Emperor''s miracle and his Greater Daemon against Chaos Gods'' Greater Daemons. Yes, Living Saints are Emperor''s Greater Daemon ording to the majority of fans of the 40k games, Living Saints are the physical presence represented by the Emperor after bestowing his power to his most loyal servant. For example, when each of the Chaos Gods brings out their Greater daemons, they each show a physical and literal representation of their master in battle. Khorne has his Bloodthirsters who are a literal powerhouse, and Nurgle has Great Unclean Ones who bring out all kinds of gues. So, based on this logic, Emperor who was de with golden armor and a ming sword during his prime would have a Greater Daemon of his own by using his psychic power to create his own version to help humanity. Overall, Living Saints are the physical embodiment of the Emperor''s power to help mankind as well as one of many tools toplete his secret n for the world. Of all Living Saints, Saint Celestine is a great example and the one who currently represents the 40k world as a Living Saint. During the Fall of Caida, she and her Geminae Superia participated in the fight against Abaddon the Despoiler''s 13th ck Crusade. After the Fall, many of the survivors embark on the Celestinian Crusade to Ultramar, ultimately bing a key member of the resurrection of the Roboute Guilliman. --------------------------- shback to Star Child''s Golden Realm, "First of all, why aren''t you guys hit the bed yet? Sooner orter I''m going to need physical body and you guys need to hurry up." Star Child quickly finish hisst words before Rana could process thest part. Right away, Star Child continued to talk and open a case of beer on the table and pass one to Rana, she took the beer can but didn''t know what to do with it "It is called beer. I got the idea from William and decided to make my own brew so it should be pretty good since I made it. As I said, you have that white feather that can grant you any wish. So, what about it? I can send your soul to another world with all your memory intact." Star Child open his beer can and took a sip from it and wait patiently as Rana quietly stare and hold a cold beer can. Finally, she spoke with excitement as if she figure something out. "Can you send me back to my world? After all, it is a wish so I can go back to my own body right?" "Nope, can''t do that since your body is literally filled with 14th legion''s poison. Even if I send you back, those Death Guard''s poison already did massive damage to your body. You have no healthy body to hold your soul once you go back down there. Sorry." Hearing this, Rana got up from her seat and put down the beer can on the table. Refusing to believe that she can''t return to the mortal realm and is forever lost to seeing William again, she returns to her old self with fire in her eyes. "That''s not good enough! You said I can have any wish and I wish to return to my old world. Not another world or your world but MY world so I can continue my fight next to him!" The room echoed with Rana''s voice and she stared down at the man who is still dim with white light as he took another sip from his beer. "Well, aren''t you a firecracker of a woman? You remind me of my olddy friend, Erda. I swear, once she put down her feet not even I can move her to change her mind. Me, can you believe that? Well, back then I was arrogant and had no patience so what can I say?" Star Child sigh after taking moment to remember his old life and the mistakes he made including his fellow perpetual who left him due to his radical decision and ns for mankind. He continued. "You know, I never meant any of this you know. It is just that there was no other way for me to help humanity without bing extinct races before us. I really did look for other options but there is not much I could have done besides ying the part on therge scale of this Great Game. What I''m trying to say is that I can send you back, but you will be part of this and you will never escape from it. Right now, you are my follower but your soul belongs to this realm and deities. I could have sent you to another world where there is no Chaos, Imperium, or all these crazy shenanigans but if you truly wish to return, I can grant you that. For a price of course." Star Child said to Rana and finish his beer and crush the can with his thumb and index finger. "I will pay any price even if I have to sell my own soul." The deration from Rana was good enough for Star Child to take a deep breath and put his hands out. "Take my hands and I will do all the work. Remember, there is no takeback after this. You will be part of this once I finish the work." Just before he could finish his sentence, Rana took both hands and prepare herself for anything. In a few seconds, the entire room turns bright gold and white light as Star Child began his transfer of power to the soul of the mortal being. At first, Rana didn''t feel any difort but soon, the pain became unbearable as her stomach glowed white. The same area where Night Lord''s power sword stabbed began to heat up and eventually spread all over her body, consumed by the Emperor''s light. "By my name and authority as the Emperor of Mankind, I grant you the title and power of the Living Saint. From now on, you will be known as Saint Rana Bassilo Beckett of the Lioness of Holy Terra." Simr to William''s transformation to Emperor''s Champion, Rana also embraces the light, transforming her entire body and soul into something else. In the end, Rana''s body reshaped into a golden sphere as her soul became something beyond mortal, and Star Child held her soul in his right hand. "Such a fine woman you found yourself, William. I do hope both of you will endure the challenges ahead and deliver some salvation to my Imperium. They are in need of some help right now." With that, Star Child approaches the window and opens it. Looking through the open window, Star Child saw the mortal realm below and with one swing of motion, he throw Rana''s new soul down like a baseball. ''Oops, I should have given her a list of names I want for their baby to have. Oh well, I will give it to her next time. Now, what to do with this iing fleet from warp portal.'' End of shback. --------------------------- "My eyes!" "Just fire your weapons! Kill the source of the light!" "I can see! I truly see the light of the Emperor." All of the Night Lords are blinded by the golden white light and some even challenge themselves to see the light directly. The Emperor''s light did more than blinding the traitor Astartes, it literally burn their faces and exposed skins through broken armor ting as they began to smoke and burn alive. "y them, Sisters! Push the enemy to the void they came from!" Living Saint''s words are more than enough for Sisters and everyone else to push forward with vengeance in their eyes. Those who lost hope and are low on morale are now high peak while the wounded are fully healed to return to battle. Soldiers stand tall with weapons in their hands while the remaining knights join the fight once again. "Charge!" The singlemand from Captain Silvi Greenheart signals everyone to attack the enemy moment ago was spreading fear and terror. Everyone towards the enemy with whatever they can use as a weapon. Even the artillery crew and the rest of the support members step forward with makeshift weapons to kill the ck knights who killed their friends andrade of arms. Sisters didn''t hesitate to miss the fight. Sister Superior Sabina Mire tookmand of two Orders and was the first one to attack the Night Lords before Captain Silverheart gave her order. The sound of bolters, mers, and chainswords roar the battlefield as Night Lords fell left and right. When Rana and the rest of the soldiers join the fight, it turned into aplete blood bath. Rana''s new great sword is powerful enough to pierce and cut the power armor but this didn''t end as she also use her golden shield to bash the traitor Astartes''s helmet and even decapitate the body using the edge of the shield. During the fight, one of the Night Lords managed to hit Rana with his bolter but the bolter round simply hit the armor and fell to the ground like it was nothing. After finding the person responsible for hitting her, Rana extends her great sword''s hilt into a long spear and throws it with all her might. The Night Lord couldn''t react in time to dodge the spear. When the golden weapon hit the traitor Astartes, it went through his chest and three other traitors who were unfortunate enough to stand in the way. It was at this moment when Hellbrute bull rush ahead with no concern for anyone including his battle brothers. Seeing the iing giant metal brute, Rana extends her hand to recall her great spear sword back to her hand and uses her golden shield to block the iing Hellbrute. When nearly blinded Hellbrute and Rana''s shield met, Rana, use her full strength to lift her shield, pushing Hellbrute over her and mming it into another side. Hellbrute fell hard and was unable to get back up as it wascking physical movement to lift itself from the ground. Like a turtle on its back, Rana took the opportunity and lift her spear up high. Rana strikes down Hellbrute with her spear as the golden de pierces the dreadnought tomb chamber. The golden de hit former Captain Naralor, ending his life and the misery of Night Lords Hellbrute. When Rana pull her spear back, there was no explosion orst word from the dead but just leaking mechanical fluids and the smell of Chaos corruption. Standing on top of Hellbrute and mighty, Rana saw the rest of the Night Lords fall from the battle as Sisters and soldiers take them out. Raising her weapon up high and emits another wave of bright light. Sisters, soldiers, and the rest cheer as they also raise their weapons to join the victory. "We march to end this conflict and we will endure any challenges ahead. Now,e with me to victory and for peace." Living Saint deres victory speech and points her spear in the direction where they are nning to meet the rest of William''s forces. The great battle of terror ended with a terrible loss but in the end, the Sisters and the army of the White Lion emerged as victors of the battle with help from the Living Saint, once a mortal woman, now a living embodiment of the Emperor of Mankind and proof that Emperor was watching over them. --------------------------- ''I can''t fall from here. I must rejoin with others if that is thest thing I must do.'' Captain Taradreel and two of his bodyguards managed to run away before the rest of hispany fell to Emperor''s so-called Living Saint. Even though he lost all his forces, it was enough for them to be a distraction and an opportunity to save himself from that traitorous light. "Where and what do we do now, captain? We are no longer apany or even size to be w (Squad). One of his bodyguards asks his captain as another one next to him show simr concern for their current situation. "We will regroup with the other legionpanies and report this matter. I hate the idea to join a different legion since we all decided to take our own territory but this changes everything. We are going to meet the 14th legion Warband at the fortress for the final battle." Captain Taradreel said to his two remaining battle-brothers and turn around when something unexpected stood in front of him. Standing a few feet away was a tall figure made out of metal and holding a long staff. If Captain Taradreel''s memory serves right, he was looking at Necron Overlord and it looks like he was in a battle of his own as his body was heavily damaged. "Kill that abomination!" Taradreel orders his men to attack but it was toote as Trazyn the Infinite simply tosses his Tesseract Labyrinth to catch thest three Night Lords of 31st Company. [Interesting turn of events. I was expecting to see Emperor''s Champion but it looks like I found an interesting specimen to be in my collection. Saint Rana Bassilo Beckett, a Living Saint and lover of Emperor''s Champion, this I have to collect once I get rid of pesky Death Guards.] Trazyn picks up his Tesseract Labyrinth from the ground and put it away as he slowly walks away, heading towards where William''s entire forces are nned to meet. Chapter 91: Meanwhile Chapter 91: Meanwhile Living Saint Rana Beckett saved the Eyham from the Night Lords but with heavy cause. Sisters of Battle lost Sister Superior Sore of the Order Hospitaller and 62 Sisters total from this battle. Meanwhile, Rana''s White Lion lost more than 900 soldiers and 159 knights which were veterans of war three years ago, and members of the knight houses who are loyal to the throne. Still, the loss would have been much greater if it wasn''t for Living Saint''s golden light and miracle from the Emperor, many of the wounded would have perished during mid-battle. After burying and collecting what could be salvaged, Rana and the rest of the troops head towards the great trade city of Eyham. Right away, survivors of the city who witnessed the fight wee them, not caring where they came from or who they are. The city itself isn''t destroyed or to everyone''s surprise, wasn''t burned down but maintained minimum damage since Night Lords was going to use the city as their base of operation. Because of this reason, the city itself can return to normal within a few days of repairs but recovering the mental state of the citizens will take years toe. After weing, Rana took the first step to maintain order and re-establish a sense of governing with her limited men. At the same time, Rana has Sisters to regainmunication with the capital city to send additional help from reserve forces to reinforce the Eyham and rece many of the lost soldiers from today''s conflict. By the third day, Rana received her reinforcement from the capital as Admechs and a small army of Imperial guards came with vehicles, ammunition, and supplies. The first thing Admechs did is to repair disabled tanks from the battlefield and bring it back to life with rituals and actual mechanical repairs. Meanwhile, officers of the Imperial guards, Sisters, and Rana herself discuss the next step to meet with the rest of the armies. -------------------------- Meanwhile, Lord Casten Ursarkar E. Creed stood on top of the hill and observed the city in the distance while his Imperial Guards work on their assignments and moved along with their duties. Behind them, a separate regiment from Death Korps of Krieg is repositioning their artillery, aiming towards the city walls and beyond. ''I asked Lord William to give me the biggest obstacle among this ''Peacekeeping'' campaign. I can take this city before the end of the day.'' Lord Creed thought to himself and turn his gaze at the city wall. With his naked eyes, Creed clearly saw movement within the top of the wall as soldiers of the native world scatter around like worker ants, and a few of the officers instructed them to reinforce the defense. Just by looking at the soldiers in the same uniform, Lord Creed can see that these are professional soldiers and not some local defense forces organized by the lords at thest minute. Still, this didn''t change anything, Creed is ordered to take out the city no matter the cost and he will make sure he willplete the task given to him. After all, he and his guardsman have four more cities to take before rendezvousing with rest of the Lord William''s forces. "What time is it?" Lord Creed asked one of his aides behind him while maintaining his view on the enemy city. Behind him, he had a hand full of aides, bodyguards, and a few of the officers under hismand wait patiently and assess the situation to provide advice or rmendation for the uing battle. "My lord, it is 20 minutes after 1." The senior aide of the Lord Creed said after checking his pocket watch from his chest pocket. "I see. Well, it seems we missed our lunch because of our busy schedule. Okay, let us return back and have decent lunch. Major Sarkren, posts guards around the base camp and has boys from the Kreig start firing artillery towards the city wall. I don''t want to see that walls by the time I''m done with my lunch." Lord Creed gave his orders and return back to base camp. Just as he was about to enter his camp, a ground-shaking sound of artillery began in the distance as Death Korps of Krieg moved as one to continue artillery fire every few minutes. By the time Lord Creed and his officers finished their lunch, Death Korps of Krieg were still firing and their rate of fire increased after each fire. Creed took his time during his lunch and had a cup of decaf with a few of his close officers, discussing their previous military expedition or thoughts on the new chapter of Space Marines. When Lord Creed stepped out, the sun was setting and after realizing the sound of artillery going off, he instruct an aide with a voxmunicator to stop firing. With orders given, Creed returns to the hill, lit a brand new cigar from his mouth, and gives his full attention to the city. To his expectation, the city wall ispletely gone including a few rows of building behind the wall. The countless artillery bombardment on the city wall made hundreds of small craters around it and with the sound of death gone, few of the survivors emerge out from hiding to check the aftermath. Creed saw all of these and he didn''t say anything while puffing his cigar. No one behind the Creed considered asking him what is his next order or should they call it a day. They all knew Creed have a n of his own and no one thinks of stepping out of his n even if that n doesn''t make sense at all. After all, Creed is the man who defended the Cadia to the end when odds were against him 100 to 1. After a few minutes of smoking a cigar, Creed turns around once again to give the next order. "Colonel Mind, send in the guards to take the city. Make sure to capture every noble no matter how minor their status is and if any one of the resists the order is to shoot to kill. Also, send in the tank battalion to handle the inner city wall." With that, Lord Creed officers moved on to pass the next order and 10 minutester, an army of Imperial guards and tanks move out from the base camp to take the city. As the sun starts to set, the sky turns bright red, and the sound ofsguns and tank rounds can be heard beyond the rubble of the city wall. While this was going on, arge group of city guards, ruling nobles, and their children escape into the hidden tunnel with servants carrying treasures. Once artillery bombardment began, they gather everything they could and ran into a secret escape door that lead to a tunnel outside of the city. When they reach the end of the tunnel and open the hatch, they were weed by a small group ofrge men with strange weapons. Unkown to nobles and city guards, Creed sent a fire team of Catachan jungle fighters to capture escaping nobles at the exit while he flushed them out with artillery fire. Expecting a possible escape tunnel or route, Creed sent Catachans to scout beyond the city parameter to find one and simply set the trap. After the world-ending experience of artillery fire and destruction of city defense, it was obvious to find them using a tunnel in which all Creed have to do was capture them like a mouse on a corner. ''All too easy.'' Lord Casten Ursarkar E. Creed once again left the hill and took the rest of the guardsmen to the city. With the g of the Imperium attached to the leading vehicle and the rest of the heavy vehicles following it, Creed simply smiled and enjoy a sk of Amasec (Common alcohol from Imperium). -------------------------- Eastern Region, "What do you mean the five cities fell already? How can one man and his army already conquer cities within a few days?" Head of the house noble asked his knightmander as news of the fallen cities increased each and every day. The fast pace of losing cities and military power put a toll on the rest of the surviving houses and some even gave up without fighting the invaders. "House Kalos and House New Solonor open their gates and weed the invaders without firing a single arrow. My lord, I''m afraid we are the only ones still standing, and no oneing to reinforce our cause." The knightmander delivers dire news to the noble and just when he was about to deliver more news, a roaring sound interrupts them. Everyone approach the castle window to see the cause of the noise and from distance, they all saw the most terrifying thing approaching the city walls. Standing above the height of the wall were two mechanical humanoids, armed with destructive weaponry beyond their imagination. In a matter of a few seconds, the two metal giants fire their weapons, creating a huge hole in the wall and burning anything standing behind the wall. With city defensepromised, big warriors in a full te of armor rush to the city with their versions of ranged weapons and swords ready to use. The city guards and knight already lost their will to fight the moment they saw Imperial Knights and when they saw a walking giant of warriors, they quickly surrendered by dropping their swords and shield. As quickly as the city''s outer wall fell, the middle section followed, and soon, invaders reached the inner section of the city with a single gate blocking their way. "What do we do? How did we not see the metal giant approaching the city?" The head noble panicked and didn''t know what to do. At this point, most of his guards had already run from their positions and only a few including the knightmander remained to protect him and his family. "We didn''t see the gianting because we allowed it." The knightmander said to the head noble and drew his sword from his hilt. Without hesitation, he strikes the master of the city and cut him down with a single swing. With the head noble dead, the rest of the nobles and family members screamed with terror. "Why? Why did you betray your oath to the house?" The eldest son demands an answer as soldiers under the knightmander surround them with weapons pointing at them. "Because people under your father''s protection suffered while you and other nobles enjoyed torturing them for entertainment. I broke my oath and made a deal to save lives. For that, I''m willing to sacrifice a few lives. As long as it belongs to you all." Knightmander approaches the reaming nobles and just like before, he kills the eldest son. Following his example, the guards did the same, killing the same people they swore to protect with their lives and avenging innocent people who died from their hands. -------------------------- A few days ago, Ciaphas Cain and his Valhan Ice Warriors (A total of 1200 guardsmen) left the capital city to conquer the North-Eastern legion. The primary target is the mountain city fortress of Onyxfall, arge city surrounded by the three mountains known for mining and brewing potent ales. The city itself is a fortress because the city was originally built by dwarfs long ago and many of them stayed afterpletion to live in the city. Due to the city being located on top of the mountain and infamous for all-year-around snowfall, William instructed Cain to take a group of adventurers who had previously been there before as guides. To everyone''s surprise, the group of adventurers is former hero''s party members led by Tina who was the first to break from the cursed mind control of the disgraced hero, Makato. Cain objected with good reason but William persuade Cain to take them and even gave permission to execute them if they cause any trouble. So, Cain ends up taking five additional women under hismand and has a few of the guardsmen watch them round the clock. When Lord Commissar Cain and Valhans reached the city, they went into a siege and establish a base camp just outside of the fortress range. As usual, Cain and officers of the Valhans n the next step to take the city without destroying it. In the end, Cain unintentionally volunteers himself and a small team to infiltrate the city to take out the leadership after finding out that the city has a hidden entrance. Of course, Cain''s personal adjutant Ferik Jurgen joined Cain''s adventure as the team including five adventurers ventured through the night to gain ess to the city''s underground sewage system just around the corner of the nearest mountain. It turns out, that this region was where the hero''s party stopped by to investigate where the ck dragon''sir is located. ording to the rumor, one of the painters during the construction of the fortress witnessed the ck dragon flying over the mountain as it was looking for a newir to settle. That painter waster inspired to draw paintings with clues to where the ck dragon settled andter, the hero''s party made a quick stop to find the clue (Of course, without helping the local nobles with their issues or investigating local legend on secret society somewhere in the city). For most of the night and early next morning, Cain and his team of infiltrators have the most ridiculous adventure of their lives. Chapter 92: Cain’s Adventure Part 1 Chapter 92: Cain¡¯s Adventure Part 1 [Please read the author''s thought] Cain and his band of troops adventure into the lower level of the city. Well, it is more of a sewer system but considering howrge the tunnel is, Cain now believed that terminator armor can venture through this system without any trouble. "We are lost." One of the adventurer girls said out loud after realizing that they are lost. Because they had been to the sewer system before the leader of the adventurers took the lead but unfortunately, they realized they are lost and had been circling for half an hour. "I''m not a professional navigator but I''m certain we''ve been circling for a while," Cain said to the girls and step forward to take the lead. Unknown to everyone, Cain grew up as an hiver from an unknown hive city before joining Sch Progenium and has an instinct regarding negativing underground systems or tunnels. "And how do you know where you are going?" Tina asked Cain in an attempt to hide her guilty face since she is the one who leads the group. "Because this isn''t my first time when ites to the underground tunnel system. Also, looks like your green friend isn''t feeling great." Cain points his thumb toward the mage girl who is distancing herself from Jurgen as she is slowly losing her power. "Oh no, Enyall. Quick, drink a health potion." Tina Went to her friend in the back of the line and at the same time, Jurgen went to the front to be next to Cain. "Sir, I think I see somethinging," Jurgen spoke out loud and position hissgun to aim toward somethinging in their way. "Everyone, ready your weapons. We have apany." Cain gave his order and all of his guardsmen ready theirsguns in formation. After a few seconds of waiting, the group saw a band of Kobolds with wooden shields and rusty swords. "It''s filthy Xenos, kill them all." Cain gave hismand and fire hisspistol at the same time. Without hesitation, all of the guardsmen fire their weapons including Jurgen, killing all of the Kobolds in a matter of seconds. When the shing light of thesguns stop shing, two of the guardsmen approach the dead Xenos to make sure they are dead. Meanwhile, adventurers were simply baffled by the effectiveness of the weapon of the Imperium. "Sir, all of the Xenos are dead but after checking their bodies, it seems they were in some sort ofbat before encountering us." A young sergeant with an augmented left eye reported back to Cain. Hearing this, Cain turns around to speak with Tina. "You told me no one ventures through this system," Cain spoke with a calm but authoritative voice. He usually uses this tone of voice when he needs to present his position of power but also needs to be a humble hero of the Imperium around his men. "They shouldn''t be any. We killed any monstersst time and it was only a few goblins. Kobolds were never been seen before. Ever." Tina exined to Cain and others behind her agreed with her. With one hard exhale, Cain node his head and reposition hismissar hat then turn around. "It was expected but we are now in unknown territory with an unknown number of enemies. Including humanoid Xenos. I will be taking the lead now and I expect you to follow and help us the best you can. If not, our agreement is terminated immediately, literally." With a hard message delivered, Cain led the group further underground. Using his natural sense of direction, Cain managed to break the loophole of circling and went in a different direction. After another half hour of travel, the group reached a chamber where it was divided into two separate ways. After looking left and right for a few minutes, Cain picked the right way and one of the Valhn Ice Warriors asked him why he picked that path. "Because you can feel the flow of airing through this path. Also, because it is the ''right'' path." Cain gave smiled and hold hisspistol and chainsword in case someone or something jumps at him in the corner. Hearing ame joke, a few of the Valhans and Jurgen chucked and join Cain while adventurer girls follow them in silence after hearing the joke. Feeling the decline of the path, the group ventured deeper and found themselves in some sort of wide hallway with four doors on each side. Jurgen was about to open the first door on the right when Cain stopped him before grabbing the door handle. "Wait, is it possible the door could be rigged with the trap of sorts. Sergeant." Cain calls the sergeant to which the young sergeant points out his soldiers to check for traps using a scammer. After quick scanning for a hidden trap, the trooper found a thin line of wire above the door frame. Using his wire cutter, the soldier cut the line, disarming the trap which everyone found out was rigged to pour oil and lit person on fire right after. "That is some old-school trap mechanism," Jurgen spoke with an impressed tone and took the point to enter the room with hissgun ready. Using his shlight attached to his weapon, Jurgen scan the room and found nothing except for a few boxes. "Room is clear, sir." Jurgen gave clear to Cain and most of them entered the room except for two guardsmen staying outside to watch the exit. The room was big and after checking the boxes, they found nothing but old building materials such as nearly rotten wooden boards, rusty nails, and few construction tools. After looking around, Cain was about to recall everyone to move out when suddenly one of the soldiers screamed and began to fire hissgun at something attached to his left leg. "Get this thing off of me." The soldier screamed and every one turn their light source around to find the soldier fighting a greenish blue jelly attached to his left leg and slowly dissolving the leg using acid-like liquid. "It''s a Gtinous Cube! The fire and salt are the weakness." Tina pass the information to everyone but it was useless sincesgun''s hot sma did the work and quickly killed the creature after two shots. "Medic! Check the Henderson. Everyone double-check your area for more creatures." Sergeant ordered his men and scan the area one more time. Cain and Jurgen did the same and soon they realized why they missed the jelly creature the first time. Seeping from the small cracks from the multiple walls, greenish blue liquids came out with tiny orbs centering and creating a cube shape. "Well, no wonder we missed it. This darn room is ambush ready to happen." Cain spoke and everyone fire theirsguns precisely to kill the monster and to save their power cells. The girls did their job as they use their torches to burn the jelly as a group and watched each other''s back. In a matter of a few minutes, the monsters stoping out from the wall and everyone quickly left the room, Jurgen was thest person to close the door. "Thank you, Jurgen. Sergeant, how is private Henderson?" Cain asked the young sergeant. "He will be fine sir. It was a simple chemical burn but he has seen worse than that. medic already patched him with the burn, but for his pants, not even regiment doctor could save it." The sergeant told Cain and after hearing thest remark, Cain saw Henderson standing up with his left part of the pants destroyed up to his kneel. "Just d that we didn''t lose our man. On the other hand, the quartermaster will be upset when he found out we destroy part of the uniform due to a living acid-like-chemical" Cain''s joke made everyoneugh while Henderson bitterly express it since this was his favorite and fitting uniform. For Imperial guardsmen, uniforms are either small or big size and it is impossible to be given a perfectly fitting uniform without going through the entire supply room. "Okay, lesson learned and ready to put on the test. Let''s check the rest of the room and move out." Cain gave an order and everyone prepare themselves to check the rest of the rooms. The second room didn''t have any traps or monsters but it was filled with small tables with papers and writing materials. It was the architect''s room and after a few digging around, Jurgen found a half-finished map which Cain dly epted and read it. The third room was the kitchen and mess hall. The room had multiple tables and a firece to cook simple meals for the workers. Because the underground was made by dwarfs, the tables and kitchen were small in size and after close examination, the party didn''t find anything interesting. The fourth room was sleeping quarters and just like the kitchen and architect''s room, the beds were small sizes and it was a mess. As if something recently used this room, the sleeping quarter was aplete mess as if a powerful storm passed by. "Look." A ranger from the adventurer group said and pick up the object on the floor. On her hand was a crudely made knife and the de had dry blood on it. "It looks like the de was used a couple of days ago. Not sure who''s blood it is but it seems like the owner of the de might be a goblin." Tina said after observing the knife. "Gobin? What is that and how do you know?" Sergeant asked Tina and she point her finger at the de which had multiple small holes. "Goblins are small green creatures and savage. They usually attack as a group to outnumber their enemy. As for the de, the goblins make these kinds of holes on their des to make them lighter to use them. It is kind of strange to not find any corpses." "So, they are Gretchins. Maybe they drag the dead to eatter." Jurgenmented out loud to which girls winced at the idea but Valhans simply grunted when they realized the de belonged to greenskins. "Damn filthy greenskins." The sergeant said to himself and spit to the side with disgust. Valhans'' natural enemy is Orks due to their home being infested long ago. They managed to win the but asionally the Orc warbands do appear and Defense Force (PDF) has to purge them each time. Ever since then, Valhans and Orcs became natural enemies with Valhans bing experts at killing greenskins. "We are done with here. Let''s move out." Cain said to everyone and left the room. With all the room checked and finding some kind of map, Cain, and Jurgen takes the point of the line and explores further into the hallway. Going further and exploring a few more rooms, the party again found themselves on two separate paths. Path to the left and right, the party once again wait patiently while Cain silently made his decision on which path to take. After a few minutes of silence, Jurgen spoke next to Cain in a whisper. "Tanna, sir?" Jurgen handed the sk with warm Tanna tea which Cain epted and took drank with smallfort. After enjoying the smell of the sour and unique tea, Cain closes the sk and returns it to Jurgen. Just after Cain pass the sk, his nose smelled something familiar and it wasn''t Jurgen''s. The smell of the scent was iron and right away, Cain smelled blood and it was fresh in the air to his left. "The smell of the blood ising from the left path. It is possible that victim and greenskins went towards that direction." Cain said to Jurgen and gather everyone to move out. Not knowing what is ahead, the party took every precaution such as Cain pulling out his chainsword and Jurgen bringing out his meltagun. After a few minutes to slow approach to the end of the hallway, the party finally reached the big wooden door. Cain node to Jurgen and two men kick the door to enter the room with weapons ready while the rest of the party joins them from behind. The first thing Cain realized was the smell as the room was filled with a powerful stench of blood and gore. The second thing he and the rest of the party realized is that the room was massacred with two dozen corpses of greenskins (Orcs and goblins). Lastly, arge man was kneeling in the middle of the room. The man was holding a power sword with a ck hilt and to Cain''s surprise, he wasn''t wearing power armor but based on the clothes the man belong to ck Temrs. The man lifts his head to see the neers and after a few seconds, he spoke simple words. "By the Emperor''s light. Based on your expression you weren''t expecting me." Chapter 93: Cain’s Adventure Part 2 Chapter 93: Cain¡¯s Adventure Part 2 "Is that an Adeptus Astartes? How in the world did he end up here?" The sergeant spoke without realizing it. Not to mention that this Astartes was without his power armor or any other weapon besides his power sword. "Yes, my name is th Cassimer. Adeptus Astartes of the ck Temrs and Emperor''s Champion." The Space Marine ce his power sword in front of him and stood tall as he introduce himself to everyone and half of the party gasp with surprise on their face. "Another Emperor''s Champion from the same Chapter?" Jurgen spoke while Commissar Cain remain quiet with multiple thoughts going through his head. Meanwhile, th on the other hand raises one of his eyebrows after receiving a very different reaction from the group. Not to mention, Jurgen''s word on another existence of the Emperor''s Champion made him curious. "Champion, how did you end up here? What happened to your armor?" Commissar Cain asks the new Emperor''s Champion after finishing his thought. During this whole time, Cain ces his hand on his chainsword ready to strike just in case. Every Adeptus Astartes indeed have their champion and the title of the Emperor''s Champion belongs to ck Temrs. As of now, Lord William is the one who was given the title of the Emperor''s Champion, and unless High Marshal Helbrecht himself from the ck Temrs'' Eternal Crusader dered Lord William to be dead, there is no way there is a second Emperor''s Champion. That is unless this is some warp sorcery and th Cassimer is a lost Champion who traveled through the warp portal through time and space. "I don''t know how I end up in this world but I remember this. Eternal Crusader and the entire fleet embarked on the sector cleansing when we end up on a where a Chaos Sorcerer belonging to Thousand Sons attempted toplete the ritual in the entire sector magnitude. My brothers and I were sent to kill this traitor frompleting it but before my de can strike him, the sorcerer rush the Chaos ritual. That is thest thing I remember before waking up and surrounded by the filthy Xenos, one of them holding my sword. So, I deliver rightful justice by killing them all. After that, you all came in with surprise on your face." The Emperor''s Champion exins his tale before ending up in the New World and how quickly he ughter these Greenskins without any problem. "Do you remember what year it was before waking up?" Cain asks the Emperor''s Champion while everyone including adventurers went over the Orcs'' bodies to check for anything worth salvaging. "Why, it is the year M41 of the 755." Emperor''s Champion gave his answer to which Cain quickly calcte the year andpared it with Imperium history. Cain wasn''t a historian or well educated on the subject of history but he recognized the year and event that could match the scale. "If I remember right, that was the year when Sabbat Worlds Crusade began. I don''t know much since I''m no historian but it was sector scale crusade which is the Sabbat Worlds and it was big enough to imprint on Imperium history." Cain scratch his chin and said out loud so everyone can hear him. The story so far matches with Emperor''s Champion and Sabbat Worlds Crusade was sector-wide andsted 23 years. There is also a fact that Imperial forces fought Chaos armies during that period and multiple chapters of Adeptus Astartes participated so that also checks out. Finally, Cain found out the year this Emperor''s Champion existed which is before Lord William''s (Previously, William provided knowledge of the current Imperium including the resurrection of the Roboute Guilliman) so this also checks out as Cain determined that it is some kind of warp sorcery done by Thousand Sons sorcerer. th Cassimer is indeed Emperor''s Champion but from the past and possibly William''s predecessor. "You have a lot of things to catch up on. First thing first, let''s get clothes of sorts." Adventurers and a few of the guardsmen continue to search the room and found nothing worth or could be used as makeshift clothes. Meanwhile, Jurgen made a fresh pot of Tanna while Cain exins to the Emperor''s Champion about recent events in the New World (Within limit as he withdraws important information such as William''s new Space Marines and STC forge). The basic information provided by the Cain was multiple Chapters of Space Marines and Imperial Guardsmen led by William as Lord Imperator Fratrum, multiple encounters with Chaos forces, and other Xenos such as Greenskins and Necrons. When the subject of Necron came, the Champion tensed up, and his face show rage as if Necron stole his purity seal. "Champion? Is something wrong?" Cain asked while Jurgen paused a few feet away with a pot of Tanna and two cups in his hands. "You said Necron? Are you certain?" Champion''s question gave off rage and eagerness to leave the room. Seeing this, Cain exins further on the subject of Necron to which the problem is resolved with William ying the Necron Overlord. "That is good but did any of you managed to recover any Necron artifacts? It generates strange power, capable of boosting the Psyker''s abilities and connection to the Warp." "No, Champion. We found no such items or artifacts. What do you seek such unholy item?" Cain''s question got Sergeant''s attention who was near two people while overseeing everyone. "Because the Chaos Sorcerer who was performing a ritual was using that very artifact to expand his power. If I''m here in this ''New World'' and you already encountered forces of Chaos, it is possible that traitor made it here as well." This shocking news made sense to Cain after a few seconds of thinking about it. The possibility is high and from his previous experience, Cain always encounters something dangerous and is eager to take his life. Such as Chaos Marine (etc¡­) when he is on a side mission such as this. At this moment, Cain''s left hand began to tingle, amon signal of his whenever there is danger near him as his unconscious mind told him something was wrong. ''By the Emperor''s golden throne. Why do I have a feeling this is now more than simple reconnaissance?'' Cain held his left hand with his right and ept the cup of Jurgen''s Tanna tea. Cain bet his trusty chainsword and Commissar hat that he will encounter this lost Chaos Sorcerer and Necron artifact soon. ------------------------ One Hour Later, With no power armor or anything armor to salvage, Emperor''s Champion used adventurers'' cloaks as a makeshift shirt and pants. It was somewhat eptable and Champion didn''t mind since his mission was clear and now seek Chaos Sorcerer and destroy Necron artifact. With a Champion joining his party, Cain felt safer than ever. Having Emperor''s Champion who wields the ck sword and Jurgen''s nk ability ensures Cain''s survival chances much higher than any other time. Not to mention that Cain is certain his foe is the servant of the Chaos, he did this a thousand times and managed to survive them all (With huge luck and help from the Jurgen''s ability). ''Focus Cain, you can''t put your guard down now. Do remember what happenedst time you travel with Space Marine? You end up fighting Orks and Genestealer inside of Space Hulk.'' Shaking his head, Cain clears his mind and refocus as the party finally made it to thest hallway where a dim light wasing out from the opposite side. Approaching halfway towards the light, Cain and others began to hear chanting and some sort of humming beyond the hallway. "This is it, I heard this before and I''m certain this belongs to Chaos Sorcerer. He did make it here just like me." Rage can be heard in Champion''s voice as he attempts to go head first but before he could do that, Tina stopped the giant man with all her strength. "Why are you stopping me, woman? I will y you even if you are a hired help from the Commissar." The tension went up much higher and before Tina could exin, Cain jumped in and did his best to calm the situation. "We don''t have time for this. I''m sure she stopped you because we need to know what is ahead of up before jumping pit of fire. Let us check first ande up with a n then you can kill and take your vengeance as you wish." Cain didn''t take chance when ites to situations where his life is on the line. The moment he heard the description of the Necron artifact, Cain suspected a simr one he previously encountered years ago. Cain knew Jurgen will be the key to either destroying the artifact or retrieving it for Lord William. That is if he can have Champion corporate with the rest of the party and most importantly, keep himself alive. "Fine." With that, Cain sent his best scout to check the final room while the rest of the guardsmen and adventurers prepare themselves for the fight. When the scout returned a few minutester he seems disturbed but managed topose himself to describe the room. "The final room is arge chamber with half of the room on the other side missing the floor. The room, well the chamber looks like some kind of ritual and it is filled with full-blown cultists. I estimated it to be around 40 to 50 and just like Emperor''s Champion said, the one who is leading the cultists is the traitor Space Marine with strange armor and staff on his hand." Scout did his best to describe the room but Cain can tell that the scout is in shock as if he saw something no one should ever see in their lives. "I know you are processing what you saw but pleaseplete your report." Cain encourages the man just like how he should be acting as a Hero of the Imperium and care for themon trooper''s well-being. This small act worked as the scout took a deep breath to finish his report. "The Chaos Sorcerer, he was performing the ritual on to some kind of metal sphere generating green and purple lights. Also, I couldn''t tell clearly but I think I saw engraving within the sphere. I looked like an ocean wave and¡­" Before the scout could finish the report, the Emperor''s Champion lift his ck sword and charge towards the chamber where Chaos cultists are performing a sinister ritual. "For the Emperor! I''ming for you, traitor!" "A frak. Everyone, follow the champion. We have to support him now or we will be overwhelmed soon." Cain cursed and quickly order his men to join the Champion. It is now or never and Cain must act before Emperor''s Champion of an idiot get himself killed. "Jurgen, stay close to me and have that melta ready." "Yes sir," Jurgen responds as if Cain asked him to bring out a pot of Tanna teas while holing his meltagun. When Cain and the rest of the party entered the chamber, the ce was already blood bath and a dozen corpses were everywhere. Champion, holding an activated ck power sword cleaves anyone and anything it was standing in his way while cultists attack him from all directions with simple knives and axes. ''They must be locals who turned by the Chaos Sorcerer.'' Realizing this, Cain engaged inbat as he shot a few shots from hisspistol and draw his chainsword for closebat. Meanwhile, Tina and her party members maintain their ground while their psyker cast strange light to boost everyone''s physical strength. As for the Valhans, they began firing theirsguns while keeping up with Cain. Because they were prepared, they had their bay attached to theirsgun so they can fight in closebat. Due to their superior weaponry andbat armor, the cultists went down much quicker until suddenly one of the cultists blow a horn. The sound of the horn echoed across the entire chamber and just as the cultist finished blowing the horn, Cain fire hisspistol, killing the man without hesitation. "Why did he blow that strange horn?" Jurgen question the action of the cultist as he stood next to Cain but anyone could say anything, the entire chamber rumbled with each pattern of somethingrgeing their way. "I think we are going to find out soon." Private Henderson spoke while he reloads hissgun powerpack with a new one and sted a few shots at iing cultists. "Wait, where is Campion?" Cain, realizing that their biggest ally is not among them, looks around to find the Space Marine. Right away, they all found the Champion as he was engaged in a battle against Chaos Sorcerer. Even though he isn''t in his Champion''s power armor, the Champion was fighting the Chaos Sorcerer in an equal match as he didn''t give the traitor a chance to cast any wrap sorcery. With masterful swordsmanship, the Champion quickly exchange his ck sword from his right hand to his left hand and decapitated the Chaos Sorcerer''s entire hands as if it was child''s y. "AAAHHH! You! I knew you were no¡­" The Chaos Sorcerer didn''t finish his sentence as the Emperor''s Champion deliver his finishing blow by cutting the traitor in half from head to toe. With the traitor dead and interrupting the Chaos ritual beforepletion, Cain signed and took in a deep breath. With masterful execution done by the Champion, everyone forgot that something big wasing, and the only person who remained focused was Jurgen. "Finally, I''m about to aplish my mission once and for all." Champion said to himself and approach the artifact that was no longer glowing. Seeing this, Cain called his aide to follow him and call out the Champion. "Wait, let me and Jurgen handle that. You don''t know what will do to you." The warning didn''t matter as a secondter Champion grab the metal sphere without hesitation or worries. Just as Cain and Jurgen are about to reach the Champion who is now holding an unknown Necron artifact, something big and scaly appeared from the abyss. Coming out from the empty dark floor was a giant purple reptile with five heads. All fives snake heads hissed and opened their mouths for a moment. Before realizing what was going on, The Lernaean Hydra unleash an acid-breath attack on thergest group in front of him. Valhans who were holding the line as the rest of the cultists surround them couldn''t dodge the iing acid attack as they received the breath attack from the hydra. In a matter of a second, all of the guardsmen (Except for Private Henderson who happened to stick with Cain and Jurgen) died as their flesh, clothes, and gears melted like cotton candy mixed with water. As for the cultists, they also perished like the guardsmen as they experience the same faith. "No!" Private Henderson cried out for his fallen brothers and turn hissgun at the Lernaean Hydra. Cain, who is a veteran soldier and has years of battle experience as amissar controlled his emotion and gave a simple order to his loyal aide who happened to be holding a heavy anti-armor gun in his hand. "Jurgen, do your thing." "Of course, sir." Pointing his meltagun towards hydra, Jurgen fired his weapon, unleashing tens of thousands of degrees of the heat of the beam at the monster of a legend. Chapter 94: Cain’s Adventure Part 3 Chapter 94: Cain¡¯s Adventure Part 3 Ance of an intense beam came out of Jurgen''s meltagun. The energy beam follows Jurgen''s aim, hitting one of the five Lernaean Hydra''s heads. Because the meltagun was designed to be an anti-tank armor weapon, the hydra''s natural armor couldn''t do much and one of the heads fell apart from the main body. Typically when a hydra loses one of its heads, it regrows back with a brand new one just like in the legend. The creature doesn''t grow additional ones but it can be problematic as it will continue to grow new heads while bombarding the enemies with acid breath. Normal adventurers will have some difficulty dealing with a monster such as a hydra as it will require major preparation and strategy. For Jurgen, he didn''t need strategy or preparation to deal with such a monster. Following Lord Commissar Cain''s order without a question, Jurgen simply fires his favorite weapon at the monster without a second thought and managed to take the entire head and neck in one shot. Due to meltagun function more like a sma weapon than a mer, the beam of heat energy cut through hydra''s scale armor and flesh like a hot knife on butter. Because of this, the lost head didn''t regrow as meltagun cauterized the wound, leaving hydra confused and in pain. "Fire everything we have!" Cain shouted. Half secondter, he and Henderson raise theirsguns and open fire. Humblesgun of the Astra Militarum isn''t powerful as meltagun but it is still an energy-based weapon and hot enough to melt hydra''s scale before losing the intense heat. While the three remaining men make their stand and st everything they have, the adventurers managed to defeat all the cultists and saw what they are about to face next. Without hesitation, Tina and the rest attack the hydra, joining Cain''sst stand against the fearsome monster (Mage staying far from Jurgen as possible). Hydra, forever losing one of its heads went on a rampage as it fully pulls itself out from the empty void and begins to swing its massive tail at the man who cause pain. Enduring the painful heat of lights, the monster turns the body and ms down the tail right on top of Jurgen. Since Jurgen is next to Cain, he saw a huge shadow covering him and Henderson. He could dodge the iing attack but he couldn''t simply abandon his loyal aide. So, he raised his chainsword and prepare to intercept the iing tail of the monster. "Come at me, monster! For Emperor''s finest are here to take your life!" Cain''s furious voice echo therge chamber as a massive tail came down like a whip. ''What in the Emperor''s throne am I doing? I''m not superhuman or strong enough to parry a fracking TAIL!'' Cain cursed himself with regrets but his body didn''t follow his thoughts. Due to years ofbat experience and training, Cain''s body was responding to his muscle memory and instinct to fight the enemy and survive. It was this pure unintentional instinct and luck (A lot of luck) that Cain managed to live more than 200 years and went to retirement before the 13th ck Crusade started. "Fear not Lord Commissar, for I''m here as well." Forgotten by everyone, arge man without power armor and holding a ck sword jump between Cain and hydra''s tail to intercept the iing attack. Buzzing with blue energy, the ck sword of the Emperor''s Champion shes the hydra''s tail and cuts it apart with a single swing. The massive tail changed the trajectory as it fell next to where three men stood, barely missing them from certain death. This wasn''t the end as the moment Champion made hisnding quickly turned his body to make another attack on hydra. Without hesitation, Champion dashed and aim his de at the monster''s massive left arm. Before realizing what happened to its tail, the monster felt new pain as a huge cut is made and blood is gushing out. Champion dodge the blood and went under the monster''s belly, his intention was clear to everyone. He was about to go for the monster''s weakest point and deliver critical damage in one move. Just as the Champion was about to raise his sword, Hydra did something unthinkable, it simply drop its entire body and mmed the Champion. The entire chamber shook as the debris began to fall from the ceiling and soon, natural light began to appear from the top. "Champion!" Cain called the Adeptus Astartes after realizing what just happened. Believing that the transhuman of the Emperor might still be alive, he orders Jurgen to fire his second shot at the hydra. Space Marines are tough, tough enough to survive thanks to their enhanced body including dense bones which strong enough to hold the entire body together. With perfect timing, Jurgen''s meltagun recharged and was ready to fire once again. Jurgen fired the meltagun and this time it hit the hydra''s main body. Screeching noise hit everyone''s ears as hydra felt unimaginable pain and heat. For the first time in its life, the hydra realized that it might not survive the fight and began to move back. Knowing that its enemies will not allow them to leave, hydra breath out its acid breath for thest time. Cain saw purple aciding in his way. He was so focused on killing the monster, he forgot to take cover but thanks to his luck, something unusual appeared to save his skin. "Wall of Green!" Mage girl from Tina''s group summoned a wall of green vines thick enough to block the entire acid breath. Quickly recovering from the shock that the wall of vines saved his life and others, Cain turns his head to see adventurers in action as each of them moved with goals of their own. Leading the group, Tina and the ranger attack the hydra while the thief and bard sneak under the monster to rescue the Champion. Without any issues, they managed to reach the giant man but because of his size, they couldn''t move him away from the monster''s belly. So, instead, they pop four bottles of health potions and pour it all onto Champion''s mouth. "He is alive but it''s not enough for him. Sara, do your thing!" Bard shouted to a girl name Sara who happened to be a cleric of the group who already cast a prayer of a healing spell. "Heal!" Sara finish her spell and point her finger at the Champion with her level 6th spell. The surge of positive energy washed through the Champion and all his injuries are healed as if his injuries were never there. Both the bard and thief watch closely as the Champion regains his consciousness and opens his eyes with fury. "AAAAAAH! FOR THE EMPEROR!" Champion quickly got up and saw retreating hydra behind him. Cain and the rest hear the scream and move side to see what was going on. What they saw was pure madness as the Champion made a zigzag dash as he charge the monster with his de in his hand. Cain, who is ever very observant, saw a green foreign item attached to the Champion''s belt. The Necron artifact was attached to Champion''s belt with a leather strap, secured and undamaged from hydra''s massive body. Hydra saw an insane creatureing at him with blind rage as it was close to retreating to the pit. Knowing it iste to run, the hydra raises its right arm and attack with its w. Emperor''s Champion, who is lost to rage simply reacts iing attack with his battle instinct as he dodges the hydra''s w attack and counters it by cutting the entire w hand off. Regaining his footing after the counter, Champion took a low stance and put his entire energy onto his legs while cing his sword next to his face, pointing it at the monster. "Die." With a whisper, Champion moved with unbelievable speed. Leaving a clear footprint on the ground, Emperor''s Champion turned his whole body into a projectile as he aim at the hole Jurgen made a few minutes ago. When Champion''s body hit the hydra, the monster''s main body pushed way in the back and blood began to gush out from the unhealed wound. With powerful force hitting the monster like a truck, the hydra lost its bnce and began to tilt towards the pitfall. Shriek in pain and undoubtedly confused by what just happened, the hydra finally fell into the void once it came from and it was free falling. "Cassimer! You will die unless you don''t pull yourself out!" Cain call the Champion''s name but it was useless. Second,ter, the monster fell into the pitfall with Emperor''s Champion still inside. Hydra was gone, and for the price of defeating it, the cost was a band of guardsmen and the Emperor''s Angel. ''I will personally deliver his name to Lord William after this. He must know that his predecessor''s demise.'' Cain made a promise to himself and gather everyone who survived the encounter. It was at this moment when the entire ceiling fell and a clear morning sky can be seen. "We are done here. Let''s get out of this ce." Cain ordered everyone and with quick thinking from Tina, the entire group managed to escape using a crossbow and rope with a hook. It was a difficult task to climb the walls but with fresh cold air breezing to the underground, Cain and others pull themselves out. When Cain reached the top, he realized where he was. He was inside the fortress city and the hole was located in the middle of the square. Soon, he found out he was surrounded by the local militia as hundreds of soldiers tall and short, armed with swords and spears surround him and others. "I don''t know how you managed to crawl up here but you made a mistake of¡­" The captain of the guard didn''t finish his sentence as the entire wall behind him exploded and debris fell on top of him and the rest. The entire militia panicked and was unable to reorganize as they lost leadership suddenly. Cain and the rest take the opportunity to take cover as the dust cloud blinded the enemy force. When the dust cleared, Cain saw the cause of the explosion as Valhan Ice Warriors ran through the destroyed wall and began the siege. ''They heard the ground copsing and fire at the direction of the sound believing it was my signal.'' Cain connect the dots and join the reinforcement with hisspistol while the rest of the group did the same. The city fell in the matter of half an hour as most of the city defense militia fell after catching the destruction of the wall from artillery fire. Anyone who resisted died assguns finish them off and mer burned through their shields. ----------------- After the Siege, "Lord Commissar Cain. I must say, thanks to your signal we managed to focus all our artillery fire on enemy forces and take the city before lunch. You are truly the Hero of the Imperium and a shining example to the rest of us." Colonel Aldrik, themander of the Valhan regiment salutes Cain while he was drinking Tanna tea given by Jurgen a few minutes ago. "I was doing my duty as a loyal servant of the Emperor. I''m sure anyone of your men would do the same for me and Lord William. Are my men being checked up for wounds?" Cain yed off the hero role as usual. His care for the men under hismand shows great care for simple guardsmen before his well-being and earns him respect from the rest. So, far it worked for Cain and he encourage the next generation ofmissars to do the same instead of summary execution for failing to salute the Imperial eagle. "Yes sir. They are all being checked for any injuries. As for your report on Emperor''s Champion. Do you want me to send this to Lord William right away?" Colonel ask Cain as he passed the data te to his junior officer. Before Cain can say anything, the junior officer who was reading the report gasped and earned himself colonel''s, Cain''s, and Jurgen''s attention, who was standing next to Cain. "What is it, captain? Come on speaking it out, Lord Commissar doesn''t have time for your drama." Colonel Aldrik ordered the man to which he quickly went to the position of attention and apologies for his rude interruption. "Sirs, I believe this report about Emperor''s Champion is wrong." "WHAT! Are you saying Lord Commissar is a lier?" Colonel went berserk and was about to pull out hisspistol when Cain stopped him and went back to the topic of the problem. "Exin captain, what do you mean?" "Lord Commissar, you reported that this Emperor''s Champion participated in Sabbat Worlds Crusade in year 755 M41. My father was there when the crusade started, he was one of the senior officers of the Warmaster Macaroth." "Ok, I''m sure your father told you about the war. What does this have to do with the Champion?" Cain ask and took a sip of Tanna tea. His hand began to tingle as something was off about this whole thing. "Well, my father was an officer in charge of coordinating the entire crusade with each chapter of the Adeptus Astartes. Sir, ck Temrs didn''t participate in the Sabbat Worlds Crusade. Iron Snakes, Raven Guard, Silver Guard, White Scars, and Imperial Fists were the only ones who joined but never ck Temrs." "What?!" Cain said out loud enough for the colonel to jump in surprise. "You sure captain? Few of the ck Temrs may have joined their founding chapter. Maybe small information such as this falls through the cracks." The colonel said to his junior officer but Cain knew something was off. Sure, little information such as militia or band of resistance fighters might go missing but the information about Space Marines and their deeds can''t be ignored or be forgotten from the Imperium record. If that is the case then who was th Cassimer and why did he say he was part of the Sabbat Worlds Crusade? Cain began to have a bad feeling about this whole thing, especially the part where this ''Champion'' was thest person to possess the Necron artifact. Cain soon realized his error. The man who imed to be Emperor''s Champion indeed acted like ck Temr but with logic and the possibility that the Champion was founded by his party was astronomical to the point Cain should have realized that it was nned. Ciaphas Cain, the Hero of the Imperium and the man who conned the entire gxy finally became a victim of his own game as Space Marine who disguised as Emperor''s Champion stole Necron artifact under his nose. ----------------------- Meanwhile, th Cassimer escapes the pitfall thanks to the hydra''s body taking the most of the impact and softening the fall. After crawling out of the corpse of the giant reptile, Space Marine managed to fee himself covered in blood. "It didn''t go as I nned but at least I have what I came for," Cassimer said to himself and pull out a barrel of water from his inventory and towel to clean himself. When he is done, he put away the ck sword and Necron artifact into his inventory and equips his power armor. Equipped with scaly-looking power armor with the colors of sea blue and emerald green, the power armor was engraved with symbols of Chaos undivided and the right shoulder te has the symbol of the legion he belongs to. Putting his horned helmet onto his head, Cassimer activates his vox in a secure channel for his brothers who are still hidden to hear his messages to let them know his mission was a sess. "th Cassimer of the ck Temr is no more. I''m Alpharius and this message is a lie." Chapter 95: Reports to the Chapter Master Chapter 95: Reports to the Chapter Master William was the first to arrive at the final destination with his royal guards and firstpany. The trip wasn''t that much difficult as William didn''t get to do much since the firstpany did all the heavy lifting. When a massive siege was about to happen two cities ago, William was about to jump into action to take out the main gate with his terminator armor. But as a Chapter Master of the newly madepany, William was blocked by his royal guards while the firstpany did all the work of conquering the city. ''Where is all the fun when you can''t part take on the action itself? "Oh, let us handle this Chapter Master," "Save your energy for our final battle against the Ruinous Power, Chapter Master." Man, they literally drain all the fun out of this whole Peace Keeping.'' For this reason, William ends up with a pile of paperwork and goes through reports on other campaigns around the country. The first report was from Lord Creed who managed to conquer most of the cities and took major casualties, for the other side. One part even mentions how he managed to lure out the city leaders and nobles using massive artillery bombardment. It was a 3D chess move to scare the living shit out of your enemy while thinking three steps ahead of them. After that, Lord Creed took out a few more cities and armies including an army of mercenaries using nothing but tanks at his disposal. Let''s just say Banede heavy battle tanks can reshape thendscape just by running over thousands of spearmen and swordsmen. Overall, Lord Creed aplish all his objectives and didn''t even slow down to take a day or two to take the day off. The only reason William made it first to the final location before Lord Creed did was because of the number of cities he had to takepared to others. Compare to that, William only took out three cities and none of them did he get to fire a single bolter round. The second report is from Lord Commissar Cain and his campaign through the mountain region. Commissar Cain''s report is what William expects exactly as Cain''s report gave off his adventure just like in the novel. When William got into half of the report about the new ck Temr, William got excited but near the end, he realized that this ck Temr who im to be Emperor''s Champion might be someone else. In the end, William realized that this man might be from one of the Alpha Legion, aka no idea which side these guys belong to. Because these guys are mysterious and much unknown to Imperium (Unless you are High Lords of Terra) Commissar Cain report about this fake Space Marine as an unknown man and require more investigation in the future. The rest of the report from Commissar Cain was about him and his troops taking over the three additional cities and one outpost in which Cain and Jurgen managed to make a campfire because and this is from letter to letter ''Jurgen wanted to make a marshmallow'' to which William spill his drinks in his mouth and cough for two minutes. Overall, Lord Commissar Cain did a great job to take out the cities in the harsh environment of the mountain legion without any issues (Beside Alpha Legion). Cain is expected to arrive at the final location within three days and a happy Valhans who consider winter on the mountain top as a summer vacation. The four other reports are from thepanies that recently went through gic and equipment upgrades. Unlike how Roboute Guilliman who mixed his new Space Marines with old ones based on their origin chapter, William decided to mix everyone to form new types of independentpanies. In the tabletop, building an army is limited to points given to each yer, but this isn''t tabletop so William ced certain types of Space Marines with certain specialties in eachpany. Eachpany has stealth, sniper, siege specialist, melee, mid-range, and heavy weaponry on top of traditional Liberians and heavy units such as Dreadnoughts. Eachpany took out three to five cities and towns including critical locations such as military bases and port cities. One particrpany did overreact by burning the entire town into the ground but it was expected since the town was infested with witches. Unfortunately, thatpany was led by the former Space Wolves and he personally crushed the head witch''s skull using his nk ability. The town is no longer on the map and William believes no one will settle in that ruined ce for a long time. All fourpanies are expected to arrive in two days. Finally, William grabs the report from the Sisters of Battle. As expected, William casually read about the report and expected it to be a perfect campaign considering Rana was involved. ''Let''s see. Ok, night raid and reverse ambush to counter the enemy forces. Oh, Chaos Cultists¡­ What? Night Lords? Any named characters? Talos? Anyone from the 1st w? Good, there are none.'' William continues reading the report. A short timeter, everyone outside of themand tent heard William''s voice as he reach the part where Sister Superior praise the Emperor''s name with good reason. "WTF! A LIVING SAINT?!" William read through the report written by the surviving Sister Superior and was shocked to read about the part where Rana died and was resurrected back to life as a Living Saint. William''s only love and connection to his humanity as a whole is now part of the Emperor''s n. He wasn''t expecting Star Child to personally take action, especially when that person is a Rana, a local human from a foreign world outside of the 40k universe. Rana, her army, and Sisters of Battle are expected to arrive four dayster due to massive casualties and damage to their vehicles. Considering who they were up against, William couldn''t me them, hell he would have joined them if he knew they were up against Night Lords. ''I''m d she is alive but this changes everything. Someone is changing the rule of the game. Or maybe, it is reacting to my action. But to make her a Living Saint. Someone needs to answer for it and I''m taking my gloves on to get it.'' William finishes the report and steps outside of hismand tent. His two royal guards followed him while everyone else continue their work as the sun was about to set behind the mountain. Stopping at the top of the hill, William saw his final andst obstacle on the opposite of the field. Carved half of the mountain was the fortress and its wall, near impossible to knock it down with low-tech siege machines. For William, the fortress wasn''t the issue, the army guarding the ce is the problem and he is certain this one is going to be a challenge. ------------------- Three Days Later, Rana and her army of faithful march through rough roads and terrain but eventually they arrived close to their final destination. It would take another day to reach the main base but due to tired soldiers, Rana decided to take a short break from a town nearby. When the army arrived, no one weed them or even bother to watch new arrivals. The town was silent, only a few shadows watching the army from the windows. One other strange thing was the smell of the town. The air was ripe with rotten things and the unpleasant scent of death. Soon, the Sisters of Battle sensed the wrongness and search each building with full power armor with helmets. "Living Saint, you have to see this." One of the Medical Sister radio Rana''s vox earpiece with the location of the building. When Rana and her bodyguards arrived they saw a building full of sick people. From little kids to old seniors, the room was filled with all kinds of symptoms and diseases. "Sister, what happened?" Rana ask the sister what happened and soon she got cold chills on her back. "They all got the sickness but not from a single strain. I checked before calling you, Saint. Each and every one of them have different diseases. They all have a gue from the Ruinous Power." "By the God-Emperor, save us from the damnation." One of the bodyguards spoke without realizing while the second guard vox channel for cleansing to be done. "Can''t we do anything for them? There must be a doctor or healer in this town who can give us more information." Rana was devastated by the scene and asked the sister to see if there was a solution to fix this. If a local doctor knows anything maybe there is a way to fix all this. "I''m sorry, but ording to the townsfolks, the healer died two days ago while on duty. It seems his abilities couldn''t prevent him from being infected in the end." "No," Rana whispered and activated her ability to shine the entire room with golden light. Surely, her ability to heal would save the townspeople but the effort was useless as it only paused the sickness for a few seconds. Rana approached the old woman in herte 70s tofort her. With golden light still shining, Rana gave a cup of clean water to the old woman. "You will be fine, grandma. You will be back on your feet in no time." Rana said in her soft voice tofort the old woman but she knew the truth. This old woman won''t survive for long as her body was already beyond saving even with Emperor''s light. Hearing Rana''s words, the old woman cried. Soon, the woman spoke, and what she said surprised Rana beyond her belief. "I''m only 15 years old. I''m not even married yet." An old woman said and soon withst great effort, she gasp for air and died in Rana''s arms. Rana shed tears and use her free hand to close the ''youngdy''s eyes. With great sorrow and heartbreak, Rana once again brightens the building and beyond with Emperor''s light. "Stop, please. I know you are trying to help us but we are beyond help." An old man in his 50s spoke in his bed after the light died down. "What?" Rana spoke, still holding the dead woman in her arms. "I said we are a lost cause. We first got sick when a stranger stopped by a week ago. He didn''t talk to anyone or did anything besides wandering around the town fountain but after he left, that''s when sickness began to spread. You know what must be done to stop the gue from spreading. We were waiting for someone to end our suffering." The old man''s request wasn''t from just him but from every townfolks and Rana knew what must be done. Putting down the dead woman back in her bed, Rana ordered the Sisters to givest rites and bless every building with holy water before cleaning it with fire. With orders given, the Sisters of Battle follow each order to the word as they did their best tofort the folks with Emperor''s holy words and holy water to wash away their sins and doubts. When everything was done and ready, Sisters with mers washed their pain and suffering. The entire town soon burned with holy fire as holy oil and fire from the mer cleansed the gue and any trace of diseases. By the time night time began, the town burned to the ground, leaving only a fountain still standing located in the center of the former town. ''The old man said someone was here a week ago, wandering around the fountain. Why? To spread the gue through water source?'' Rana recalls the old man''s words and exam the fountain for a few minutes and found the cause of the gue. Discovering recently disturbed dirt close to the fountain itself, Rana unearthed a foreign object that caused so much pain and suffering. A rusty metal of one of the Chaos Gods'' symbols was buried at the center of the town and based on the symbol, Rana knew who it belonged to. Thanks to the Star Child''s blessing, she knew more than enough of the Ruinous Power and how devastating it is as this one was one of the worst of them all. ''Nurgle.'' Rana then crushes the green rustly metal with a symbol of gue God with her power armor and destroys the source of the town''s gue. With this, thest Chaos Gods to wage war against the New World are revealed and all the chess pieces moved once again ording to the Star Child''s n. Chapter 96: Grey, Gold, and Red Dots Chapter 96: Grey, Gold, and Red Dots "It''s been almost a month since we embarked on our Peacekeeping. d to see everyone is safe and sound to meet once again." William weed all of hispanymanders, senior Astra Militarum officers, and representatives of the Sisters of Battle with a cup of wine in his hand. Everyone cheers and raises their cups and drinks with a sense of brotherhood and aplishment as now, there is only one city before iming victory. "Chapter Master, aren''t you forgetting the Banede in the room?" Captain Sariel of the 3rdpany spoke gently and immediately everyone''s heads turn on opposite sides of the table, giving full attention to the 6''5 feet tall, tinum-haired woman equipped with the golden armor of the Living Saint. "I knew something was off about Lady Beckett," Former Wolf Seer, Captain Vaskell of the 5thpany spoke astoundingly as if he just realized who the Living Saint was. "I didn''t expect to see the Living Sain once more. It is truly a blessing from the Emperor and that he is watching over us even who are stranded from his light." Lord Creed spoke after pouring another ss of wine into his cup. Lord Casten Ursarkar E. Creed of Cadia and suprememander of the Cadia might be the only man to survive after saving the Living Saint''s life from Abaddon the Despoiler''s daemon sword. His price for saving Saint Celestine was the loss of his one arm but thanks to his sacrifice, Celestinian Crusade waster embarked resulting in the resurrection of Roboute Guilliman. "And I thought Sisters of Battle got new hair color added to their doctrine." Captain of the 2ndpany (Former Imperial Fists) said to himself after seeing one of the senior Sisters of Battle with different hair colors. ''Did Lady Beckett add some muscle and get a little taller?'' Lord Commissar Ciaphas Cain thought to himself. He didn''t expect to see Emperor''s miracle tonight but considering who they are up against the next day, he is just d that Living Saint is with them. William made a loud cough to get everyone''s attention. Because Rana''s army was thest group to arrive, William didn''t have time to brief everyone but considering the mood in the room, everyone is epting it rather well. "Lady Rana Bassilo Beckett, it looks like everyone is more interested in your transition to Sainthood than tomorrow''s campaign," William said to Rana and winked to signal to her that she need to exin the whole thing in front of everyone including himself. Realizing that Rana has to go through this she ces her wine cup down and clears her throat before speaking. Seeing the empty cup, one of the sisters grab the wine bottle and pour it while Rana began her exnation. "Well, to exin simply put. I died in the battle against the 8th Legion, met the Emperor, and was reborn as his messenger of death." The Living Saint ends her story in less than 10 seconds before the sister could finish refilling the wine cup. "Well, that was¡­ very immediate answer even for a codex standard." Captain Dioricus of the 4thpany and former Ultramarine spoke as he didn''t know how to respond. Besides Sisters, everyone''s expectation of an epic tale and interaction with the Emperor copsed due to Rana''s rapid words. With a big smile on her face, Ranaughed and exin the whole situation best as she can without giving too much information from the Star Child. When Rana finish her tale, everyone in the room felt humbled and inspired to the level where William was sure they would go for another ''Peacekeeping'' after tomorrow''s battle. In the end, the meeting ended with everyone leaving the meeting room with inspiration and motivation to kill the Emeny of the Emperor. ----------------- William''s Personal Room, "That was a dirty move. I swear, I thought I was having another shback when Sisters found out I turned to Saint." Rana lightly punches William''s shoulder while holding a bottle of wine in the other hand. William epts the punch with a big smile but inside, he felt Rana''s punch as if he just got hit lightly by one of the Astartes in the power armor. William doesn''t fully know the power of the Living Saint but one thing he knows is that the current Living Saint from 40k went toe to toe against Warmaster Abbadon and lived. ''Damn, I need to watch what I say in front of her now.'' Realizing that Star Child did more than bring Rana back to life, William decided to be more gentle with jokes in front of Rana. He may be a pinnacle of the gic creation between the Emperor and STC but a woman''s wrath and supernatural power are badbinations to fight against. "I''m guessing you are going to tell me Star Child''s message since it was him who brought you back to life, not the one from Golden Throne." William urately made his guess as Rana sat next to him at the table. The mood of the room went silent as the sound of the wind can be heard outside and light began to flicker. "You are right and you might not like the message," Rana said to William and told him everything including Star Child''s reason behind why Rna and William should be together. The truth infuriated William by the time Rana was done with her story. The real reason why Star Child wanted William to be with Rana was his selfishness and felt personally betrayed by the man who watch over him from the beginning. ''Of course, he has a n for me and her. It was to obtain a physical body! Wasn''t he suppose to hijack Fyodor Karamazov''s body or something? Wait, that was fan-made lore, not an actual event in 40k. Shit, I''m mixing up the events.'' William close his eyes and shake his head to clear his clouded mind. Second,ter, he opens his eyes to Rana in front of him. Sitting in front of him was a tall and beautiful woman with who he fell in love after going through so much pain and suffering together. "I had my suspicions and idea what he would be demanded from you. I''m sorry you had to be involved." William apologized to Rana but she immediately stopped him. "I was given choice between ascending to the afterlife to join my ancestors or being reborn in a different life, but I chose to be with you because I know you are going to miss me." Rana ces her hand on William''s shoulder and hugs him. William''s anger subside and eventually died out like candlelight blown away by the silent wind. The revtion of the Star Child''s n didn''t stop William and Rana from bonding stronger as the two eventuallyfort each other and spend a night together. The final battle for Peacekeeping is tomorrow and for two chosen people of the Emperor, they decided to spend more time with each other than contemting what to expect from the Great Game between gods. ----------------- Meanwhile in the Divine Realm, ''Well, about time. I swear, kids grow so fast now these days.'' Star Child removes his sight from the mortal realm and turns his full attention to the other deities in the room. Many of the deities left after listening to his crazy n but few stayed, enough to move big pieces on the board. "Ok, my guy is going to demolish thest taint tomorrow. I assume you have your people doing their parts?" Star Child joins the rest of the group and casts a projection of the mortal realm to show a world map. A grey dot and gold dot appear on the Legen side near the northern region, indicating the location of William and Living Saint. "You have nothing to worry about. We are doing our parts and no one particrly likes the individual we are going to summon. After all, this person was the one who caused so much headache and the only reason she was allowed to live is because of her brother." The male god with full te armor and sword with a bnced scale spoke with irritation in his voice. Mentioning the individual just left him bad taste in his mouth and it wasn''t just him as few other deities felt the same. "Even some of the lower pantheons are willing to help us out with your n. Let''s just hope the old man above the divine realm doesn''t get curious." The Goddess of Magic, ady with a star dress spoke softly and carefully as if her very voice could dismantle magic itself. "That is good news, but just in case I ce a few more pawns to handle small details. We don''t want small problems to grow into big problem do we?" Star Child smiled but before anyone could interject into what he just said about a few more pawns, arge red dot appeared on the other side of the world map and began to cause problems. "What the hell is that?" One of the deities said with horror on her face. The red dot is expanding very slowly but it is causing problems, starting with massive genocides. "That red dot my dear is a problem I wasn''t expecting. Looks like those three idiots decided to send the most problematic one before the fourth follow their example. I rmend sending additional pawns to stop or at least slowing them down." With that, Star Child began moving additional resources of his to stop the new threat and protect his most valuable asset in the Great Game. Chapter 97: Prince of Undeath Chapter 97: Prince of Undeath "My boy! About damn time. You made your creator proud." The Star Child said to William while William remained nk as it took him a few minutes to realize what was happening. Thest thing he remembered was him and Rana sharing a passionate love and eventually falling into sleep. Because his chamber was made to be private as possible, the former Imperial Fists of his Space Marines made it withstand any potential damages from outside or within William''s chamber (Of course, soundproof). "Wait, what? Star Child¡­ YOU!" When William fully realized and was aware of his situation, William imminently went into a rage, remembering what Rana told him about Star Child''s n to possess William''s child. "Wow wow hold a second there champ. You are not going full Khorne berserker, are you?" Star Child wave his finger like a magic wand and lift William''s body in the air, preventing him from making any momentum. "Rana told me everything, old man. How should I react after learning that you are nning to take over my kid''s body like some kind of meat suit? Why don''t you take your blue boy''s body instead of mine?" William went full spoiler on Star Child in the end as his rage continue to build. The tension eventually halted when William finally realized what this meeting meant as Star Child continue to stare at him with a smile on his face. "Wait, wait, you can''t possibly mean Rana is bearing my child. We just had our first sex." "And all it takes is one, my boy. Did you forget your sex ed ss? I mean you did even use protection at all. Well, besides your collection of bolters, swords, etc." "I know about birds and bees! The question is why did Rana and I sleep together after learning of your scheme? What did you do?" William''s eyes focused on Star Child who is now attempting to act all casual but failing to convince the Chapter Master. "I kinda asked one of the local deities to, you know give an extra push. The goddess love with red hair did me a solid in exchange for helping her followers. Let''s just say you saved a lot of lives by being a savior instead of a conqueror." Star Child answered William''s question and put him down on the chair after seeing the man''s rage somewhat subside. "So what you are telling me is that Rana and I are going to have a child?" "Bingo! You see, my family tree''s heritage is quite powerful when conquering, and you are technically my son (In the sense of gics and blessings)." "I''m going to be a father¡­" William''s mind began to travel at the speed of light as his reality turned into ''What ifs'' and babyproofing everything. ''Oh my God. My kid is going to have tons of uncles and aunts (Space Marines and Sisters of Battle). I pity the kid who decides to bully my child.'' William''s thoughts went in a different direction as he doesn''t know how his men and women will react to Rana''s pregnancy. "Hey, I know it is so sudden and all but don''t worry about it. It will be I, the Emperor''s soul will take over and take Imperium in the right direction." "Take over? Wait a minute, what if my kid is a girl? What are you going to do then?" "Oh, I know what you are thinking but I know for a certain your kid is a boy. Oops, not sorry for spoiling the gender reveal this early." Star Childughed and ce tworge mugs of beer in front of William and for himself. "Why am I here? You didn''t have to spill all these to me and still take my kid''s body. You must have a reason for calling me here the night before finishing thest Chaos army." William took the mug and decided to y the game for now. There is no way he can stop Star Child from taking over his child but it doesn''t mean there isn''t a way to prevent that. For now, William will hear what Star Child has to say and act ording to the situation given to him. "Well, that''s the thing. I have a quest for you after you are done with tomorrow''s campaign. Do you know why no one is allowed to travel outer space? Why no one standing in the mortal realm can''t go beyond the sky and to space?" This question halt William for a second as he remember how The Mother, the AI ship from the Dark Age of Technology had the same problem until William helped her by teleporting her directly to Space and a different dimension. "I don''t know. This world''s physics is different from ours?" William gave ast-minute answer to which Star Child show his smug face since he is the only one who knows the truth. "Wrong. The world is protected by a massive invisible shell, preventing anyone or anything from entering the ne of existence. The only way to break through this shell that protects the world is by using a portal. Not even the gods and goddesses of this realm know who made the protective shell but it sure scared the hell out of them. So to make sure no mortals mess with this shell, the deities of this realm enforce a strict no flying beyond sky rule. This includes you and everyone as well." The long exnation from the Star Child made sense to William since he actually experienced this before. The reason why The Mother failed multiple attempts to leave the atmosphere now made sense as it was the realm''s rule that prevented her from reaching space. ''No wonder she failed and didn''t learn from her mistakes. This whole time, she was stopped by the native gods without realizing it.'' This revtion also brought a new question to William. "What if there is a ship already in space? Wouldn''t the spaceship in orbit crash?" "Good question and the answer is no. The rule strictly states that the vessel can''t reach orbit but if the ship is already in space. Well, that is unexplored territory even for the gods here." Star Child said to William and he began to realize what the Emperor''s soul is going with this. "You are talking about escaping this world. If I can summon the ship from orbit we can escape this world and travel to your world." The revtion made William forget about his anger earlier as his promise of returning to 40k is about to be realized. "Yes and no. You still have to transport all your troops and I don''t think you can put them into your inventory since they are alive. You must do something for these gods so you can gain their favor and ess to travel between space and the mortal realm." Star Child''s answer not only made William curious but also wonder what could possibly make the gods of this world make a special exception to no flyingw. "What must I do to gain their favor? I assume this quest must being from good sides since they are all about doing deeds and public services." "By chance are you familiar with the name Tiamat?" -------------------------- The other side of the mortal realm. Four massive armies of the Chaos Gods march towards the direction where Legen is located. Commanding the four armies are the four Champions of Chaos, former mortals who have proven themselves in the eyes of the Chaos Gods and reached the rank of the Daemon Prince. As followers of the four Chaos Gods, each Daemon Prince possesses powerful gifts and war gears blessed by the gods. Their traits and characteristics are based on the gods they follow such as Khrone, Tzeentch, anesh, and Nurgle. In normal circumstances, they would be ughtering each other to gain more favors from their Chaos God. But, due to the failures of Greater Daemons to kill the Emperor''s Champion, the new pack was made until the champion is removed from the Greater Game. To increase their chances of sess, Tzeentch the master of faith and destiny decided to summon all four armies on the other side of the world to strengthen the forces. By the time the four armies reach the Legen, the Chaos corruption would transform the entire into a daemon world, providing enough energy to empower Chaos Gods for good. "My master''s n will bring the end of this William and the Anathema''s n. We can''t fail our mission, unlike our masters'' Greater Daemons. Hahahaha." The purple armored Daemon Prince of the Tzeentch, armed with hell forged sword spoke as he p his wings to stretch. "All I need to know is where my prey is. The blood will flow once again through my axes and my lord will once again enjoy the cries of the fallen warriors." The Khorne''s Daemon Prince sat next to a pile of skulls while sharpening his bloody axes with a sharpening stone. Behind him, his soldiers, both daemons and mortals continue their work, collecting skulls and draining blood from the victims to create a bloodke. "Be patient my brothers. We were chosen for this for a reason. We have proven our masters beyond their expectations and once weplete our task, we will be masters'' greatest champions." The champion of anesh licks his fang with his tongue as he moves one of the pieces from the board game. "Just leave materials for me when you are done collecting. This might be a great opportunity for me toplete my experiment, unlike those fools who are about to fight Anathema''s champion. They will fail of course." The sickly Daemon Prince observes the board game and is about to make his move but halted to rethink his next move. Just when Champion of the Nurgle was about to make his move on the board game, the sky darkened and the ground began to break apart, releasing steam and the smell of sulfur in the air. Soon, the creatures of undead and demonic began to emerge out of the open ground, forming a formidable army. "What is that? How did I not foresee this one?" The Champion of the Tzeentch spoke with surprise in his voice. For the first time since his transformation to Deamon Prince, he was genuinely surprised and caught off guard. "I feel great blood thirst and powerful rage. Someone or something powerful ismanding that army. This is going to be an interesting fight." The Khorne''s Champion gets up from his seat to have a better view of who he is sensing. "It can''t be the native deities, right? They don''t have a sense of unification to work together like us." The moment Champion of the anesh spoke, the answer to who summoned the army of undead and demons reveal itself. Flying out of the cracked ground with ck smoke, the demonic creature with the head of a goat, horns of a ram, red bloated body, and bat-like wings reveals himself in the mid-air. Standing 15 feet tall and holding a massive wand with a skull on top, the demon lord of the Abyss and the Lord of the Undead appear in person to take Chaos invasion into his hands. Once a mortal just like Daemon Prince, the Demon Lord, and the yer of the gods observe the four Chaos armies and simply smiled as if he was amused by the attempt of invading the mortal realm. "There can be only one who brings chaos and evil into this world. For, I will be thest one standing and bring the end of all living on this realm." Orcus, The Shadow That was, the Demon Lord of the 13thyer of the Abyss forcibly broke into the mortal realm to show who is the true master of chaos and began the ughtering of the rams. Chapter 98: Orcus the Lord of Undead and Blood Chapter 98: Orcus the Lord of Undead and Blood "Tiamat. The Dragon Queen, the mother of all evil dragons and the evil bitch sister of the Bahamut the Dragon God. You want me to kill her?" William couldn''t believe what the Star Child just told him. Tiamat, the five-headed queen of the chromatic dragons is a top-tier challenge for D&D yers and requires long preparation, possibly a year or more. Thest time William and his party attempted to take her down, the entire party ended up bing the red dragon''s dinner. "No, not that Tiamat. I''m talking about the Tiamat from the Babylonia back in old Terra. Of course, I''m talking about a five-headed dragon queen! Why do you think I have native gods of this world to send their agents and collect all five dragon masks and an Orb of Dragonkind?" Star Child said to William as he show the picture of the dragon queen in her dragon form. The picture itself looked very simr to the official D&D Tiamat but with legions of dragons in the background. "You know she can''t die permanently right? There is no way I can kill her for good, not to mention she can summon an army of evil dragons to make her own colors of the rainbow. Why not just invite her brother as well? I''m sure killing them both will give me a decent space-worthy vessel for us to escape this world. That is if anyone of us survives, that is." What William said is true. The risk is very high and possibly deadly but the reward might be enough for William to mass all of his troops in one ticket to leave this world. Just one Emperor''s battleship would have enough rooms and spaces to transport all of William''s troops, equipment, and supplies to set sail into void space. "I didn''t say anything about killing the Dragon Queen. What I want you to do is defeat her just once. Just bomb the living hell out of her right after she jumps out of nine hells." William knew Star Child''s n require heavy changes and n but heavy artillery bombardment and a massive amount of bolters could do some damage to the Dragon Queen. ''I''m gonna need some anti-air and explosive ammunitions for this.'' William made note of supplies he will need in the future and changed the subject that he will be facing tomorrow. "The tomorrow''s battle. I will be facing the Death Guards, the 14th legion, and possibly the most destructive traitor Space Marines not just for my army but for everything around. Will they be thest traitor legion or will there be more in the future?" William''s question at the end paused the Star Child as he knew what waits for William after tomorrow''s campaign. Unknown to William and every mortal in this world, the biggest warp portal located on the dark side of the second moon unleashed the first wave of Chaos Warfleet two months ago. Thankfully, the intervention from the Trazyn the Infinite and his small fleet of Necron warships managed to stop the invasion but cost the Overlord his fleet and his gship heavily damaged. (Check chapter 53, right after Trazyn the Infinite regains his consciousness in his backup body) "You will face thest traitor legion tomorrow in this world but more wille from the void. You might want to hurry up with defeating the evil bitch and getting some spaceships." With that, Star Child snaps his fingers, sending William back to his reality. The newly promoted Chapter Master didn''t need to know about recently raised four Chaos daemons armies or a demon prince forcing his way to the mortal realm to challenge the invasive Chaos pests. Let them fight each other and have local deities sort the leftovers with their holy champions. He has more important things to do, especially the new vessel brewing inside of Rana''s body. ''I might need a backup n just in case.'' With great concern and unable to clearly see the future, Star Child decided to make a few additional ns just in case. One particr n involves Jokaero, one angry inquisitor, 30 veteran guardsmen, and a ship belonging to a rogue trader. -------------------------- William woke up in the middle of the night after gasping for air. His return trip to the mortal realm was a quick one but for some reason it was rough. It took a few seconds for William to recognize where he was as he was in his personal chamber, in his bed, naked and next to the most beautiful woman sleeping next to him. William recalled everything and was d that his personal chamber was sound and shake-proof. William quietly watched Rana sleep in peace and move a few strains of hair from her face. For a short moment, William forgot about everything that happened to him and simply absorb the moment he truly felt at peace. "Why are you staring at me?" Rana spoke while her eyes were closed. She somehow knew William was watching her in the middle of the night and William didn''t realize she was awake. "I''m sorry, I was just¡­" "You don''t have to exin it to me. I know what you are thinking." "You do?" "Yes, you big dummy. I''m a living saint. I can read your mind." "You can?" "Nope. I was kidding, but I do have superhuman stamina and am ready for a second round if you want." "Oh, you are going to pay for that." With a big smile on his face, William kiss the most beautiful woman and began the second round starting with roleying. This time as Sch Progenium cadet and Adepta Sororitas recruit. -------------------------- Meanwhile, opposite side of the Mortal realm. Six Balors entered the battlefield and began to devastate the Chaos forces with ming whips and swords buzzing with lighting. They didn''t charge head-on into the battlefield by themselves. By nature, Balor is a schemer so, they each summoned minor demons and Tanar''ri to be their frontliners while taking out enemies from mid-range using spells. Aside from the squad of Balors, Orcus the Lord of the Undead did ording to his given title. By summoning an army of undead of all kinds, the battlefield was swarmed with the undead, lich, vampires, death knights, deadlock, and other various undead monsters a mortal can''t imagine. It didn''t end with the undead for Orcus, the cult of the Goat''s Head, and arge number of necromancers seeking praise from the demon lord joining the fight, summoning the endless number of undead and providing bodies to be reced if needed. "We are being pushed back. How are we being pushed back?" The Champion of anesh panicked as he cut the corpse golem in half using his w hand. Around him, his daemon minions fell left and right as they are overwhelmed by the enemy forces. At first, four Chaos armies easily handle the initial conflict with ease but as time passed, the enemy number didn''t show any sign of depletion. On the other hand, Chaos armies werecking reinforcement due to limited warp energy provided by their masters. If this fight was conducted in the Immaterium, it would be a different story as they would be surrounded by their masters'' power and domain. The Champion of anesh pulls back from the frontline just a little to see the enemy side. What he saw was a never-ending field of undead and giant monsters of the unknown. By the look of things, the enemy number increased tenfold and it doesn''t look like they are going to fall back. "What are those fools doing? Am I going to do all the work?" The Champion of anesh said to himself as he order a dozen Seeker Chariot of anesh to clear the path of undead skeletons in front of him. The chariots quickly change direction and mow hundreds of skeletons with ease. That is until five undead giants began to crush iing chariots like sand castles. Seeing how the problem just escted, the Champion of anesh decided to take it into the air by pping his wings. This was hisst mistake as he became a primary target in the air as countless necromancers and worshipers of Orcus with magic affinity cast magic missiles in massive numbers. Reazling toote, the Champion of anesh attempt to dodge the iing magic attack but is unable to do so. His beautiful body end up pierced with magic missiles and just managed to hover in the air with purple blood pouring out all over his body. "What was that?" These were thest words the Champion spoke before a massive pir of fire burned the champion into ashes. Lowering his wand, Orcus redirects his attention from the weakest opponent to the physically powerful daemon prince as the Champion of Khorne shes left and right with his two-handed sword. Meanwhile, the Champion of Tzeentch is somewhat managing even though his magic is limited. He managed to cast multiple vortex spells to lessen enemy numbers but it was useless as more were summoned from the Abyss by the powerful demons. As for Champion of Nurgle, he was the most useless one on the battlefield. None of the diseases did anything to the undead and demons of this world were immune to poisons and diseases. The living ones that turned into zombies didn''tst that long as these undead join the opposite side since their lord was the literal master of the undead. In that logic, the Champion of Nurgle struggles most to stand his ground against an army immune to his powerful trait. The next champion to fall is Khorne''s as Orcus himself steps forward to fight the champion in one on one duel. Seeing the challenge, the Champion of Khrone wields hisrge sword to cut the giant demon lord into pieces. "I, the Champion of Khrone will take your skull for my master''s collection of skulls. Blood for the blood god!" Champion unleashes his roar to terrify his opponent''s will but to his surprise, the demon lord simplyughs and lowers his skull wand to the edge of his handle. "Oh, I like what you just said. ''Blood for the blood god''. Now, that is a good warcry for the blood lord of the 13thyer of the Abyss. I will be using that from now on." Orcus step forward and before the champion could do anything the Wand of Orcus smack his jaw, throwing him backward. The champion quickly got up and swiftly move forward to fight the giant bloodthirster-looking demon. Unknown to the champion, Orcus is both a powerful fighter and a magic user. Summoning a magical sword into his free hand, the demon lord counters the champion''s multiple attacks and delivers his own to the champion at the same time. Both warriors seem to be evenly matched but to the Champion of Khrone, he knew he was being yed around by this demon. The strength and speed between them werepletely different and his strength was beginning to drain for some reason. "I grow tired of this game. You are not a worthy opponent to be standing against me." Orcus announce his disappointment and use his tail to grip the champion''s waist. With one mighty swing, Orcus threw the champion to the ground and ce one of his hoove onto the champion''s chest. Before the champion could do anything, Orcus m his wand into the champion''s face multiple times, each delivering a powerful blow and draining the champion''s energy like a sponge. Champion of Khrone died with his skull crushed and his remaining force began to shake as mightly Orcus roared, trembling the very heaven itself with an aura of death. Following their master''s example, demons of all kinds began to fight harder and without fear of falling as their master''s punishment is much more painful than death itself. "We are so screwed. We have to retreat!" Champion of Tzeentchmunicate to his remaining fellow champion through telepathy but it was toote. Few of the Balors managed to breach the frontline and cast powerful fire spells onto the Champion of Nurgle''s army. The problem of fire usually can be withstood but this is hellfire and this usuallyst as long as the target turns into ash in the end. Resisting the damage with an unimaginable will, the Champion of Nurgle stands his ground until two ming whips wrap around his neck, and stomach. The champion didn''t feel pain but knew this would be painful if it wasn''t for his gift. A secondter, two Balors pull the ming whips with all their might, decapitating the champion''s head and body apart and killing him effectively. "Shit¡­" Champion of Tzeentch, thest champion to stand on the battlefield realized his master''s mistake. He and his fellow champions were sent to conquer the new world but instead, they end up bing unnecessary casualties of the Great Game that was outside of usual boundaries. His god wasn''t watching over him, the warp energy he brought with him is almost depleted and there is no outside source of magic to survive the battle. Simply put, Champion of Tzeentch is screwed from the start. Thest champion perished with powerful magic hitting him underneath as pure negative energy wash away his existence. No magical barrier or protection could do anything as most were shattered or long gone during battle. Looking in front of him before darkness consumed him, the champion saw the demon lord pointing his skull wand at him with a big smile on his face. "Now, die little mouse," Orcus said to the Champion of Tzeentch as the champion''s body disintegrate into nothingness. The battle of demons ended with Orcus as victor and enforcing his position as demon lord of the Forgotten Realms. "Blood for the blood lord!" Orcus shouts his new warcry, shaking the darkened sky while very earth cracks open with fire and smoke emerges. With four Chaos armies defeated, Orcus once again sense local magic and pesky living beings around him, that is until he sensed small foreign energy far away across the mortal realm. "Let the gods fear my might! Kill everything and bring me death! No living beings will survive my reign. No one!" The death march begins as an army of the dead and worshipers follow their master as Orcus marches towards something far and foreign magic which he swears to kill as its existence bothers him to his core. Chapter 99: 14th Legion Part One Chapter 99: 14th Legion Part One "Look upon me and know that I can y you at will. You have no defense save one: to look into the darkness at the back of your own mind. There, you will find Father Nurgle waiting to offer you life in return for your submission. Deny him, and you are mine." - Typhus the Traveller Death Guard, the 14th legion is a traitor legion, formerly known as Dusk Raiders and one of the most terrifying traitor legions in the world of 40k. Unlike their brothers from different legions, Death Guards are known for their vile spread of gues as each step they walk over thend, corruption, and disease itself sickens the world itself. Before their corruption to the Chaos, 14th was known for its toughness and resilience within Imperium Space Marine Legions. Their traditional military doctrine is to attack at nightfall, earning the title, ''Dusk Raiders''. They were an unstoppable and relentless force within Imperium as they were an unstoppable force of nature on the battlefield. Unfortunately, this all when their gene-father, Primarch Mortarion the Pale King took over the 14th and changed the name from Dusk Raiders to Death Guard. With the name changed to Death Guard, the once proud and right-hand legion of the Emperor forever changed when Mortarion entered the Imperium. Death Guard became a sheer relentless instrument of war. There was no strategy, no maneuvering pattern to confuse the enemy, or initiative to use the environment or situation to take advantage. Simply, the 14th legion stood the ground, waiting for the enemy toe to them and endure until the enemy falter beforeunching a counterattack. Mortarion''s warfare is based on his experience in his homeworld Barbarus and hugely favors the idea that the strongest recruits can only be found in Barbarus. Because Mortarion''s homeworld is known for being a poisonous world, many of the natives in this world are gifted to withstand the poisonous environments. For this reason, Mortarion only recruits his future Space Marines from his homeworld, making them loyal to him, not the Imperium or his father, the Emperor. When Mortarion and his legion fell into the corruption of Chaos, the one who waited for them was no one but Nurgle the gue God. To twist the wound that will never recover, the one who actually brought the 14th legion to gue Lord wasn''t Mortarion but his first captain, Typhus the Traveller. Typhus''s betrayal of his brothers and gene-father greatly rewards him as he became the Herald of Nurgle. As he was the first one to be corrupted by the Nurgle, his reign and terror ran through the entire gxy for ten thousand years. In the recent event, Typhus even rivals his own gene-father for the favor of Nurgle andmand of the Death Guard. As for Mortarion, the event of Ultima Segmentum gave him an opportunity to dere war against the Realm of Ultramar. The gue Wars became a personal war between Mortarion and his brother Roboute Guilliman the Avenging Son as two Primarchs went face to face against each other. It is gue Wars where the true terror of the Death Guard came to light as their ability to withstand lethal wounds and the spread of diseases corrupt world after world. The Death Guard''s gue Marines and their new weapons brought new terror and destruction to both living and the world itself. Toxic blight grenades eat away even the armor and fill the air with noxious clouds of blinding and pathogenic spores. To make this worse, the grenade is made out of severed heads of fallen enemies and filled with cocktails of diseases, blood, pus, acid, and other vile creations (And this is only a grenade). The spread of Nurgle''s gues isn''t just diseases and sicknesses of all kinds. The gue itself is mixed with warp magic and able to root itself deep in the ground to maintain the corruption for a long period of time. Many of the loyal Space Marines mention how they can smell the disease in their helmet even though it was air sealed and have dedicated air supplies for the power armor. Unknown to them, their armor couldn''t stop the warp magic from entering their armor, slowly infecting them from the inside. The mix of gue and warp magic became a perfectbination for the Death Guard as even if they were defeated, their destruction of the world still made them victors of the battle, slowly killing the survivors and making the world inhabitable for a long period of time. Lastly, Death Guard can use the gue known as Zombie gue also known as Curse of Unbelief. A warp-spawned infection that spread a horde of undead zombies and is very infectious when used in popted cities. They are the frontline soldiers and literal meat shields for the Nurgle faction as they will overwhelm the enemies and continue to spread the zombie gue to the other worlds. "Say what you like about the Fourteenth Legion. They are mean, ugly bastards but tenacious. There''s no one else I''d rather have by my side in a war of attrition, and almost anyone else I''d rather have against me." - Ferrus Manus, Primarch of the Iron Hands --------------------- "Have Krieg use thebustion rounds instead of explosives. I will not have the entire province exposed to gue spores due to shells from our own forces. Burn the whole fortress with fire and kill everything within. The 14th is there in the fortress and there are no living beings we can rescue." William made his decision on how to start the final campaign. After his order was given, the entire 333rd Kriegpany start their artillery fire and the sound of bombardment shook the sky and earth itself. The field near the fortress began to catch fire and eventually, the wall and outer buildings were engulfed with raging mes. To everyone''s surprise, there was no exchange of fire from the enemy instead fortress gate opened, and thousands of people step out towards William''s base. "My lord. They are thousands of mixed civilians and soldiers. I don''t think they are alive." One of the officers of the Imperial Guards reports back after observing the situation. William expected this from the Death Guard as they use expendable troops to deplete enemy ammunitions and resources. The war of attrition is what the 14th is good at but unfortunately for them, William''s Space Marines are something different and new. William already knew how the gue Marines use gue and warp to their advantage. William on the other hand has a countermeasure to cancel the warp magic, making the gue normal gue to be purged after the battle. Following the order from the Chapter Master, the cksouls (Null Marines) already surrounded the fortress, outside of the artillery range but close enough to react immediately when the enemy forces engage outside of the wall. With new gic improvements to resist diseases and advanced medical technology, the cksouls are capable of fighting the gue Marines better than firstborn Space Marines. Not to mention, Liberians'' nk abilities can neutralize the warp, making the enemy die for real. "Redirect the bombardment into fortress entrance. They are stuck in the bottleneck and wasting their troops for nothing." Lord Creed, as suprememander of the Imperial Guardsmen, replied with new order for the Krieg. Next to him, Lord Commissar Cain stands as he double-checks hisspistol, expecting the unexpected as his luck tends to put him in danger. ''My hand is tingling and I know this means trouble. What is it?'' Cain observes his mind to see what is causing his subconscious mind to go on alert. The fortress is one way in and there is no enemy reinforcement ording to the report. "New report! Enemy drop pods iing!" The second intel officer observing the radar made a new report as the sound barrier broke half a secondter. Dozen green drop pods drop between iing zombies and cksouls, surrounding the Space Marines on two different fronts. When the dozen of pod doors opened, gue Marines emerged from them and two factions engaged in battle while zombies continue toe out of the fortress. "Continue the artillery bombardment. We must not allow the enemies to surround the Astartes. Check for additional pods, there must havee from somewhere." Lord Creed ordered his officers to regain control of the battlefield while William send his own orders to the cksouls to focus new enemy with no mercy. "Lord Creed, look over there in the sky." Cain point his finger up above the sky which cloud began to move away. Up in the sky, hidden among the clouds, arge ship can be seen and it can be identified without looking through binocrs. "By the Golden Throne! That is a Battle Barge! How did we not detect that ship from our sensor?" One of the senior officers demanded an answer from the intel officers but that wasn''t important at the moment. The enemy has the advantage in the sky and William''s side doesn''t. If the enemy decided to start their own bombardment, they are in serious trouble as William doesn''t have a countermeasure to protect from sky bombardment. "Magos, is the battle barge shielded?" "Yes my lord, in fact, there is a second iing vessel approaching from behind us. It doesn''t look like it belongs to the enemy." Magos''sstment alert William as his n to board the enemy ship is scraped and turns around to see the new vessel approaching. Above the sky, a Necron''s Night Scythe fast approach the Death Guard''s battle barge. Armed with a twin-linked te destructor, the Night Scythe fire its weapons at the enemy ship. Lighting hit the enemy ship''s shield but soon the shield shattered and melts the ship''s armor. Due to the superior speed of the Necron ship, the battle barge couldn''t do much as they didn''t anticipate a Necron to interfere andck of options to fight back on short notice. Death Guard''s battle bargeunch a few fighters to counter the Necron ship but it was useless as lighting from the te destructor caused a chain reaction, destroying the fighters before they could fight back. "Hello, Champion. I propose a truce for a moment until we take care of your corrupted brothers." Trazyn the Infinite appeared on William''s helmet screen as he appear casually sitting on hismand throne. Compare to what William saw previously, Trazyn looked beat up and show multiple scratches on his metal body but it didn''t seem to bother him as his attitude and tone were friendly. "Trazyn the Infinite, I should have known it was you. Why are you here interfering with my fight? Lacking collection of Death Guard?" "Funny. I was fighting them long after our¡­ encounter. Let''s just say I have my own reason, oh and this is for killing mest time." With a petty tone, Trazyn the Infinite teleported William and his royal guards to Death Guard''s battle barge and flew off from further engagement. Leaving William in the hands of the 14th Legion, Trazyn knew his time wille to capture both the champion and the Living Saint. He just needs to wear out the beast before delivering the final blow. Chapter 100: 14th Legion Part Two Chapter 100: 14th Legion Part Two After William defeated Trazyn a few months ago, "Now, let us take this world one more time," Trazyn said to himself as his tomb ship emerge out from the moon and begin to hover on the ground. After the fall of Cadia and the opening of the Great Rift, Trazyn learned of an entirely different world in the corner of the torn reality. This particr opening led him to something new and different for him to collect but at the same time opportunity for other species to contaminate them, forcing Trazyn to rush the expedition. "A new exhibit for the unknown world after the Great Rift. This is a rare opportunity for me to expand my exhibition beyond this reality." Trazyn, seeing the chance to collect beings beyond this world quickly assembled what he could. Thankfully, the Overlord had awakened forces ready to go since he had previously part taken in the final event of the 13th ck Crusade as a participant on the defending side. Long story short, it did go well. With a single Caim-ss Tomb Ship and a collection of necessary forces under his wing, Trazyn entered the torn reality, eager to collect many things before others burn them to the ground. "My lord, we have iing vessels from the dark side of the second moon. ording to the scanner, it''s a small band of a fleetposed of 10 total and they belong to the 13th ck Crusade." One of themand deck crew report to the Trazyn with no emotion or concern. As soulless and low-ranking Necron, they don''t have much personality or emotion to disy except for Trazyn. "10 ck Legion''s vessels? Well, we can''t have them burn the world before I finish my expedition, would I? Intercept the small fleet, prepare all the Doom Scythes and have them destroy their engines. Leave no survivors." After receiving the order from the overlord, the entire crew of the Caim-ss Tomb Ship follows their designation to bring the giant ship alive. Thergest type of Necron starship came to life as bright green colors can be seen and moon clouds of dust wash away the surface like a wave 360 degrees. In a matter of few minutes, the tomb ship lifts off from the moon, heading toward the neers who have no idea that they are about to enter the void war (Space battle). -------------------- "Fire," Trazyn simply whispered instead of shouting the order. As Necron, he didn''t have to speak at all but speaking through his metallic voice gave him some sense of his old self. Without saying anything, themand crew of the tomb ship fires their main weapon and hit the main center of the enemy formation. On the surface of the second moon, a green fire in the sky can be seen and a few secondster, multiple ck Legion vessels exploded, creating a firestorm in the empty space. Trazyn, even though his entire Necrodermis body screamed to go out there and collect the Chaos vessels, he knew not to take the risk. There is always an opportunity to collect Chaos and Imperium stuff but this world, oh no, he won''t take any chances, unlike what happened to Cadia. "Change to a new target and continue the rate of fire. Send out Doom and Night Scythes to take out the surviving vessels. I will not have a single survivor enter my world and ruin the cultural trajectory." "Yes, Overlord." At once, all of the crew members answer Trazyn''s order and follow them through. In less than an hour, the tomb ship managed to destroy the majority of Chaos ships, leaving one single transport ship and one green Battle Barge heading towards the New World. ''After cleaning these expired collectibles, I need to make a new n including the Emperor''s Champion.'' Trazyn, believing his ship''s superior firepower and element of surprise was lost in thoughts when suddenly an rm goes off. "My lord, we have a second wave of enemy vesselsing out of warp. A total of 15 ships and they are heading directly toward our location." The ship captain said to Necron Overlord as the imaging disy shows the enemy ships areing in fast, about to block tomb ships from hitting the remaining ships from the first wave. "Fire, now! Don''t let them escape!" Trazyn shout hismand this time and ordered themand crew to fire the Star Pulse Generator. A massive pulse of green energy finally fired and was on its way to hit the battle barge, but unfortunately for the Necron Overlord, the energy beam was intercepted by another Battle Barge. The ship exploded spectacrly but managed to aplish the task of saving the first ship, giving two ships full of Chaos forces a chance to invade the New World. ''How unfortunate and unlike of them to sacrifice their ship. Unless¡­'' Before Trazyn could finish his thought, one of themand crew finish it for him. "We have multiple reports of enemy intruders in the ship. My lord, it''s the crew of the second Battle Barge." Hearing this Trazyn signed even though he doesn''t have lungs or mouth to exhale the air. "Send the Lychguards and Immortals to face the intruder for now. I will personally handle this matter once and for all." Double checking his Tesseract Labyrinths (Both filled and empty), Overlord grabs his staff, Empathic Obliterator. "I have no need for the rest of the ships." Thest order from the Overlord seal the fate of the second wave as the captain of the tomb ship is given the order to use all weapons to destroy the enemy ships. "As youmand." Necron captain replied to Overlord before he left the bridge. When Trazyn left themand bridge, the Necron captain follow the order and redirect the tomb ship to engage the rest of the enemy ships. "Prepare the Sepulchre and Lighting Arc Batteries. Bring out fear and death." -------------------- The second wave of ck Legion ships was taken out in a matter of two days. All 14 ships of the Chaos Marines and cultists face off against Trazyn''s tomb ship and unfortunately for them, the ship''s secret weapon, the Sepulchre created a psychic vision of horror and made everyone living fight each other on a rampage. Once the enemy forces surrounded the tomb ship and believed that they have the advantage, The Necron captain fired the weapon, sending a wave of vision beyond humanity''s understanding of technology. Immediately, all enemy ships went into a panic as they weren''t able to protect themselves from the psychic attack. Every ship''s crew, cultists, ves, and traitor Space Marines went on a rampage as they saw nightmares of their own unable to recognize what was real and what wasn''t. Ultimately, ships fire upon each other while the tomb ship sts an arc of lighting which wipes multiple enemy vessels at once. Unable to protect themselves or bother to raise the void shield, the remaining second wave of the ck Legion ships explodes in space without making a sound for others to know they were there. When Trazyn reached the first group of intruders, Lychguards managed to kill them all by destroying the blue power armor. Realizing there are multiple kill teams spread all over the ship, Trazyn sends out more troops but is unable to track them down due to their unnatural magic. ''Clear each floor and room one by one if you have to. I will not have my n dyed by some magic wizards full of ashes.'' Trazyn sends out his messages to every Necrons on the ship and orders Lychguards and Immortals to follow him, following damaged hallways to find the next kill team of Thousand Sons. By the time Trazyn was done with intruders, the ship received heavy damages from within and require arge amount of time to repair before operating in minimum capabilities. It took him two weeks and even though his ship doesn''t have air or atmosphere, somehow the Chaos Space Marines from the Thousand Sons managed to stay alive without the need for air or food. "Continue the repairs and report back to me. I will track down the two escaped enemy ships using Night Scythe." An order was given to the Necron captain and the Overlord took a handful of elite troops with him and descend to the New World. Tracking traitor Chaos Marines and discovering a new development from Emperor''s Champion. -------------------- Present Time, ''Damn that walking metal skeleton. He pulls a petty trick on me just like how he did with Orikan the Diviner.'' William thought to himself and activate his terminator armor lights to scan the area around him. After looking around for a few minutes, William realized that he was inside some kind of animal''s stomach as the interior of the walls are covered with living organisms and slimes. "Chapter Master!" A voice called behind William and when he turned around, he saw a group of cksouls Honour Guards approaching him with weapons out and scanning the area just in case. "Report captain, is this everyone?" "Yes, Chapter Master. All 20 Honour Guards are here." The captain of the Honour Guard, Archus Auguste said to William while others expand the area to secure the perimeter. By the looks of it, the Honour guards are well adjusted to sudden changes in the environment and didn''t show any concern whatsoever. William could guess, they are more excited to do something instead of standing around, looking tough and fearsome. "That is good. We don''t game of looking for others while stranded in unknown ces. Do we have any clue where we are?" "I believe we are inside of the enemy Battle Barge. I rmend tactically sabotaging the ship''s critical system and escaping to regroup with the rest of the army." "No, we will take themand bridge and take it to orbit before setting it to self-destruction. We can''t risk putting down the Battle Barge and risk the spread of the gue in the air, contaminating half of the globe." William exins his reasoning and checks his load ofbi range weapons under his power fist wrists. Having his ammo inventory to hisbi-bolter andbi-sma, William didn''t have to worry about reloading or running out of ammo in the middle ofbat. At this point, he is walking fortress with enough firepower and defense to take out the army all by himself. "Double check your weapons and be ready to roll out. We are going on a hunt and I''m taking the lead." William said to his Honour Guards and readied his terminator armor to expand his nk ability. Just like in the Battle of Three Armies, William''s terminator armor can expand the range of the nk signal beyond his natural range, but this time is different as Honour Guards have the same features builtin in their power armor. Honour Guards aren''t Liberians and can''t generate their own nk ability but if there is one nk among their party, they can boost the range of the signal, making them unstoppable when facing Chaos enemy units. "Truth death hase for you, Death Guard." William activates his nk ability which immediately wipes the taint of the Chaos corruption while Honour Guards'' power armors and the chapter symbol begins to glow bright silver (Number zero with the letter I in the middle and symbol of Power Hammer behind the number zero with hammerhead engraved with Aqu of the Imperium of Man). With each step they took, the corruption cleared and a few of the Honour Guards burn the living organisms with white mes from their wrist mers. The vanguard of the cksouls and an elite among the elite advance further into the belly of the beast while unknown to them, the beast prepares the weing party as traitor legion elites advance from the opporsite sides. Chapter 101: 14th Legion Part Three Chapter 101: 14th Legion Part Three "Rejoice, children! Your Father brings you to hope in your darkest hour. Let those who would ept his giftse forth and receive the blessings of the Lord of Decay. Cast away your crutches and doubts. Put aside beliefs in a false master who fills your hearts with lies, sorrow, and regrets. Embrace instead the glorious gifts of rot and decay. Revel in the beauty of putrescence and be reborn a living symbol of perseverance." - Daemon Prince Gal''furth "Embrace the Grandfather Nurgle and his love." One of four gue Marines said to the intruder as he fire his bolter. They patrol the ship''s hallway after receiving notification and since they were the nearest, they were the first gue Marines to wee the neers. The oue wasn''t what they expected. After firing a few rounds, the first thing they notice was the sense of feeling. For the first time since their transformation after receiving the blessing from the gue God, the four traitors began to feel everything. The sensation of pain and smell was unimaginable to the gue Marines as their perception of reality cleared like a blue sky after a misty morning. The first gue Marines couldn''t feel his left hand making a fist or move its fingers. Instead of a human hand, his left hand was made out of a green tentacle and wrapped around the bolter barrel guard like some kind of sea monster. Looking down, the traitor saw his body instantly terrified him to his core as his power armor, the pride and symbol of his legion is nothing but a rusty metal bucket with his guts just hanging out like some fat flesh. "What happened to me? Where is my arm?" The traitor said to himself but no one paid attention to him as the other three were on the same boat as the first traitor. The second and third gue Marines check their bodies to find out that their stomachs were reced withrge mouths with sharp fangs. The second marine''s upper body and face were covered with tumors and the only way for him to breathe was through an organic tube that was connected to his mouth through his helmet. The third marine, on the other hand, didn''t have the tumor upper body like his friend, instead, he have boils and infections all over his skin while his power armor extract those boils for the pus. The nightmare didn''t stop there as the third traitor realized that his right leg was muchrger than his left andpletely naked from the power armor. Each step would force the boils to spill the pus out from his right foot and the worst part is that the leg has eyes. A living eyes that weren''t his or able to see through. The fourth gue Marine is in worst shapepared to the other three. His entire body was bloated to the point he would explode if someone hit him with a bolter round. His rusted power armor was too small for his overweight body and most of his fats were digging into the armor''s sharp edges like a dagger, bleeding him all kinds of liquids besides blood. Overall, the four gues Marines saw their tragic condition under gue God''s blessings andpletely forgot about who they were fighting a few seconds ago. The unknown force continue to advance and before four gue Marines realized what was going on, multiple bolter rounds and a few sma shotspletely wipe them out without giving them a chance to defend themselves. "Spare no one. We are doing them a favor by erasing them from existencepletely. Tonight, no souls will return to the Lord of Decay." The leading terminator said to others behind him and move forward with his power fists ready. Attached under his two power fists are two different types of range weapons. One on the right fist has a chain bolter while the other fist has sma cannon, both having retractable lighting ws in unexpected melee fights. "Yes, Chapter Master!" The 20 Honour Guards replied at the same time and follow the leader while the middle and rear guards stay alert for a possible ambush. The power of the nk and extension of William''s ability to every Honour Guards divested not only minions of the gue God but also the ship''s environment as well. The fungus and other nt life quickly withered while maggots and flies died as the overwhelming power of the nk blocked them from receiving Nurgle''s blessing. Of course, fire from the mers made no difference in what killed them as it purged the walls and floors, revealing the original structures of the Battle Barge. William''s force pushes forward, clearing every turn and room. Each resistance was met with more bolters and fire as William unleash his stress and anger at the unfortunate gue Marines and a few daemons of the Nurgle. "Chapter Master, we are a few kilometers away from themand bridge. I advise caution as the enemy leader of this ship would have elite guards." Captain Auguste said to William through vox radio. Even though the ship was being purged from the corruption, the air was still filled with spores and all kinds of diseases. Thankfully, the power armor and air filter helped greatly as if not for those pieces of equipment, William''s group will be experiencing attrition of Chaos corruption. "Understood Captain Auguste. Let''s see if anyone is waiting for us on the other side of this door." William raises his right-power fist and punches the door, shattering the metal door to make the entrance. The room was big andrge enough to be vehicle storage, but instead of storing vehicles, the room is filled with big sacks of unknown organic materials. By William''s estimation, he counted over 30 biological sacks and each of them contained living beings. Living beings with Legion Astartes gic materials. ''Oh, I saw enough horror movies to know what those are.'' William immediately follows his instinct and raises his range weapons to fire. "Destroy them all before these things hatch," William''s order wasn''t obeyed as the frontline began to receive enemy fires. William''srge terminator armor took most of the attack and his shield managed to hold the worst of it as some of the enemy attacks were blightunchers. "Pushing forward and spread out! We can''t have the enemy hold us in the bottleneck position," Captain Auguste orders his men to push forward so they can have a strong position to prevent the enemy from holding the superior position. "On me!" William boosts his energy shield and raises his two arms. With his tactical auto-aiming system built in his armor, William locked multiple targets and fired. Combi-bolter and sma cannon cause explosions beyond the normal capabilities of Astartes'' war gears. Not only did the bullets and sma st kill the enemies but destroyed the organic sacks containing the traitors. "Follow the Chapter Master!" "For the Emperor!" "We are the bane of the heretics and Chaos!" Honour Guards of the cksouls chapter advance with no hesitation and their weapons deliver devastating power to kill their enemy. Each of the Honour Guard''s bolter rounds contains a small microchip of nanomachines that break down the enemy''s body the moment it makes the contact. One hit from this bullet will spread the tiny machine to devour the enemy''s flesh and continue to grow until the host of the body is nothing but a pile of dust in the end. As for the mer, the short-range crowd control weapon st blue me instead of red or orange. This is because of the higher temperature and special chemicals in the fuel they use as ammunition. Not only does the fire of the mer burn longer and hotter but the chemicals within make sure nothing will put down the me such as water or sand as it will continue to burn unless the supply of air is gone. The Honour Guards possess closebat weapons as it is their bread and butter inbat. From power swords, shields, axes, hammers, and lighting ws. Mastercrafted weapons are deadly on their own but when activated, the closebat weapons can deliver powerful sts or cut through anything within their limit. The Cog Boys previously tested William''s terminator armor and found out that the armor ting generates countermeasures to prevent the power de from cutting the armor and absorbs the kic impactpletely. William didn''t hesitate as nothing could hurt him or affect him using warp magic. Anything standing in his way was crushed to paste and Death Guard stood his way, William simply punched or slice him into pieces. With each attack William delivered, he received more attacks from his enemies. Shortly after, William saw his kic storage is 100% and saw how he is now surrounded by the enemy, he activates the kic st, shredding anyone and anything around him. The st cleared William''s path and others to joined him as the majority of the enemies began to retreat to the next room. "Concentrate all your fire towards the retreating enemy! Don''t let them escape to regroup." The order came from the Chapter Master and they are followed without any question. Three Honour Guards step forward with their heavy weapons in their hands and fire at will, killing rear Death Guards as they attempt to run away. Just as the three Honour Guards were about to empty their magazine, a cracking sound can be heard and a secondter, arge number of enemy terminators teleported into the room. Equipped with mutated Cataphractii Pattern Terminator Armour from the era of the Great Crusade and Horus Hersey, about 50 terminators entered the battlefield, armed to the teeth. "You have done enough damage to our newly formed ranks, but fear not for Grandfather Nurgle''s love is eternal." The leading Blightlord Terminator spoke with a sickly voice. Elite Death Guards among the traitor legion made their desperate move to stop the unstoppable force even though they have no idea who they are facing. They simply assumed that these loyalists Space Marines are a separate sect of Grey Knights as they have simr coloring and armor types. This assumption will be their mistake and a fatal one as William didn''t bother answering the leader of the Blightlord with words but with his fist. "No thanks, but my fist of love will free your soul for good." The punch sends the enemy leader''s head flying while his body below the neck simply slumps down to the floor, only one leg somehow manages to finch due to muscle reaction. The head hit the wall and exploded into arge lump of goo as it slide down like a slime. William''s surprise attack sends out full-scale war as some Blightlord Terminators open fire and some charge head-on to fight the enemy with Balesword or bubonic axes. Expecting this, the 20 Honour Guards did the same and two elite units sh against each other, shaking the floor with unimaginable force. Blightlords have the advantage in number but their ability to fight with Nurgle''s blessing is no more and their strength of gue became obsolete. Still, some of the Blightlords managed to kill cksouls'' Honour Guards brutally as possible but as one of them fall, three of their own fell with no way for them to reach the gue God''s realm. While cksouls elite guards hold their own, William was having a st as his third ability to master any item allows him to utilize all of his weapons and armor to full potential. With unbelievable speed, William stepped left and right, dodging most of the enemy weapons and getting close enough for him to use his duel-lighting ws. Each of his lighting ws met its mark as the entire helmet was cut into three pieces or horizontally cut, separating the bodies. Pulling his hands back, William brings out a golden halberd from his inventory. After activating the halberd, William made his stance to wee Blightlords as they approach him with their melee weapons in their hands. William blocks the first attack with his halberd as a rustly ax strikes from above. Fighting the enemy''s strength, William redirects the ax de and strikes the enemy terminator''s helmet with the back of his halberd. The head exploded due to the powerful blow and the terminator''s incredible strength. Following this motion, the golden halberd slice the air as William swings the weapon, switching from his right to left hand expertly. The 10 vs 1 fight turned into a blood bath as the golden de of the halberd cut down any enemy terminator standing in its way. Nothing could stop it as armor ting and the enemy''s des simply cut down like grass. William stopped spinning his weapon and after pulling back his right hand, he bring out his left arm forward. Equipped with abi-bolter, William cleared the rest of the Blightlords that his halberd couldn''t reach, killing all of his opponents in one single motion. "For the Emperor! For we are true death of his archenemy!" As the battle continues, the Blightlords'' captain andmander of the Resheph, the Death Guard Battle Barge step out from hismand bridge. Realizing that thepany of Brightlords isn''t enough, Captain Kallgar Toxic de heads towards the storage room with his trusty power scythe in his hand, while his Primarch''s elite terminator units ''Eyes of Mortarion'' follows him as they were ordered to protect Captain Kallgar with their lives. Chapter 102: Engraving Chapter 102: Engraving "How did they enter the ship?" Captain Kallgar calmly exits themand bridge while his 10 bodyguards follow him with their weapons ready. "We don''t know how the intruders board the ship without our detection. The enemy strike team managed to stop our invasion n as most of our brothers were taken down, including the incubation chamber for the recruits. As for the ground troops, the number of infected is doing significantly quicker than we anticipated. I suggest n B at this point as we are losing our footing in the battle below and above." One of the Deathshrouds spoke to captain Kallgar as if he was a simpleton whose hand needed to be held. Deathshrounds are elite warriors of the Primarch Mortarion and personal bodyguards of their gene-father. Each of them was hand-picked by their Primarch and trained to wield the power scythes called Manreapers. The only reason these warriors are following Captain Kallgar is because of an order personally given by Mortarion who is currently engaged in a personal grudge battle against his brother, Roboute Guilliman. "I will not initiate the n B without facing these introducers first and retaking the Battle Barge. By now their number would be reduced to below half since I sent 50 terminators. Who could have guessed that they managed to overpower thepany worth of Blightlords?" Thest part was a surprise to even Deathshrouds as they knew Blightlords aren''t pushovers when ites to fighting. After all, Blightlords are potential candidates to be Deathshrouds when the timees to rece fallen brothers or to increase their number. "Indeed that was unexpected but there is no way the 21 Space Marine strike team of the unknown chapter could survive the aftermath even if they won the fight. The gue and battle wound infection would surely weaken them. I say, we just cut the loss and virus bomb the entire to be on the safe side. We already faced Necron, unknown native warp warriors, and a now unknown army of Astartes chapter. I have a bad feeling about this and I can''t feel anything, literally." "Enough! You are supposed to be elite among the elite, not some recruit who needs handholding. What is wrong with you?" Captain Kallgar said to the Deathshroud as they usually stay quiet and only speak when ask for advice. This sudden change of personality and mood of the warriors concerns the captain but he has better things to worry about as they are halfway there to their destination. "I don''t know, ever since the enemy boarded the ship, we started to feel something is off. Like our mind is starting to clear from the fog." The unpleasant feeling became stronger with each step they took. Unknown to them, the nulling effect of William''s nk ability cut the connection to the warp, leaving only gues, mutated bodies, and uncertainty within each of the traitor''s minds. Captain and the rest of the bodyguards stopped as they finally arrived. With a quick motion, one of the Deathshroud touch the control pad and open the heavy storage doors as it finally unlocked. "I know what you mean but we can''t start to shake before engaging in battle. As you said, the gue and infection would weaken the survivors by now and all we have to do is kill them." Captain Kallgar said with confidence and activate his power scythe, preparing himself to kill any surviving intruders who have enough strength to resist. With screeching noise, the big doors began to open as they began to slide apart. The first thing that emerged from the storage room was ck smoke and ashes. Entering the room, the new group of Death Guards scans the room with their weapons ready, looking for wounded enemies or surviving brothers. To their surprise what they found wasn''t dying loyal Astartes but rather fully functioning Space Marines with an unnatural feeling of nothingness. "By the Nurgle''s cauldron, they are still alive!" Captain Kallgar shouts and before he could raise his weapon high, the Space Marine in terminator armor brings down his power hammer to the floor, creating a shockwave. "You bet we are still alive and you just open the door for us." With that, the next thing Kallgar heard and saw was an iing hammerhead with the sound of ''woosh''ing towards his general direction. ---------------------------- 15 Minutes Ago, William finishes thest Brightlord with his power hammer. Overall, the oue of the fight took longer than he thought and it was understandable as he and his bodyguards took 50 Death Guard terminators. "Status report," "We lost three brothers and one is wounded. Brother Apothecary Calgried is tending to the wounded brother for infection. He will retrieve the gene seeds of the fallen brothers afterward while we retrieve the usable equipment ording to the protocol. I fear we won''t be able to take their bodies with us for a proper funeral." Captain Auguste said to William as a few of the loyal guards ze the enemy remains with mers to cleanse the storage room from the gue. "It is unfortunate to lose brothers in arms. Don''t worry about their bodies, for I will take them with me after Brother Apothecary Calgried finishes retrieving the gene seeds. They earn their rest and will receive proper send-off after this conflict. I will have their names engraved in my armor, for I will remember them until myst breath." Wim decided to follow the Emperor''s tradition during his Great Crusade where he engrave his fallen Custodes'' names in his armor for their loyalty and courage. No such honor was given to his sons, the Primarchs, or anyone else besides Custodes for they are his advisors and possibly, only friends to the Emperor. "That would be the greatest honor you could bestow on them, Chapter Master." Captain Auguste slightly bows his head with an approving voice as he didn''t expect William to go such length. Their duty is to protect the Chapter Master with their lives and aplish any secret tasks given to them. To be remembered by an engraving of the name in the armor symbolizes continuing their duty even in death, to follow the same path the Chapter Master will take until his dying breath. "If I can''t bring them back home, I will carry their names. I own them at least that much." William said to the captain of his loyal guard and walk towards the wounded battle brother. Witnessing this, Captain Auguste follows his Chapter Master, to protect him with his life to the end. After Apothecary finishes recovering the fallen gene seeds, William ces three dead cksouls into his inventory, including their armor and weapons. Their bodies will be cleansed from the Death Guard''s corruption and diseases when the army returns to the capital city. William ns to bury them under the fortress, to rest until William is ready to return to the 40k universe. After retrieving the bodies, William receives the transmission from an unknown source and his armor managed to intercept the conversation between Captain Kallgar and Deathshroud. ''So, they areing to finish us off. Can''t disappoint them can''t I?'' William thought to himself and ordered his men to prepare for the uing fight. This time, William will make sure no one will die under hismand as he wields his power hammer with both hands and have his men ready special bolter rounds. ---------------------------- Captain Kallgar''s body turned into a pile of green meat as the power hammer demolish his entire being. William didn''t stop with the dead Death Guard captain as he push forward, dividing the Deathshrouds and having his men take out them separately. With enemy forces divided, William turns around to face the rear side of the enemy while bolters and blue mers slowly put down the enemy. The Deathshroud''s armor is much thicker but as they are mutated beyond standard warp taint and corruption, William''s loyal bodyguards managed to kill several without any issues. "Now, face the Emperor''s wrath!" William strikes his power hammer down at one of the Deathshrouds. His opponent attempt to counter with his power scythe but it was pointless as William''s power hammer shatter the scythe''s de. Instead of recovering his swing, William activates his armor shoulder guards, revealing hidden micro missiles with an auto-targeting system locked in the target. "Eat this," The micro-missiles flew off in a random direction but all end up hitting the target they were assigned into. Deathshroud and two of his fellow battle brothers receive the micro-missiles and half a secondter exploded into pieces, their souls lost forever and unable to return to the Warp. "Who''s next?" William then proceeds to attack the nearest target while holding his hammer in one hand and his empty hand raised to fire abi-bolter. Ten elite bodyguards of the Primarch Mortarion and captain of the Death Guard''s Battle Barge fell within a matter of few minutes as William''s strike team demolish them. Just asst Deathshroud fell to Captain Auguste''s power sword, the ship went into ck alert as red light turned into low dim light. William didn''t need to ask his guard captain about the sudden ship alert change as his terminator armor managed to show the ship''s status. After a quick read from the helmet''s monitor, William''s eyes widen as he couldn''t believe what he just read. "Captain Auguste, take half of our number and go to themand bridge. You must take control of the ship and change the course before it''s toote." "Yes my lord, but what about you?" Captain Auguste asked in his vox channel while hand gesturing his battle brothers to follow him. "I will be visiting the ship''s navigator. That damn third eye is making the run to the warp with us on board." William said to his guard captain and took eight of his loyal guards with him. Unknown to him and others, the Death Guard navigator n to unleash n B before returning to the 40k universe, destroying all life in the New World once and for all. Chapter 103: Navigator of the Plague Ship Chapter 103: Navigator of the gue Ship Space travel in the 40k universe isplicated and very dangerous. The current Imperium heavily depends on warp travel to reach the other side of the gxy as it is the fastest but most dangerous way to do so. As Imperium based its technology on pieces of the Dark Age of Technology, many of the ships the Imperial Navy used are nothing but old, outdated, and irreceable. It is possible that old humanity during the Dark Age of Technology might know or possibly possess the FTL but there is no record or known tech to prove that theory, currently. One thing is for sure, the only way the humans managed to achieve a gxy-expanding empire was thanks to one particr mutation within humanity''s history. Navigators are Imperial-sanctioned mutants who possess the Navigator Gene. Their unique mutation gifted them with the ability to see through the warp and evenmunicate with each other light-years away from each other. As navigators, they have the ability to see through the warp and find the right destination by using the Emperor''s psychic light as the northern star. The third eye or psychic eye of the navigator helps the navigators to maintain their sanitypared to regr humans. For this reason, they are one of the most important factions within the Imperium to maintain the eternal gear of war in the 40k universe. As long as Imperium existed, minor factions and noble houses managed the Emperor''s territory on his behalf. The noble houses of the Navigators on the other hand are one particr minor faction that is essential to the Imperium and its survival. Just like Adeptus Mechanicus provide war machines and the war effort, the noble houses of the Navigators provide the supply of navigators for the Imperium. From ship navigation,munication betweens, interster transportation, andmerce, the navigators are the most protected and valued individuals within Imperium. If entire noble houses were to be exterminated by the Inquisition because they are mutants, the Imperium will once again fall into something simr to the Age of Strife. Lastly, the navigators'' third eye grants them the ability to not only see the power of the warp turbulence and storms but also the power to kill a mortal human. If feels threaten, the navigator can use the third eye to expose the mortal''s mind with warp, killing the individual in an agonizing fashion and torment of pain. Overall, the navigators are Imperial-Sanctioned mutants that even ck Temrs respect even though they are mutants. This is because ck Temrs see the navigators as holy mortals who can see the Emperor''s light and witness his greatness every day. The Imperium within its limit tolerates psykers and mutants as long as they serve and are useful. It is unknown how old humanity used navigators to travel between stars or achieve interstermunication but one thing is for sure, navigator houses survived for tens of thousands of years during humanity''s darkest hours and they will continue to survive the current 40k timeline. ---------------------------- "Take over themand bridge, kill anyone who attempts to stop you, and take the ship above the atmosphere if you can. I will not have this gue ship infect this world." William gave his order and pick half of his honour guards to follow him to the navigator chamber. With his helmet consolemand, William took the quickest way to the destination with the weapon ready. Knowing that navigator is one of the important pieces of the ship, William expects the chamber to be guarded. ''Can''t have the ship enter the warp while we are here. I am also a bit curious about how much the navigator is corrupted by the forces of Chaos.'' The thought made William imagine what kind of mutation the gue ship''s navigator had gone through. William knew of the third eye and how even the 1st w of the Nightlords avoid their eyes before firing their bolters on the corrupted navigator in the Nightlord''s book. "Beware of heavy guards and pox minions of the gue God. Kill all and maintain within the nk radius." "Yes, Chapter Master!" The guards respond to William''s warning and made formation to push forward. Unknown to William, the gue ship''s navigator passes themand to virus bomb the entire which will initiate theunch in 30 minutes. ---------------------------- 15 Minutes Later, Captain Auguste of the Honour Guards. "Captain, the breach is ready on your order." One of the Honour Guard reports to Captain Auguste and with a single nod from him, the doors to themand bridge were breached. The explosion of the metal doors knocks down everyone on the other side of the doors. Armed with auto guns, themand crew of the gue ship attempt to hold themand bridge by making the barricade. Unfortunately for them, the explosion and flying pieces of the metal doors shatter half of the ship''s crew and officers before they could pull their trigger. Immediately, Captain Auguste and his men enter themand bridge with weapons hot. The sick and mutated crew of the ship quickly fell as their physical strength was no match to this unknown Space Marines. Some even attempt to attack intruders with melee weapons but it was a pointless effort as power swords of immense power put them down like sheep in the ughterhouse. "For the gue God and his eternal love for life itself!" The shipmaster (Ship Captain) shouts without much effort and fires hisspistol. Thest remaining crew and officer also stand their ground with all their might next to the shipmaster as they continue the rate of fire with auto-guns andsguns. For all their lives, they served the ship and Death Guard legion with up most loyalty. They are the originalmand crew of the ship and are forever bonded to serve as long as they must. They were there when Warmaster Horus dere decoration of war against the false Emperor. They were there when Typhus changed the course of the fleet to be gifted with gue Father''s gift. Forever changing their lives and destiny. They were there when Mortarion moved his fleet to the Eye of Terror, to im a world within warp and rule as the rightful ruler without the light of the false Emperor. They were and are now forever lost to the Nurgle as their souls can''t return to the warp, ending the legacy and stories that won''t be passed on to others to remember. "Themand bridge is now ours. Burn the traitors'' bodies and move the ship to the upper atmosphere." Captain Auguste put away his sword and bolter pistol while giving orders. Just as the captain of the Honour Guards thought it was over, one of his men, the technician of the group spoke with urgency in his voice. "Captain. The ship is currently preparing to fire virus bombs onto the and we don''t have control of the fire sequence." "Who is controlling themand of the exterminatus?" Captain Auguste maintains hismanding tone as an uncontroble situation doesn''t require panic or uncertainty. Panicking only will cause more uncertainty and loss of control of the situation. The best thing is to find the solution before it is toote. After a few seconds, the battle brother replies back with a much more calm voice. "The navigator of the ship transfer themand of the ship during ourst battle. He gave the order to the scattered crews to load the virus bomb." "By the Emperor''s light¡­ Notify the Chapter Master of this situation. He must know of this before it is toote. All we can do is change the trajectory of the ship while ascending to the empty void. Even if the virus bomb is released into space and detonates, the virus won''t survive without oxygen." With the contingency n made, themand bridge team of the cksouls moves the ship, ascending higher and higher. ---------------------------- 10 Minutes before theunch of the virus bombs, "Open fire!" William''s voice echoes through the big hallway while his guards fire their bolters, killing the chamber guards outside of the entrance. The overall trip wasn''t that much difficult as William''s men did most of the work with bolters and des. All William did was fire a few rounds of sma shots and threw grenades to purge the heavier units blocking his way. ''Way too easy. Too easy, if I have to say.'' William thought to himself and immediately regret it as he received the vox message from his bodyguard captain. epting the report, William caught up with the situation on the immediate exterminatus using the virus bombs. ''Damn it, I knew I jinxed it.'' "Move away from the door, NOW!" William orders his men to open the path to the chamber door. Quickly obeying the order the Honour Guards of the cksouls move out of the way, clear away from the iing William''s fully charged power hammer. Bang! William''s weapon of choice broke through the metal doors, only for William to be the first to be surprised at what was inside the navigator''s chamber. The navigator''s chamber was damped and humid ording to the armor''s sensor. That was the lighter news as the whole room was filled with green nts and living organisms with eyes moving around. There are few light sources to show the important section of the chamber as the center of the chamber has a water tank that is supposed to be filled with nutrient liquid for the navigator''s meditation. Instead of nutrient liquids of blue color, the ss tank is filled with dirty green swamp-like water and insects crawling around it. Once mortal human and navigator of the Death Guard ship reside in the tank as a mutated blob of green filth with multiple eyes and a huge body that can''t imagine getting out of the tank. The creature''s eyes and William''s met the moment he entered the chamber. The creature was ready for him and was ready to kill the intruder without a second to waste. ''Shit, I mustn''t see the eyes.'' William turn his head around immediately and closed his eyes. To his surprise, he didn''t perish or feel anything wrong with him, confusing him more and more. The confusion also spread to the other side as the blob navigator couldn''t hold his shock and yelled out in panicking tone. "Why aren''t you dead? I saw you and you saw my eyes, you should be dead with overwhelming images of the warp itself." The mutated monster of the navigator said out loud to make sure his victim know what should have happened. ''What?'' William open his eyes and turn his head to see the once mortal just like he was. The truth was tested and William saw the creature to which he didn''t die from the third eye. Realizing that he is not in any harm, he raises hisbi-bolter and approaches the creature. "You! Withdraw the exterminatus order right now or I will turn you into a honeb." Stopping a few feet away, William activate his bolter and missed the creature on purpose to prove his point. Looking closely, William realized the creature is either stuck or be one with the liquid tank due to his oversized body. That means the navigator of this ship for 10,00 years (or less) never left this room as he is incapable of doing so. "You will now do such a thing. Even though I don''t know how you survived my third eye''s re I hold all the cards in the end. If we must lose, you will also lose for only Nurgle''s blessing will be our salvation." The blob creature spoke with a cringingugh while moving his small hands. "You piece of shit! Do you intend to destroy the New World? What do you care about the conflict between Imperium and the traitor legion? You are a navigator who was supposed to guide through the Emperor''s light." "I turned away from the corpse Emperor''s psychic light long ago. I only see the wave of the warp and the true God as his intention is pure and eternal." "You traitor!" This wasn''t from William but from one of his men as one of the bodyguards fired the regr bolter round, removing arge chunk of green flesh. The wound didn''t heal and the creature screamed in pain as for the first time in his long life, he felt an unpleasant feeling of pain. "How are you doing this? How are you all able to live after seeing my third eye and inflicting pain on me?" Hearing this, William realized how stupid he was. His nk ability was still actuated and hepletely forgot about it as he was more focused on fighting and killing traitors. For him, the nk ability is like breathing and blinking his eyes as if it was natural to him. ''Damn, I''m such an idiot,'' With that thought, William realized how much the mutated navigator is suffering from the bolter wound and show an ufortable expression on his face. The psychic nulling effect indeed made the creature ufortable and even receive psychic damage from William''s presence. ''If he feels this much from me, how about from the Emperor himself?'' A new idea came to William''s thought in which he decided to test his theory. "Everyone, turn away from this creature until I tell you otherwise." William''s order was obeyed and after confirming all of his men are turn their backs, he pulled out one particr item from his inventory. Holding in his hand was a golden orb of the Emperor''s light and possibly a horrifying thing the fallen navigator could possibly see directly. Unable to run away or adjust his head from the glowing light, the mutated navigator screamed in pain as all three eyes of his burned like embers. "Behold! If you turned away from the Emperor''s light, I will just bring his light to you. Now, do as you are told, or else I will turn you into a crisp green blob that not even gue God will touch." ---------------------------- For defeating Death Guard Terminators: [cksouls Storm Speeder Thunderstrike x5: These hovering speeder of the Space Marine vehicles is best for scouting but capable of carrying only two Space Marine. Armed with multi-missiles pods andscannon, the Thunderstrike can deliver decent fight power to harass the enemy from approaching their target.] For defeating Death Guard Deathshrouds: [cksouls Devastator x 15: Centurion Devastator are long-range specialists and heavy weapon units armed with chain-linked heavy bolters and mounted missiles to support the frontline. These walking tanks are power armor of the Astartes who are already equipped with standard armor, making the Devastator a power suit more than power armor.] For defeating Captain Kallgar of the Death Guard: [cksouls Thunderhawk x4: Possibly the only way for Astartes to travel around the sky and space in style andfort. The Thunderhawk is a multi-purpose aircraft of war for the Space Marines and Sisters of Battle as it is capable of quick deployment and possesses triple engines big enough to break the atmosphere. The aircraft is equipped with arge number of weapons fromscannon to missiles and enough defensive measures and control systems to fight off regr flights in airbat. The aircraft is big enough to carry 30 Astartes or 15 terminator units without worrying about the weight. As for the Dreadnought, the ship can carry 6 in total (Five Space Marines per one Dreadnought).] Chapter 104: The Escape Chapter 104: The Escape The Emperor''s light shines bright in the navigator''s chamber. The light is psychically powerful enough to cleanse the entire chamber including Nurgle''s gues and corruption of the Chaos. William felt the increasing temperature in his hand as the orb burn bright than ever before. As if knowing the presence of the Chaos corruption, the Emperor''s light purged everything with each second burning bright. "The light! The light of the¡­" These were thest words the navigator said before all his three eyes burn to crips and boiled skins washed away like a me on spider webs. Besides the mutated navigator is engulf in a burning pile of flesh, the entire chamber which was mutated with the green flesh of the Chaos also burns as well. The stone pirs and old gothic appearances reappeared after 10,000 years. The whole process only took 40 seconds before William couldn''t endure the burning sensation in his hand. Lasting long as possible till the end, William put away the bright orb into his inventory, darkening the chamber, and at the same time took one knee due to extreme exposure to the Emperor''s light. "Chapter Master!" One of the guards, who is quick to recover from the light saw William and move next to him to boost him. Once the guard raise his Chapter Master, he saw the damage never seen before on William''s terminator armor. One side of the armor was burning red with intense scorch marks as if Chapter Master was inside of the volcano. The scorch mark covered the entire right shoulder and arm but for some reason, the helmet wasn''t as if it was protected from the me itself. "Remove his helmet. I can''t sense his pulse from my sensor." The medic of the honour guard said to the first guard and he attempt to do so. Unfortunately, his attempt wasn''t fruitful as the terminator armor was impossible to remove without the user''s permission. "I''m fine, my brothers," William spoke and raise his head to look forward. His voice was raspy but it was strong enough for others to step aside as their Chapter Master remove his helmet with his left hand. With a small ''hiss'' sound, William remove his terminator helmet and gave it to the first honour guard who helped him stand up. The medic of the guard step forward and tried to examine William''s condition but before he could start his task, William blocked him and move him aside. Opening his eyes, William saw navigator''s chamber was cleansed from the Nurgle''s gues and diseases. The room returned back to the once great chamber of the navigator of the Imperium of Men and a ce where they could navigate through the warp. "My lord! Your eyes," The medic said to William with surprise in his voice. William didn''t think much as he was focusing on the corpse of the navigator who once served the Death Guard. The dirty green nutrient tank was no more as the tank itself is cleansed of any filth and one who resides within is the burned body of the normal human who possesses a third eye. ''So, his eyes couldn''t endure the fragment of the Emperor''s light.'' William thought to himself and turn around to see his brothers. The medic called William once again which William finally realized as he turn his head to see the medic. "Yes, apothecary. I''m here, you don''t have to scream." Williamugh a little bit as he reach for his helmet which the guard returned as if it was a holy relic of the Chapter. "My lord, your eyes." "What about it?" "Well¡­ the color of your eyes is no longer brown. My lord, they are gold." The apothecary pulls out hisbat knife and shows the side of the de for William to see his reflection. To William''s surprise, the apothecary was telling the truth as his eyes are no longer brown but rather yellow gold. ''Ah shit, I''m gonna get chewed up for this.'' William thought of what his advisors would say once they saw this new change in him. Casually pulling out the Emperor''s light isn''t something William should do as it is an important relic and a powerful weapon against the Ruinous Powers. "I guess the Emperor''s light was too much even for me." William joke about his condition and put on his helmet, breathing recycled air and rebooting his terminator armor to full function. The scorched mark on the right side shows minimum damage and the paint job should be able to fix the problem. As for the virus bombs, William saw in his inte that the operation to the exterminatus was terminated once the navigator has perished. It looked like with no one to give the order, the corrupted servitors of the Battle Barge simply stopped and wait for the new order from the next chain ofmand. "Let us move to themand bridge. Stay alert and eliminate any threats, this is still a search-and-destroy mission until we return to our forces." With William''smand, the honour guards quickly return tobat formation and exit the navigator''s chamber. Last, to leave therge room, William turns around once more to see the cleansed room. It was ironic that within Death Guard''s gue ship, this particr room is now a more uncorrupted section of the ship. ''Still have job to do,'' William steps forward and follows his honour guards, forward towards themand bridge where the rest of his honour guards are holding position. ---------------------------- Command Bridge of the Death Guard''s Battle Barge, "My lord, we are about to leave the atmosphere and enter the void." Captain Auguste reported to William while a few of his honour guard brothers took bridge stations. Overall, the ship was in good condition even though it was heavily mutated beyond imagination. As the battle barge began to embark on atmosphere to void space, the engines roared as the mes push the ship away from the''s gravity. In a matter of few minutes, the blue sky turned ck and for the first time, William saw stars through themand bridge. "When the ship is far away from the, ce the ship on self-destruction with enough time for us to make our escape." William gave his order and look into his inventory to see his new reward, the Thunderhawk. This will be his escape n and he proceeds to pull one out from his inventory to summon one on the nearestunch bay. "The Thunderhawk is in bay two. When the course and self-destruction are set, move to bay two for evacuation." William gave his instruction when one of the guard''s stations gave an rm notification. "Captain Auguste, we have an unknown vessel approaching the battle barge. It is a single ship but very fast." The honour guard gave his report but before Captain Auguste could respond, everyone saw the ship as it circled around the battle barge. "That is a Necron ship! That filthy Xeno is still around? Fire at will!" Captain Auguste said and gave themand to activate the ship''s weaponry to fire at the Necron ship. William on the other hand quickly realized what was going on. The owner of the ship is definitely a Trazyn the Infinite and knowing him, he is up to no good, especially if it involves the newly founded Space Marine Chapter. "Ah damn it. Everyone evacuate tounch bay two now! Set the ship''s weapon on auto and move!" Realizing what the Necon Overlord is up to, William orders his men to evacuate themand bridge. ''That damn robot is going to capture the whole ship with me included,'' Leaving themand bridgest, William made sure all of his men are moving, and before he knew it multiple teleportations with green energy appeared in the hallway. "Shoot and move! They are here to capture us." William was correct as Necron warriors are equipped with Chrono pulse weapons to trap the targets without damaging them. Following the order, William''s honour guards fire their bolters with different ammunition in their bolters. Loaded with overheating armor-piercing rounds, the honour guards destroyed Necron warriors before they could lock on them. With fast speed and reflex, the honour guards and William managed to arrive atunch bay two where Thunderhawk was waiting for them. "Go! Board the ship now!" Captain Auguste orders his battle-brothers to board the ship while he himself and a few of his nearby brothers hold the line. The number of Necron warriors increased as well as moreplex units such as Lychguards appeared with energy shields to block the bolter shots. "Pull back to the ship now! Everyone, cover the Captain and others!" William orders his men while firing both bolters and sma ster. The Thunderhawk pilot did exactly the same as the order was given as the ship hoover a few feet in the air and firedscannons at the heavy Necron units. "Pulling back now," Captain Auguste said and turn around right after hisst battle-brother retreated back to the ship when at the moment of a blindside, a Necton warrior fired the Chrono weapon, trapping the honour guard captain in time. "Damn it," Without thinking, William jump out of the Thunderhawk and move towards Captain Auguste with all his might. Firing all his weapons including micro missiles, William reached the captain and lift his entire body using his two hands. "Catch!" William tosses Captain Auguste with all his might toward the Thunderhawk front door and three of his men managed to catch him using their bodies. Standing all by himself, William once again fires all his range weapons and moves backward to reach the Thunderhawk. Just as William was about to reach the ship, he saw a tear in reality and felt a sudden shock of impacting from it. Beyond time and space, a Deathmark sniper of the Necron dynasty managed to hit William but failed to break his energy shield. ''Fuck all this to hell!'' Fueled with rage and frustration, William pulls out hundred of Promethium tanks from his inventory and throws them before they could be materialized into normal size. "Eat this Mother Fucker¡­" William fires his sma weapon at one of the fuel tanks and before Necron units realized what just happened, the tank exploded causing a chain reaction of multiple explosions. Escaping from the new problem he caused, William quickly retreats back to the ship. Finally boarding the Thunderhawk, the ship closed the door and took off, leaving the burning Death Guard Battle Barge and Necrons. A few secondster, the battle barge exploded, sending a huge chunk of pieces into the void and sending shock waves all around space. Ahead of schedule due to internal fire and damaged Promethium explosions, the ship eventually destroy itself and Necron units that Trazyn the Infinite couldn''t retrieve in time. Meanwhile, the Thunderhawk managed to escape and entered the''s atmosphere, returning to where their main forces is. ---------------------------- [Damn it. I was so close to capturing the champion.] Trazyn the Infinite said to himself while sitting on hismand throne as he watch the battle barge burns. The n was nearly perfect and sessful until that damn champion managed to make his escape using some kind of techno sorcery. How could Trazyn know that the Emperor''s Champion can pull massive amounts of fuel tanks out of his nowhere? [This isn''t the problem. I must return to Solemnace before the final warp portal closes, but first I have to finish my collection before leaving this reality.] The Overlord of the Nihkh Dynasty send out his duplicates to salvage what he could from the Death Guard''s Battle Barge and his warriors. When this is over, Trazyn will once again set his aim towards the New World as he has other things to collect besides William. Chapter 105: Western Front Chapter 105: Western Front William''s main force, Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! The 333rd Krieg artilleries went off like a firework as whistles of shells can be heard over the main force''s head andnded on iing zombies. The field turned into a ze while zombies turn into crisp as their flesh burned and the burning smell of meat was carried away by the wind. While thepany of Kriegs continues to fire their heavy support weapons, Lord Commander Creed orders his senior officers to pass on his orders and maintain the formation of the entire guardsmen. Currently, the cksouls are surrounded by the zombies in the front and 120 gue Marines of the 14th Legion. Additional cksouls came to reinforce their brothers but William''s strategy to bottleneck the enemy turned upside down as his sudden disappearance didn''t help with the morale of the overall troops. Besides the Kriegs bombing to their heart content, the guardsmen of the Mordian Iron Guards and Cadian troopers march forward to face the Emperor''s enemy and traitors to the Imperium. The 14th Legion might be Warp-mutated superhuman warriors of the Space Marine Legion but thousands ofsguns are still thousands ofsguns. Of course, Lord Creed sends additional support to back the guardsmen just to make sure traitors stay dead. Following right behind the guardsmen are, 5 Sentinels, and 4 Banedes super battle tanks that not even Space Marine can survive if they run him over. The Imperial Knights of the Freede Knight Scion of Wrath and Freedde Knight Spear of Olympus stay behind in the main base in case of additional drop podse down from the traitor''s ship. Their anti-air weaponry is now fully armed as they previously failed to intercept the dozen drop pods. The failure was on Creed''s as his continued victory made him soft on the battlefield. ''Never again will I look down on my enemy even if I have the number advantage.'' Creed rolls his unlit cigar with his two fingers as he observes the battlefield. The battlefield at the moment is under his control as enemy forces are more focused on Null Marines than his forces. He already sent half of his forces to finish the job while holding back the reserves in case something unexpected happens. Then, the unexpected happened¡­ One of the Catachan scout report back to the headquarter through vox radio with urgency. "This is Green Beast 02. Reporting iing enemy forces from the west side. I will say again, there are iing enemy forces of unknown origining. There are hundreds, no, thousands of walking skeletons and undead monsters. We are pulling back to the line, the enemy ETA, 40 minutes." Lord Creed snape his cigar in his hand but maintain his facial expression as he recalctes his resources and makes a n for a change of strategy. At this moment, there aren''t enough men to face the iing army of undead. The ones he is facing will take time to wipe out but it requires what he has to finish the traitors. "Lord Commissar Cain," Creed spoke softly but with authority in his tone to call hismissar. "Yes, Lord Commander Creed." Cain steps forward with one of his hands on the hilt of his chainsword. Ironically, out of all the officers on hismand, Lord Commissar Cain is the most confident one to aplish his mission. The Commissariat is outside of the Astra Militarum and technically doesn''t have to follow any order given but Cain is a different kind of Commissar and his duty to the Golden Throne is greater than regtions. "Lord Commissar, I need you to take our reserve forces to face the iing enemy forces. Take whatever you need to hold them down and give me time to finish this battle. You have my authority to take one of the knights if you must." "Thank you but I believe you need these knights more than me. I will take Catachan, Tempestus Scions, and Valhan Ice Warriors to hold the west nk." Cain said proudly and decline the offer of taking one of the power units under Lord Creed''smand. Of course, all these acts were to maintain his position as Hero of the Imperium but also to stay in great favor under Lord Creed''s view of him. ''And herees my tingling sensationing from my hand.'' Cain knew he is about to face danger from taking this new assignment. Considering that he is taking elite soldiers and a few of the armor vehicles including his trusty aide Jurgen driving Chimera, Cain isn''t worried. "I will join as well." The angelic voice came from Cain''s back and just by hearing the voice, Cain knew that the trouble came to him first before he could face the enemy. Living Saint Rana, The Lioness of Holy Terra step forward with two senior members of the Sisters of Battle behind her. Unlike how Cain pictured the Living Saints before, Rana didn''t possess the white wings on her back but she have enough armor and weapons to hold Chaos dreadnought if she wants to. "My Saint, are you sure? Wouldn''t it be better for you to stay here and wait for the Chapter Master to return?" Lord Creed said to Rana but it was a hopeless effort to persuade her as she was already leaving themand center. "I will wait for him on the battlefield just like I expect him to be on the one right now. He will return and he will not fail us." With that, the Living Saint left to assemble her sisters for the battle. "I will also depart right now. I''m sure the west defense line won''t be much of an issue but I will do what I can to make sure she stays safe until Lord William returns. Emperor protects." Cain said to Lord Creed and left themand center with Jurgen following him behind with asgun on his shoulder. Lord Creed watches the Hero of the Imperium leave with confidence, unknown to him, Cain''s facial expression was in a panic. Returning focus back to battle in hand, Creed grabs a new cigar from one of his pouches and catches up on the most current battle intel while Kriegs continue to fire their weapons. ---------------------------- 35 minutester, ''By the Holy Terra, how am I going to survive this?'' Cain sat on his usual sit inside of the Chimera while Jurgen drive the tank like a maniac. With a full regiment of Valhan Ice Warriors of 1200 guardsmen, a toon of Catachan Jungle Fighters, and Tempestus Scions under hismand, Cain made the defensive line to wee the new enemy. As for the Sisters of Battle, their strategy wasn''t much of a strategy as their power suits, bolters, melta guns, and mers tell Cain all about their tactics. The sisters aren''t running toward the enemy in the field because of Rana''smand. Standing behind the line, the knights of Rana''s homnd wait while primitives troops equipped with swords and bows made their own defensive lines beyond Cain''s primary line. With heavy vehicles and support weapons mounted on high ground, Cain order his men to wait for the enemy toe in close. Thesgun and heavy bolters will do the rest but if there are any special units mixed within, the mers take them out before they get any closer. "This is Commissar Cain. I know we are facing a new enemy while our brothers and sisters of Astra Militarum are fighting traitors. I also know that you will do your duty because we are the ones defending them from the enemy and being overwhelmed by them. Today, we are the shield and spear of the Imperium, remember that." Everyone heard Cain''s speech through the vox radios and their spirit reach ever-high as their voices echo through the hills and green field. "Enemy on sight! Commissar, they have greater daemon!" The same scout from before reported right away when he saw the giant daemon armed with a skull mace. Orcus the Lord of Undead and Blood finally reach his destination as the golden light that bugged him ever since hisst battle is near. The light that embodies the living angered him to the point he decided to wage war without considering which gods he is fighting. ''Emperor''s bowels! What on the Golden Throne is that thing doing here?'' Before Cain couldpose himself, an angelic voice shouted, this time with the fury and might of the avatar of the Emperor. "For the Emperor! Fire at will!" With orders given, Rana pulls out her golden bolter with an engraving of a lion from her waist. With a loud sound of ''bang'' the battle of the West Line started as Orcus himself charged head first. ---------------------------- "I will have your skull and skin as trophies!" Orcus swing his club wildly to block iing red light that burns his skin. It wasn''t much as the red light from the humans only burn the surface but this was a different story for his undead minions. The undead and skeletons quickly fell down assguns burned through their bodies and damaging them to the point they couldn''t function. The problem lies when Sisters of the Battle join the fight as their ming weapons and bolters cut down rank after rank of the undead. On other hand, Cain wasn''t having a great day as well. The countless number of undead swarmed the defensive line while unimaginable creatures of witchcraft and warp-like beings cast spell after spell towards his Chimera. The heavy armor withstands the damage and some of the spells such as fireballs were nothing but soon more and more came in to destroy the most threatening-looking thing in the field. That is before the Living Saint of the Emperor step forward to challenge the Orcus in one vs one fight. "Let us settle this once and for all. I know you came for me to extinguish the light of the Emperor. I will fulfill your wish but in exchange, I will take your head." Rana pulls out her great sword and golden shield to face the demon of the legend from her world. "Hahaha, now that is something you don''t see every day. A woman stepping out to do a man''s work. Oh, how the gods have fallen to send you." Orcus taunt the Living Saint without realizing who she was serving or who she represents. Until now, Orcus simply assume that one of the living embodiments of the god came to the mortal world which enraged Orcus as he can''t stand the living itself. "You have no idea who I serve, do you? That will be your downfall." Rana ces her shield in front and readies her sword. The Living Saint and Lord of the Undead are about to engage in a duel while the battlefield once again rages as two forces of different factions finally collide against each other. Unknown to everyone, four Thuderhawks entered the New World''s atmosphere with a leading drop ship carrying Chapter Master of the cksoul Space Marines. Receiving weak signals but understanding the situation, William decided to unleash the new reward he got from destroying the gue Marine''s Battle Barge. "Thunder one and two will change direction to the west line. Thunder three and four will fly over the main force to give fire support and rejoin the one and two. By the Emperor''s guidance, we will end the fight today." William gave his instruction and look into his inventory. Marked as a new item in the inventory, William possesses a golden summoning card of legendary status. The Imperator-ss Titan, Apostate''s End. Chapter 106: Apostate’s End Chapter 106: Apostate¡¯s End Emperor ss Titan is one of the most significant asset Imperium ever to possess under its massive military might. Titans are the powerhouse of the Imperium; among them, the Emperor ss are the most powerful and destructive ones. On the other side, losing one is also devastating to the Imperium and Adeptus Mechanicus as it is irreceable. Adeptus Mechanicus and all the Forge Worlds consider Emperor ss Titan to be a considerable figure of the Machine God. Admired and worshiped to be the walking avatar of the Machine God in the mortal world, every Magos to lowly adepts, consider Emperor ss to be the God-Engine amongst other Titans. By design, the Emperor ss Titan has two variants which are Imperator and Warmonger sses. As these titans are one of a kind but also Admechs can''t create them as they are the creations of the Dark Age of Technology. There are many different Emperor types with different heights and sizes but both variants are powerful in their own rights as well as the ability to change the faith of both enemies and allies. Imperator ss Titan is the first variant of the Emperor Titan, armed with a Hellstorm cannon and sma annihtor as primary weapons of war, the Imperator ss Titan is a general-purpose assault tform unit. With extremely powerful weapons and multiple void shields at its disposal, the Imperator ss is a ssic one vs one when ites to facing Gargant which is the Ork equivalent of Imperial ss Titan. The Warmonger ss Titan has a simr structure and design to its counterparts but is notable regarding weaponry. Unlike Imperator ss, the Warmonger is more long-range and anti-air, using the entire convention of putting more guns and ammunition. Providing more fire support and long-range strike, the Warmonger can level the Hive city more effectively than its cousin and have enough ammunition left to make Orks cry for WAAAGH. Emperor ss Titans are rarest and only deployed when there is massive Imperial assaults or crusade. The walking mobile fortress is forced to be feared and somewhat reserved in the line unless the situation demands it like Third War for Armageddon. With its signature design of carrying a church on its top, the Emperor ss Titans are the legacy of humanity''s lost peak era and a relic. ------------------------------ "Deploying the hellstrike missiles." The pilot of the Thuderhawk Three said to the voxmunicator and the fourth Thuderhawk follow the pilot''s lead as they fire a volley of missiles upon the line of gue Marines. Not even the legendary endurance of the Death Guards couldn''t handle the direct firepower of the Hellstrike missiles as two air crafts empty their silos and return for a second run. The extreme temperature of the fire disrupt the entire rear line as gue Marines lost their footing and were unable to hold the line while Null Marines of the cksouls began to push the ambushing enemy. The second run wasn''t devastating like the first one but it was enough to clear the enemy formationpletely as twin-linked heavy bolters,scannons, and turbsers shredded the traitors as they are about to reach their breaking point. "That was a good run, Thunder Four. Returning to the main flight to regroup." With that, the pilots of the two air crafts change their flight to rejoin Thunder One and Two. With air support clearing the enemy from the rear line, the Null Marines break through the gue Marines while continuing their ughtering of undead in front. Meanwhile, the continues artillery bombarment from the Death Corp finally rewards them as the mountain fortress crumbles to the ground, burying the reserve army of the undead and whoever the one supplying the zombies. From the distance, Lord Creed saw the two Thunderhawks leaving the front line and rejoining the other two, heading towards the western side of the battlefield. "Well, about time you return, Lord William." Finally lighting the cigar in his hand, Lord Creed smiled and order his men to make the final push for the front line. ------------------------------ Western Front, Four aircraft flew over the Western side of the battlefield. The first thing that wee them were undead creatures with wings but they were immediately taken down by thescannons. With no enemy to interrupt the deployment, the four aircraft surround the frontline and began to hover. "Opening the front deployment door, good luck Chapter Master." The pilot said in an open vox channel and a momentter,rge beings in power armor dropped a few feet in the air. Laning on top of the undead who previously made contact with the guardsman, William, and his Honour Guards made an entrance to the solid ground. "For the Emperor!" William broadcast his warcry and punch the first undead he saw in front of him. The powerfist vaporized the undead and his Honour Guards unsheathed the power sword, butchering anything that isn''t alive. Following William and his men, more units were deployed from the Thunderhawks, and to everyone''s surprise, 15 Devastatorsnded with heavy-range weapons. "Form the defensive line center around me!" The captain of the Devastator instructs his battle brothers and began to make breathing room in the middle of the battlefield to divide the enemy numbers. The sheer firepower of the new units crush any undead close to them and if they saw the unique enemy in their sensor, they simply fire the heavy bolters. No undead sorcerers or liches were safe even at long distances as they had no defense against the explosive bolter rounds. "Commissar Cain, where is Rana and where is the Greater Daemon?" William vox radios Commissar Cain to find out where the greatest powerhouse and leader of the enemy forces are. He knew that Rana''s power would be more than enough but considering that no Blood Thirster wouldmand the undead, William knew something was off about this whole ordeal. "My lord, Living Saint and Greater Daemon are fighting further back in the enemy line. The Living Saint pushed the daemon with brute force to keep it away from us. That is thest thing I saw." Cain, who is now on the open hatch of the Chimera replied to William as he fire his mounted heavy bolter. He was the first one to see the Living Saint charging the daemon and thest one to see her pave the battlefield row of the undead by pushing the daemon''s massive body. "In that case, we need an open path for us to reach her. And I have the right tool for the job." William then went into his inventory and summon the legendary unit into the battlefield, right in the middle of the enemy''s side. At first, there was a blinking golden light in midair. A few secondster, the air began to suck in towards where the light was as clouds of dust began to show the current of the air. Then suddenly, without a warning, Imperator ss Titan appeared in mid-air andnded on top of the swarm of undead. BOOOOOOM! Waaaaaahhhhhhh! Standing nearly 150 meters tall (492 feet) and weighing 1600 tons, the Imperator ss Titan safelynd on its two feet and st an air siren as if Titan was awakened from its long slumber. [I''m Princeps Santen Von Hall of the Imperator ss Titan, Apostate''s End. Who do I receive my instruction from?] The Titan spoke through its vox broadcast and speaker to announce its presence and it didn''t disappoint William''s side as its massive size can be seen all the way from Lord Creed''s base camp. "I''m William Nullinanis, Chapter Master of the Legion of the cksouls. I humbly request the power of the God Engine to clear the enemy with a single swoop." William didn''t give an order but submitted a request and hope that massive titan epts the request. As Chapter Master has utmost authority on the battlefield and in politics, Princeps of the Titan Legion and the one whomands the Emperor ss have their own saying as well. For that reason, even the Grimaldus of the ck Temr and hero of the Helsrech had trouble with Princep when ites to a battle arrangement. [I receive your authority clearance. Under the treaty of the Imperium and Titan Legion, I will follow yourmand until we rejoin the Imperium. May the Omnissiah and Machine God guide you to victory.] The first thing the Imperator ss Titan adjusts the primary weapons and fired the sma annihtor, carving the very ground and anything that stands in its way. It didn''t end there as another primary weapon, equipped with the hellstorm cannon st group of minor daemons and superior undead creatures as if they are made out of paper. Many of the undead near the Titan attempted to crawl the legs or to break through the heavy door near the foot but they couldn''t as Titan''s void shield prevented them from even touching the holy avatar of the Machine God. Imperator took one step and each step shook the ground every step crush a hundred zombies and skeletons. "Push forward!" Williammands his men and follows the same direction as the Titan. It wasn''t just his battle brothers as Commissar Cain and his troops and even Sisters of Battle follow William''s leadership and continue to purge the undead as they march ahead. Chapter 107: The Beginning of the End Chapter 107: The Beginning of the End "Why aren''t you dead yet?" Orcus said with frustration as all his magic spells didn''t work on this so-called ''Living Saint''. When he saw the bright light that hinder his vision, Orcus didn''t realize how much pain the human woman can be in as immediately, the Living Saint push his entire body all the way to the rear side of his army with unbelievable speed. The next thing he knew, Orcus and Living Saint were alone and with no one to interfere in the fight. Just like how Orcus wanted it. "I''m the living embodiment of the God-Emperor. His will is my mission and you are nothing but a nuisance to his ultimate goal." Rana held a greatsword in one hand and a golden shield in the other while dering the new religion Orcus has never heard of. "Typical righteous speech from the avatar of a goody shoe god. Your soul will make a nice collection for my wand." Orcus wave his wand up high and gather dark clouds above him. Seeing the Lord and Prince of Undead casting a spell, the Living Saint dash forward and raise her shield to block the iing spell. "Behold! Hellfire Storm!" Orcus''s wand glows red and zing fire came from the dark clouds. The crimson hellfire erupted the moment it hit the wand, causing a 360-degree wave of hellfire where Orcus is standing. Unknown to everyone besides Orcus, he requires material to cast a spell as devastating as Hellfire Storm. To bypass this, Orcus simply sacrifice a decent amount of souls within his wand to perform the spell. A small price for the demon lord to y an opponent from the side of the light. The diabolic wave of hellfire came upon Rana as if it was a tide of a tsunami. Seeing the spell and its devastation, Rana ces her shield and activates her ray of holy light onto the shield itself. This caused the shield to absorb the holy light and generate a wall of light, as if it was a void shield, protecting the Living Saint and everything around her. When the spell hit Rana, the fire consumed her, and everything. It took half a minute for the fire to die down and when the smoke and dust cleared, Rana appeared from the side of the Orcus''s right with her greatsword ready to strike. ng! The Living Saint''s greatsword shed with Orcus''s skull wand as the demon lord parried the de just in time. If he was second slow, he would have received a fatal blow to his limb or worse his life. "Nice try little avatar but you are no match for me. When ites to one vs one, I''m invincible. Now, if you had a full party of heroes, you might have a chance to beat me." Orcus mock the Living Saint with an evil smile. He knew the moment this little golden warrior pushed him beyond his army to fight him all by herself that he will win. This wasn''t his first fight against heroes and foolish ones tend to die by his hand, especially a lone wolf such as her. Crack¡­ Boom! Suddenly without warning, a thundering sound erupts above two warriors and a fully armored knight appeared out of nowhere. This new opponent wields arge hammer and possesses a ridiculous amount of weapons attached to his arms and body. "That is where you are wrong!" Without announcing who he is, the Knight Lord of Metal made an entrance with the intention to bash the demon''s head with his power hammer. This time, unknown to Orcus, William appeared with a fully charged power hammer infused with his nk ability. A hammer capable of destroying a modern-day tank with a single strike is about to give a massive concussion to the fantasy demon lord right between his horns. "You fool! The non-magical weapon doesn''t work against¡­" Believing William''s weapon is just a massive war hammer, Orcusughed and took the hit with confidence as he is only vulnerable to the magical weapons (ording to his D&D stat). Bong! The moment William''s power hammer met Orcus''s forehead, the ground he was standing on cracked and sink two feet as the sound echoed for miles. The damage Orcus received was devastating to him overall as he lost half of his health and is now under negative conditions. From severe concussion to the smashed front skull, Orcus took a few steps backward to reorganize his thoughts and process what just happened. ''Who and what am I doing? Oh, wait, that''s right." It only took four seconds for the Orcus to realize what just happened but it was enough for William and Rana to take advantage of the situation. This time, William went for the legs while Rana went for the front as both fighters rushed toward the dazed demon lord. William is the first to attack as his power hammer swang from the side as the hammer strike right below the demon''s knee. The hammer made its mark trip the demon''s massive body into midair,pletely catching the demon defenseless and vulnerable to the next iing attack. Seeing the opportunity, Rana ran and step over William''s terminator in the back like stairs and jumped at the end. Extending her greatsword''s hilt in mid-air, Rana pieced the Orcus''s heart with her spear, leaving a full-size hole where his heart was. Orcus fell hard to the ground, leaving a pool of blood around him as his body remain still. Seeing it is their victory, Rana recalls her spear and retracts it back to the greatsword. William, on the other hand, opens his helmet to show a tense face as he just realized that he and Rana just defeated Orcus, one of the masters of the undead and Abyss. "How did you know I was in trouble? You knew exactly where to appear." Rana said to William after realizing that his timing was perfect. William simply smiled and turn his head towards Rana to answer her question. "Your helmet. It may hold Emperor''s light and faith but it is still armor from the Imperium and equipped with a voxmunicator. I simply locked on your vox signal using Titan''s receiver and teleport near your location. I just didn''t know where I might end up but lucky me, right above the demon''s head." William points at Rana''s golden helmet and exined that Rana simply smiled and hopped to kiss William''s cheek. "Well, it is a good thing that Living Saint has her trusty knight to protect where she goes," Rana said to Wiliam and was about to turn around when the sky darken, and to their surprise, the Wand of Orcus glow red. "What''s going on? My nk ability should be nullifying any magic around me (Except for Rana as her ability is faith in the Emperor)." Second William finishes talking to himself, and hundreds of souls burst out from the Wand of Orcus and circle around the demon lord''s corpse. Sensing something is about to happen, William uses his armor to safeguard Rana. Secondter, at once, all the souls that came out from the wand dive into Orcus''s body, and the body began to regenerate itself. ''You got to be kidding me. The souls of his victims are bringing back Orcus''s life? Why isn''t my nk ability stopping this?'' William was baffled by what was happening when the realization finally hit him. Orcus probably had a backup n in case he was defeated by someone and that means exchanging numerous amount of souls for a second chance to kill the foe who previously yed him. ''A preset soul ritual linked to his wand and his own. Smart bastard, this means my nulling effect won''t do anything since it is an item effect, not magic cast from the user.'' William doesn''t know how this New World''s rule works when ites to magic and magical items. If this was a 40k universe it would null everything including the item but it seems this world has a rule of its own and he just needs to figure it out one at a time. With souls consumed to bring back the Orcus, the dark sky fades away slowly, and once again the demon lord rises from the ground with his old wound healed, leaving a light scar on his chest. Meanwhile, William receives a vox message from his helmet and immediately away grabs Rana and starts to run the opposite way. "It cost me 3,568 souls but I''m back! Now prepare for your damnation for eternity!" Orcus cheered as his n actually worked. Normally, he would be sent to Abyss after his death in the mortal realm, but after learning from previous defeats from the heroes, Orcus made a contingency n to kill the next hero''s party in case he was ever defeated. As evil as Orcus was, he was also petty bring when ites to being defeated. "Now, where is that stupid golden avatar and metal scrap?" Orcus looked around and soon found a giant knight running away from him while holding the avatar like a sack of potatoes. This enlightens the demon lord as he believes that William and the Living Saint are running away like a dog tail between its legs. "Foolish humans, you won''t escape from my grips. Now face your death once and for¡­" Before Orcus can finish his sentence, he felt the ground shaking in a slow rhythm as somethingrge and heavy is approaching him. Sensing something was off, Orcus look beyond the direction of William and saw what he was running towards. A giant metal titan, carrying a citadel on its shoulder as if it was a hat walked towards where Orcus is and one of its hands is glowing blue as if it was ready to cast an offensive spell to destroy him. ''What in the all Abyss is that? Why is a Titan of unknown origin (Orcus believe that Imperator ss Titan is actual tian of a fantasy world)ing towards me? Did the gods send him to destroy me once again?'' Orcus never got his chance to get his answer as Imperator ss Titan fired its massive sma Annihtor. Known as ''Titan-Killer'', the massive sma weapon blessed by the ten thousand tech-priests from the forge world hit a recently resurrected demon lord who couldn''t dodge as a blue beam disintegrate most of Orcus him and his wand. Imperator ss Titan wasn''t done as it fire again and again. This time, titan unleashes everything including Hellstorm cannons, missiles, and melta cannons topletely wipe the demon once and for all. This was because a few minutes ago, William use his full authority as Chapter Master and Imperator Fratrum to fire everything the titan got before he bolted with Rana on his shoulder. It was a bit overkill as a result of the titan''s second and third attacks melting the very ground into ava pool and any trace of Orcus ispletely gone from the mortal realm. sting the war horns, Apostate''s End deres its victory against the greater daemon and vox channel to William for any further instructions. William on the other hand finally reached the titan''s left foot and stop to put Rana down. Just in case Orcuses back for the third time, William wanted to make sure he has the walking church to protect him from the angry demon lord before banging his head again with his power hammer. Luckily for him, he didn''t need to worry after all as Orcus didn''t have a third ritual to bring himself back and dropped into Abyss once and for all. "Can you put me down? This is kind of embarrassing," Rana quietly said to William as rest of the William''s army began to report in as the army of undead and demonspletely copse or vanished due to its leader''s defeat and exile to the Abyss. "Sorry, I just reacted without thinking." "No worries, at this point I know you well enough to predict what you will do next." "Oh really? How about this? Since we are under the church will you marry me?" "...?!" Rana''s face turned red and radiate golden light due to the sudden proposal from William. ----------------- For defeating Orcus, the Demon Lord of Undeath and Master of the 333rd Layer of the Abyss, [Warlord ss Titan x2: One of therge types of battle titan and mostmonly used by the Titan Legions as itmands battlefield with immense size as it stands nearly 33 meters tall. Not as fast as Reaver ss Titan but it makes up for the overwhelming firepower of weaponry and heavy armor. By the design, the Warlord ss Titan resembles a knight of the old times as it performs its knightly duty and protects citizens of the Imperium under Emperor''s light. The Warlord ss Titan eaches with mounted turbosers, Gatling ster, and Mega Bolter.] [Imperial Navy Retribution ss Battleship x1: Massive starship of the Imperium with numerous weapons systems and a defense capable of withstanding heavy barrages from the enemy ships at once. Imperial Battleship is massive, it is so big that it requires between 25,000 to 50,000 men and women to crew one ship and defend any borders in mid-battle. Among Battleships, Retribution ss is known for powerful broadsides weaponry and multiple torpedounch tubes which could level half of the if given enough time. The shipes with a fullplement of ship officers and crews a total of 30,000. Note: The ship will be summoned in the''s orbit as the rule requires it.] [Adeptus Astartes Battle Barge x2: First appeared at the beginning of the Great Crusade, the Leginoes Astartes Battle Barge is the primary starship of the Space Marines. Equivalent to Imperial Navy''s battle cruiser, the Battle Barge is armed with heavy armor hulls and enough firepower to go toe to toe against a formidable battleship. The primary mission of the Battle Barge is to supportary invasion includingary assaults, troop carriers, and bombardment of the''s surface. To meet the demanding requirement for the Astartes, the Battle Bargees with drop pods, a training facility, a medical facilityb, a Thunderhawk deployment bay, and enough room to amodate threepanies of Space Marines.] Chapter 108: Terranovis (Land of the New) Chapter 108: Terranovis (Land of the New) The Legen war for unification is over and William is dered a winner and sole ruler of the country once known as Legen. After a certain victory over every noble, warlord, and previous ruler, William secured the entire nation and its territory for himself to establish a newnd and order. "I will not ce myself as a king of this nation. Under the guidance of the Emperor''s vision, I will establishw and order until all of us are ready to embark on a crusade back to our home. I''m William Nullinanis (Which means Null Void), Chapter Master of the cksouls Space Marines and Lord Imperator Fratrum (Commander of the Brothers). This country will be known as Terranovis (Land of the New) and I will be the torch that guides all of us back into Emperor''s golden light" William''s speech of deration spread like wildfire as news of the newly risen nation with unstoppable military power and technologically advanced power took over the entire kingdom. The first thing William did after returning back to the capital city was to take a long bath and take a single day off so he can spend time with Rana. Mentally exhausted, William and Rana took greatfort with each other and spend the day not as warriors but as a simple couple who recently got engaged. They talked about what to expect from their brothers and sisters (Space Marines and Sisters of Battle) as they have a basic expectation of how each would react. For this reason, Rana proposed that they should allow a small group of people to know the truth as it will be a huge problem when the more opposing and zealous group will fight the very idea of marriage between Chapter Master of the Space Marine and Living Saint (Yes, I know and we all know how Inquisition would react). The next day, William and Rana went back to work as there is much work to be done in a short period of time. While William focuses on the establishment of the rule and new order, Rana focused on tending to former Legens citizens as well as helping the war orphans and victims of the war to settle down with new homes. This, of course, expanded the recruitment process for the Sisters of Battle as there were countless orphan girls who require their ''help''. As for the boys, William didn''t recruit them to the Space Marines or Astra Militarum as he wanted them to protect thend once he and his forces leave the New World. Also, since he can summon more men and women of the Imperium there was no need for an additional number of soldiers who have no idea whatsgun is or how to operate the war machine. As for the criminals and prisoners of the war, they were given few choices. The soldiers of the old nobles and warlords were givenbor jobs to rebuild or repair the cities within Terranovis with proper payment for their services. This also meant certain benefits such as health checks, medical services, proper food and nutrition, and even the option to join the new country or exile to a neighboring country. For the officers and minor nobles prisoners, all their ranks and status of power are removed as Terranovis doesn''t recognize them. Instead of throwing them away or putting them into a prison cell, William decided to test their capability and filter out who is useful and who isn''t as some of the officers or nobles bought their way up with the money. After a careful process of evaluation and tests, William managed to obtain a decent number of talented people with the character of proper leadership and humanity still attached. They were given the opportunity to work as newly formed local defense officers and administrators as well as recognition from William to be one of the members of the local council. The rejects of the screening on the other hand had a different faith. They join the war criminals, corrupted individuals who seek power and wealth as well as leaders who oppose William''s truce when they were given the chance. After making sure no person cracks to slip into the cesspool of criminals, William gave them to Magos Vdus Callias of the Metalica. Close to two thousand bodies went to where Mechanicus workshop to be processed as construction servitors and other types for Mechanicus''s needs. William asked Magos Callias why he requested all the death penalty prisoners and Magos simply smiled and replied back that even William felt chill in his back. [Omnissiah teaches us not to waste resources and I have great use for them.] Said Magos Callias with excitement in his voice as he and his priests are about to get busy. ------------------ 2 Weeks Later, It took endless nights and mornings for William to establish a proper system for his people to run the nation he founded. Thanks to his enhanced body and intelligence, William managed to process all the information that his administrators and investigators gathered during his absence in the war. With additional counseling from his advisors such as honorable Brother Raduriel (Dreadnought), the 1stpany captain Bolic Firehammer and the rest of the captains provided their insights and options for how to handle the structure of the foundation. Unsurprisingly, Captain Dioricus (Formerly Ultramarines Sergeant) gave a wide range of advice and opinions as his knowledge of the Ultramar political system became a great help. One of the critical issues was how to handle visitors from the New World especially races of Elf and half Orc. Until now, William gave orders to avoid any conflict with the Elf but their existence is something he can''t push to the side. For one, there is a delegation of Elf from the great forest with messages of peace talk while William is certain that they have something up in their sleeves as Elf tend to always have a few schemes in their head. Considering that Imperium did work with Eldar during the dire situation, William decided to ept the peace talk and maintain the neutral position unless he is provoked to start a war. Races such as Dwarf, Gnome, and Halflings are wee as their skills for art and craftsmanship will greatly benefit the economy and trade among other countries. Considering that Imperium would see them as subhuman within the 40k universe, William had no problem when ites to his men epting their presence in the capital city. Other races such as half Orc, Dragonborn, and Tiefling are not wee inside of the city wall but they are epted in the viges and towns that is if they follow the rules. This is because most of the adventurers are mixed race within the group and adventurers are one of the critical cogs of the economy and information. William and his Space Marines understood the basic necessities and value of the adventurers as long as they are useful to William''s cause. The problem became a huge issue when the Sisters of Battle learned of this and refuse their very existence as they intend to burn everything for the sanity of purity of the human race. It took both Rana and William to convince them not to start purging with the reasoning that all the other races have some blood of humanity within them. "Even if they are, they are nothing but a mutant and deserving of holy fire for their crime." The newly elected Sister Superior of the Our Martyred Lady stood her ground against the very idea that other races are even allowed to live on the same. Considering where she and her sisters areing from, William is surprised that she didn''t start the day with the daily burning of hundreds of people. "They are not mutants but a¡­ Abhumans. Yes, they are technically Abhumans and they are sanctioned by me to assist on our crusade back to our homeworld. Of course, they will not be allowed to enter the city wall without permission." William made an excuse at that moment to prevent mass genocide as he doesn''t have time for the zealot''s nonsense about killing everything in sight. He literally has a country to rebuild and find a way to mobilize a fleet of ships to leave this world once and for all. "I understand my lord. But what about those Eldars? We must keep our eyes on them no matter what as they will turn against us." The Sister Superior points out to William in he kinda agrees with her. "We havemon ground on that subject. I will maintain the peaceful ways with the Elves but once they show any sign of betrayal or aggression, I will personally send you and your sisters to handle the matter once and for all." William''s answer satisfied the Sister Superior and the matter was resolved with a few additional problems William had to go over with administrators the next day. At the end of the second week, William assigned eachpany captain to rule the major cities as head representatives of the Terranovis with rules and regtions that William ced in order to have overall unity ofws. Unlike how Emperor assembled the Lords of Terra with regr humans, William made sure his battle brothers are given regions to rule thend under his name. This way, William can secure the entire country without worrying about sending reinforcement to secure the borders as it will require massive forces to fight against thepany of Null Marines. For example, the North-Eastern legion that Commissar Cain liberated and lost Necron artifact to an Alpha Legion were given to Wolf Seer and hispany as their preference for the icy cold mountain is perfect for their trait as most were former Space Wolves. [Note: Eachpany has battle brothers from other different chapters as William intended but to his disappointment, it is still a working progress as the majority of thepanies are assembled with the same chapter.] While this is going on, Ciaphas Cain, the Hero of the Imperium saw an opportunity to finally find a peaceful life in the Terranovis. Given the huge amounts of rewards for his service during the Legen unification, Lord Commissar Cain finally have enough capital to build something for himself and Jurgen. After Ciaphas Cain learned of the new policy of certain Abhman aren''t allowed inside of the city wall, he bought argend outside of the capital city andmissioned a new building for the purpose of starting a new tavern/inn for the travelers of all races. With help from the former Imperial Fist and engineers from the Astra Militarum, the ''Cain''s Finest'' waspleted within a matter of one week and ready for business. Chapter 109: Cains Finest Chapter 109: Cain''s Finest "As I try to impress on the young whelps in my charge these days, it isn''t the scarlet sash and the fancy hat that makes you amissar, it''s the way you wear them. The troops you serve with are never going to like you, but if you can get them to respect you that can be almost as good. Remember, you''re going to spend most of your career on a battlefield with them, and they''ve all got guns, so making them think you''re a liability is never going to be a very good idea." - Commissar Ciaphas Cain Commissar Ciaphas Cain, the Hero of the Imperium and one of the greatest warriors who fought countless battles without the need for gic enhancement and to live over 200 years decided to open a tavern/inn under his name. With his trusty aide Jurgen standing behind him, he cut the red ribbon with his chainsword to start the grand opening of ''Cain''s Finest.'' The gathering of this magnitude wasrger than he expected, from Chapter Master William, hisdy friend the Living Saint Rana, and Lord Creed to everyone from the new regiment of Valha guardsmen who came to celebrate Cain''s somewhat semi-retirement/business. It took a small number of former Imperial Fists to finish the construction of Cain''s Finest within one week and by the time it was done, the building was ready to serve the customer and fortified against any potential enemies within the perimeter. This is because the outer wall was built with the finest bricks but the inner wall was built with the toughest steel to withstand even the bolter rounds (Courtesy of the former Smanders who supplied the metals). The doors were built in solid wood but hidden between frames, there lies a thick solid steel door, that can shut the door with a single lever to initiate a lockdown protocol. Aside from the walls and doors, the tavern has two floors with a standard fantasy world style to blend the building with the rest of the world''s standards. A white building with a red roof symbolizes the color of the Commissar''s crimson sash can be seen a mile away as this distinct look easily attracts potential customers. Before entering the building, the sign hangs above that says ''Cain''s Finest'' with Aqu, the double-headed eagle holding a beer mug and spoon. The interior of the building is fancy and decorative for a standard tavern. After receiving permission from Lord William to purchasend and build, Cain was contacted by the former Blood Angels. During the construction of the tavern, the former Blood Angels provided paintings of high quality and masterful statues of Cain and his adventures. Due to Cain''s numerous adventures and published documents, thanks to a certain inquisitor, Space Marines managed to produce arge number of decorations to enhance Cain''s establishment. Set behind the front desk, Cain''s infamous portrait of himself standing in front of the red g of the Imperium can be seen (Reference to Choose Your Enemies). After passing the front table, the customers are wee to the open area big enough and wide enough for the Leman Russ tank to be inside where people can rx and enjoy small snacks asfortable chairs and tables are provided. This is also where people can enjoy pictures of Cain''s adventures and memorabilia such as chainsword,spistol, Commissar uniform, etc (Fake duplicates) with a golden te exining the items underneath. Further inside to the right, customers can enter the dining area where a fully built kitchen can cook all kinds of dishes including especially requested meals. The dining area can apany over 200 people and Cain made sure to hire enough staff to run the business at full capability as he wants to make sure his employees are well taken care of including having leave days. The second floor is for an overnight stay for customers who couldn''t get inside and have to stay outside of the capital. To make sure customers can stayfortably, Cain asked a few natives of the New World about the charismatics of the Abhumans including Dragonborns who Cain was curious at first about their ability to breathe elemental for a short period of time. ''I have to make sure their rooms are fireproof.'' Each room is a decent size with a bathroom so customers don''t have to worry about sharing a bathroom or using of well behind the building. This prevents any contamination of the water sources and provides privacy so the customer won''t have to worry about certain difort. With each room having a window, they can enjoy the fresh air and sunlight which is unknown to them, the windows also have steel hatches between walls to prevent unwee intruders. Finally, the most important part of the tavern is the drinks. Because of Cain''s sessful mission during the unification of Legen, the city up in the mountain supplied Cain with its finest brew of ales and beers. To store the drinks cold and well-preserved, Cain''s Finest has a basement with temperature control to store cold drinks and room temperature drinks such as wines from various ces within William''s realm of Terranovis. Cain is a very unusual Commissar of the Imperium. To serve the Imperium of Man and the Golden Throne, he possesses diplomatic skills and disciples to tolerate the Xenos existence when needed such as negotiation with Tau emissary. As for his duty as Commissar, he has a unique take on how to treat men and women of the Astra Militarum in which they respect and watch his back in the middle of the battle. For Cain, a man of his caliber to open a business in the New World to semi-retire is unimaginable but in the mind of the Hero of the Imperium is simple. ''Finally, I don''t have to worry about my life. No daemons, traitors, or oversized bugs, just me and my tana tea for the rest of my peaceful life.'' Cain thought as he gave a tour of the building to Lord William and Living Saint as he smiled and shined with the satisfaction of his new life. Unknown to him, the dark cloud gathered for his next unexpected and unwanted adventure waits for him. "''Come on, men! Do you want to live forever!'' The no in charge of the squad must have been on something, I thought. Nobody spoke like that outside of badly-writtenbat novels." -Commissar Ciaphas Cain -------------------- The business is booming as customers of all races stop by Cain''s Finest to enjoy exceptional meals, drinks, and first-rate overnight staymendation. There were a few troublemakers once and a while but Jurgen and his trusty metal club made sure no trouble went any further than one or two exchange of punches. It only took two days for the entire realm of Terranovis to hear about Cain''s Finest and recognize it as one of the best establishments before entering the capital. For this reason, no Abhumans felt discrimination of any kind as their stay wasfortable and weing. With happy travelers and merchants in and out each day, Cain''s business expanded within a matter of a month, creating its own business district and well-respected town outside of the capital wall. Later to be known as Cain''s Community, the ce became arge town of diverse races with no issues. Based on Cain''s greatest achievements and adventures, the idea of serving themunity became a pinnacle standard to which many individuals became respected public servants and military leaders in the future wearing a crimson sash. -------------------- One day, a stranger entered the tavern and passed the letter only for Cain to read. It was Jurgen who received the letter and was as diligent in his job as Cain''s aide, he ept the letter and made sure no one would get any idea of reading it. Before Jurgen could as who the stranger was, the man in the ck cloak left the building in a hurry as if he were being chased. One of the staff members chased him outside, but to her surprise, the man disappeared without a trace, which made the situation more questionable. Jurgen passed the letter to Cain in his office after making sure the letter wasn''t dangerous for the Lord Commissar (such asced with poison). "A letter for you, sir. The person who delivered the letter just left without any word." Jurgen passed the letter to Cain and left the office as he had other duties. With no idea who would send the letter, Cain opened the envelope and read the content. ''What in the Emperor''s throne?'' Cain read the letter twice before putting it down on the table. The letter came from a certain noble family of high rank within Alderim and based on what letter was written, Ciaphas Cain knows the person who wrote this as he met her during Grand Royal Ball a few months ago. "I''m going to be a father." The thunder shed, and lighting rumbled the sky as dark clouds gathered. Chapter 110: As a Father Chapter 110: As a Father William spent two weeks going over governing his newly founded country and territories. From assigning thends and cities to his battle-brother captains to expanding his diplomatic connection with neighboring countries, William had to adapt to his new role as leader of the nation. Of course, he have help from people around him as he didn''t possess all the solutions and answers to the problems. The Adeptus Mechanicus went full forge world mode as they mine and refined natural resources such as iron and other precious metal to their needs. From repairing the Imperial Knights to fabricating the STC blueprint that William obtained from the ''Mother,'' Admechs of the machine cults strip the necessary resources to prepare themselves and everyone for the uing ''Exiled Crusade.'' Lord Casten Ursarkar E. Creed and his senior officers didn''t take any break after the unification war aka the Peacekeeping. Of all things, the legendary suprememander of the Cadia decided to go beyond William''s request which was to build a military force strong enough to defend the Terranovis after their departure from the New World. Excluding the training of the natives with Imperium weapons and machines of war, Lord Creed decided to assign their basic and advanced to Catachans. Undermand of the Major Rat Hagin the Iron Bull, the new recruits of old and young went through hellish training beyond anyone''s imagination. Infamous Catachans jungle fighters are known for their bulky sizes and deadly reputation of being experts in jungle warfare. What normal people don''t know is that their status came with the superior ideal that no one is better than Catachan as a proper guardsman for the Imperium. From physical training, and hand-to-handbat to the advanced counter-insurgency to fight the overwhelming number of enemies, the Catachans made sure their experience and knowledge of warfare were drilled into the new recruits. In some sense, William''s order of building a strong military ended up creating New World''s version of Spartans where the one normal soldier of the Terranovis is equal to eight soldiers from other nations. Following the tradition of the Catachans, the new defenders of the Terranovis fashion themselves with a red bandanna and a big ass knife. Their weapons are mostlyposed of swords, shields, spears, etc, provided by Ademchs from their forges but the primary weapon of their choice is the Catachan Knives variant called Devil''s w. Four feet long des of pure steel and mercury, the knife delivers a powerful weapon swing and cut, even Orks view these des as best among the cutters. The Sisters of Battle also didn''t seat around while others made changes in the New World. Some of the sisters left the capital city to pursue the path of Wandering Sisters, who took an oath to deliver justice and cleanse away taint left by the forces of the Chaos and traitors. Taking only a few coins to provide for their basic needs, the Wandering Sisters travel alone or as small groups of two or three. In total, 20 sisters left the capital, and by the time of departure to the 40k universe, only five returned. The ones who never came back left their own footprint in the New World asdy justice or yers of the devilish monsters who saved the town fromplete destruction. As for the gears of war, they were never recovered and left to be forgotten in the hands of time. On the other hand, the remaining Sisters of Battle rebuilt their number through William''s unique ability to summon reinforcement and recruitment of orphan girls from various ces. No girls were left behind as Sisters took priority over gathering human girls and training them to be the next generation of the Sisters of Battle. More power armor and weapons of war were created from the Admech''s forges as Sisters increased their number from less than a hundred to nearly a thousand within a year. Commanding them on top of the Sisters of Battle Matriarchy is Rana Becketts, the Living Saint of the Emperor and Golden Lioness of the Holy Terra. Terranovis isn''t the perfect country as it is the first of its kind and requires massive resources to run it smoothly. This is where Alderim came to provide support for their new ally and diplomatic path with other nations instead of aplete blood bath. Through the agreement of giving the fortress and city within the border of the vampire to Countess Shaw in exchange for military supplies, Alderim managed to secure a powerful ally as well as a friend who wille to their aid whenever they need help. After William''s deration of war against Legan, many of the nobles of Alderim didn''t support the idea of having a connection with the rogue nation, but Crown Prince Benton had a different idea. Because of William''s training and trial he put on the crown prince, William''s entire chapter of the Space Marines and Astra Militarum recognize Prince Benton as their own. No amount of interference will break this bond as even the Catachans who made Prince Benton experience hell itself saw him as a fellow Catachan and gave him the Devil''s w. Alderim was the first to recognize Terranovis as a newly founded nation when no one had any idea what was going on. Even the adventurer''s guild wasn''t sure what to do but thanks to the help from Mia, the newly promoted senior guild advisor and link to the royal family, the guild from the Alderim decided to extend their hand to Terranovis and request to ce a new branch office in the new nation. When guilds such as adventurers request expansion of the branch offices, it brings others such as merchants and other minor guilds to join the trend. This usually means the opportunity to make new trade routes and bring more riches and goods to the people of all sides. What Terranovis need right now are raw materials and other resources to provide for the needs of its citizens. Through Alderim and the adventurer''s guild, the world trade is open to William as well as information on where certain artifacts might be as his quest to defeat the mother of all evil dragons continues. ---------------- "This paperwork is endless and there is no end to the meeting after meeting. I can see why Chapter Masters usually spend most of their time either in battle or fortress-monastery." William said to himself alone in his office while going over the document after document rted to the uing party. This wasn''t some fancy party for himself to enjoy but rather a party to show the might of the Terranovis to the foreign diplomats andwork with other nations. Of course, this was Rana and Crown Prince Benton''s idea as William didn''t know where to begin with. The invitation was already sent to many people within Alderim and other countries including various VIPs from organizations such as guilds and influential people of certain ranks within noble families. The date of the party is set for next month and because of this, the entire fortress went into preparation mode which many of the servants and staff work day and night to make the party as grand as possible. William invites his battle brothers and officers of his military rank to join the party. The brothers within a rank are also wee to join but some of the new blood which is Space Marines who were summoned directly without the background of previous chapters had a different idea. Few of the ones within the Chapter of cksouls decided to take a path simr to William''s earlier journey. This brought new problems for William as it could bring more trouble for him than good but at the same time, the new battle brothers of the cksouls have moremon sense when ites to logic unlike certain Space Marines Chapters (Space Wolves and Dark Angels). William approve of this new idea but limited it to four Space Marines sending an entirepany of Space Marines could start another war on a global scale. Unknown to everyone, this benefited the young cksouls Astartes as their outside experience open their views on the world outside of the 40k universe. There is also an increase in the Astartes'' weapons and arsenals as the more they kill, the more weapons and unique ammunition were gifted to them. The chosen four cksouls received William''s blessings and advice and went on different paths as each of them intend to return with epic stories and trophies. Their first enemy, a horde of goblins within Terranovis and beyond. "Chapter Master, Lord Commissar Cain is here. He is requesting to meet you right away. He said it is an urgent matter." One of William''s personnel informed the Chapter Master through a vox machine and hearing this William decided to take a break from political and governing matters for a few minutes. ''Probably came to me asking if I ning on recalling him back to active duty.'' William thought to himself and giggled a little, thinking if he should send Cain and his trusty aide on a mission to retrieve the legendary dragon masks. With Cain''s luck, he might end up killing the damn dragon queen right after sleeping with her. "I have time for the Hero of the Imperium, please send him in," William replies back and waits for the hero to enter his office. William isn''t wearing his terminator armor as it is currently under maintenance and in process of engraving fallen royal guards'' names. William is also certain that his armor is possibly in a researchb while Admechs are scratching their head trying to figure out how the machine works. William is currently wearing Astarte''s robes with his chapter colors as he is not in anybat but he is always armed as his inventory is full of weapons and enough ammunition to level the hive city. Once, William decided to look into his inventory and had to give up as certain weapons in his inventory turn out to be scarier than the ones he had been using. One that caught his attention was a grenade capable of creating a small ck hole and he has hundreds of them in his inventory. (Mind you, this is just a hand grenade. Imagine enemies William has in so far and obtain weapons from the Age of Technology.) After a few moments, Cain the Hero of the Imperium entered William''s office. In his hand, Cain was carrying arge bottle of Dwarf''s ale as William prefers the taste of the ale than being poisoned literally, again. "What brought you here Lord Commissar? Don''t tell me you want to return back to the frontline in the name of the Emperor." William stands up and gestures for Cain to take sit on the couch and moves himself to sit on the opposite side where the table is in the center. "About that Lord William, I came here for a different reason and I''m not sure how you will react after hearing what I have to say." Cain opens the bottle of ale and pours the drinks onto the goblets. The smell of the Dwarf ale hit William''s nose and he couldn''t tell what kind of ingredients were used to brew this one but it was pleasant. "Ok, tell me what is killing you. I can clearly see something is bothering you and I know you Ciaphas, whatever it is I will do in my power to help you." Grabbing therge goblet, William insure the Lord Commissar and drank the ale. The taste was incredible and William is certain that enough of this drink will fill the men''s belly without feeding the actual meal as ale itself will be enough. Hearing Chapter Master using his given name and not his title, Cain rxed a little and pull out a letter from hismissar coat. The same letter informing Cain regarding his daughter and nobledy who is currently bearing his child will be attending the party next month. "I found out yesterday that I''m going to be a father and I want you to remove her existence in the record once she is born. As amissar, I know I must ce her on the path of the service to the golden throne but as a father, I want her to stay here in the New World after we leave this world." Chapter 111: Legend of Eleanor Rose Cain Chapter 111: Legend of Eleanor Rose Cain Life in the Imperium is tragic. An average person''s life is to serve the Golden Throne and the Imperium which it will be through the service through military or working tirelessly in some kind of industry. For example, the forge worlds are known for their endless shift of workforces working in the forges to build instruments and machines of war. Because of demand and quotas that must meet in a short time, the forge worlds are notorious for¡­ hazardous work environments andck of safety regtions. To the Adeptus Mechanicus, they don''t mind thisck of safety rules as long as the forges are melting irons and steel, even if some people end up mixing within in the end. To feed the billions and billions of people in the million worlds, the Imperium uses multiple ways to supply food. To manage this, the entire can be used for the dedication of production of agricultural products, Imperium calls theses, Agri-World. The entire is converted to giant farms or open oceans to catch sea animals. The harvest happens every day in some parts of the and if workers aren''t careful, they might end up bing the very food that citizens of the Imperium consume. The Hive City is one of the most recognizable parts of the if you are visiting as giant structure pieces the very sky and continent size city are cramped together like fused cities in one. Life in the hive is simple, the higher you climb the cityyer, the better life you will have as long as you don''t end up dead or backstabbed. The lowest part of the city is nothing but crimes and mutants who exile from society while some parts of the city are so popted that sections of the city are reduced to industrial wastnds covered in toxic wastes and so harsh that nothing grows. Of all the worlds, not all worlds are dedicated to production and industries. The Pleasure World is well¡­ an entire focusing on the creation of cultures such as art, music, and other kinds of entertainment. Think of a world like Earth that has hundreds of thousands of entertainment, restaurants, casinos, etc, for a price. Because Pleasure World is where only the rich and powerful individuals can enjoy what the can provide. But because of this, humanity who participate will end up tasting deprave experiences and ultimately end up bing part of the Chaos Cults dedicated to anesh. In the end, no matter where you are, as a citizen of the Imperium, there is no safe ce to go back or to find. The greatest resources of the Imperium aren''t the''s natural resources or endless supplies for the wars, it''s people. The very same people who believe in the faith in the Emperor and are willing to wield thesgun to fight the living horror of the 40k universe or work 20 hours shift every day in the harshest working conditions. That is the universe where single life isn''t precious but rather a number within billions within some Administratum clerk''s notebook. A quote: "Forget the power of technology, science, andmon humanity. Forget the promise of progress and understanding, for there is no peace amongst the stars, only an eternity of carnage and ughter and theughter of thirsting gods." Dan At -------------------- "Are you sure about this? Ciaphas, once we leave this New World, we will nevere back ever again. That also means you will never see your child, forever." William put his goblet down and said to Lord Commissar who remained quiet until William finish his sentence. Cain, for once knew he is not making a mistake or bad decision. Long before, the idea of bringing a child of his own into the Imperium is eptable as he and others understand the risk and demand within Imperium. Now, Cain has a choice and he chooses to leave behind his flesh and blood in the world where it is much safer (To Cain this world is practically a paradise and peaceful). "I''m certain my lord. I want my child to stay here and be part of the native of this world. I know it is a most selfish requesting from me but this is my wish." Cain said to William while holding back his tears as he knew he is risking everything including his reputation as a selfless hero of the Imperium. For once, Cain has someone he is willing to fight for and he is willing to put everything on the table. "Who will take care of teh child? What about the mother of the child?" William said with curiosity. "Well, about that. ording to her letter, she wille next month to part take in the party you are throwing. After the party is over, she will stay until she delivers the baby, but afterward, she will return to her family estate and want nothing to do with the child or me." Cain answered and drink his own goblet to wash the pain in his chest. "You are kidding me, right? How can she do that? Nothing to do with a child she is bringing to this world?" William said out loud his own thoughts without realizing it as he is shocked. ''Is it because Cain isn''t noble? Or is it because thedy isn''t married and bearing a child from someone she met during the royal party?'' William thought of multiple ideas why mother of the Cain''s child decided to cut any ties with the child and Cain. "Her reasoning for cutting all ties is because of her family and status as a nobledy. She wants to keep all the affairs a secret so she can in the future marry a proper noble house for benefit of the two houses. As for my status as Lord Commissar, it seems it doesn''t matter since I''m serving you and you have some reputation among our allies." Cain said to William with thest part quietly as possible but thest part didn''t escape William''s ears as his enhanced superhuman ability catch everything. "What do you mean I have a reputation?" William said slowly and pour another drink on his goblet. "ording to the letter, you have some negative reputation among the lesser nobles as¡­ well, a renegade. No, a cmitous person who brings cmity to the nobles." Cain carefully chooses his words and exins to William why certain nobles who are allied to Crown Prince Benton still hold uneasiness towards William. To the native nobles, William is a strange and abnormal mercenary who appeared out of nowhere and start making havoc in a matter of few months. From ying vampire lords to dering war with an army of mercenaries, William made one hell of an appearance and made name for himself as a Knight Lord of the Metal and a Mercenary King. In all honesty, William did single handily conquer the whole country and managed to remove allpetition to ensure his status as the ruler. In the eyes of the nobles and peasants, William is a walking nightmare of destroying normalcy, and this holds a certain reputation within the poption, no matter if it is positive or negative. Cutting it short, William is a troublemaker for the natives of this New World. "A cmity. I didn''t expect that from nobles but I did smack a few in the head and there are consequences for every action I take." William said to Cain, but it was more for himself as he reflect on his past actions and understand that he did make a few impressions that couldbel him negatively. "So, that is the reason why the mother of my child decided to cut all ties. She will be staying with me until the baby is delivered and I hope I can change her mind but considering her exnation, it is possible that she wants the baby to stay clear of the nobles'' political drama. One thing I know of nobles is that no matter where they are from, the political and mind game to gain power and wealth overstep the unity of the family bond." Cain''s words have some sense as his years of experience with nobles of the Imperium gave Cain an insight into the world of nobility. From noble houses to the world governor of the, Cain met them all and have amon conclusion about them. Nobles are self-serving individuals who won''t mind stabbing anyone close to them as long as he or she can take the position of power. So many times Astra Militarum got involved with the defense of the Xenos invasion or incursion of the Chaos forces that started with a political gain scheme. Each time, Cain had to step up and save their noble asses when it could have been prevented if all noble houses unite as one force instead of fighting each other for the position of power. "You have some sense of her reasoning but when she arrives, I would like to meet this youngdy and ask her in person. You are my Lord Commissar, Ciaphas Cain. You need to be 100% ready to face the enemies of the Emperor and I can''t have you distracted with some family drama. This matter will be kept secret and anyone who is involved in this matter including the well-being of the child will remain secret." William made a promise to the Lord Commissar and was about to end the meeting when something popped into his mind. "Oh by the way, about the child''s well-being. What will you leave behind in case the child isn''t old enough to remember you?" "I actually thought about that, my lord. I will leave my estates including my business to the child. I will also add a few personal items to make sure she knows about me and my reasoning. I thought of leaving a vox recorder so she can hear my voice as well." Cain exined to William and put out a small notebook-sized metal box. William recognized it right away. It was the 40k equivalent of a voice recorder which William thought he can do better as he want Cain to leave more than his voice. William got up and went to his table, pulling something out from the drawer, William handed it to Cain. epting it without question, Cain examed the item he was given and saw a ne pendant the size of a thumb. The ne has a golden chain and is made to be durable but not big enough to strangle a person''s neck. The main piece of the pendant is a rectangle shape and has the symbol of the Imperium engraved, the Ptine Aqu, a two-headed eagle sigil. "My lord, are you sure you want to give me such an item? I can take this from you." "Cain, shut up and open the pendant. You will understand." William said to Cain Hearing William''s instruction, Cain open the pendant''s secretpartment and found something interesting. The cover of the pendant can be used as a picture holder but the main body of the pendant has a small built-in hologram projector. In short, this pendant is a memento and secret message recorder for a family or loved one. "My lord?" Cain have no words to say after that as he was still processing the situation. William sat down and drank his goblet and exin the item Cain is holding. It was quite simple as he originally intended to give it to Rana but since he can make another one through STC fabricator, it was no loss to him. "That my friend you are holding is my gift to you for delivering fantastic news to me. You can take the picture when the baby is delivered and record the message to your child when he or she is ready to hear the truth and see your actual face. ept my gift to you, that is an order." William pour thest drink and drank the whole thing in one motion. "Thank you, my lord. I will make sure to record the message and set everything beforeing of my child." Cain stands up and salutes the Lord Imperator Fratrum in gratitude for the gift William gave to him. To be able to leave the voice for the child to hear is a wonderful gift for him and the child. "By the way, how long can I record the message? Do you know?" Cain asks with curiosity as he assumes it is a small capability to hold the message due to its size. "Oh, that? ording to the STC instruction, that thing can hold approximately 50 hours'' worth of messages also the best part is that pendant is capable of self-recharging and repairing, so don''t worry about breaking or losing power for the next 50 years. -------------------- 7 Months Later, Ciaphas Cain, William, Rana, and a few selected members of the Admechs wee the baby girl to the New World. With the agreement between Cain and hisdy friend, they decided to name the baby girl Eleanor Rose Cain. Keeping Cain''sst name, Eleanor is born with Cain''s eyes and strength as her cry was strong the moment she was born. After a few weeks of rest, the mother of Eleanor left the Terranovis and never heard from again. At the moment of departure, the nobledy held the baby for thest time and felt the despair of leaving the baby girl but for unknown reasons, she gather enough strength to leave the baby in the care of Cain''s hands. Cain left all his wealth and estate to his girl, including his tavern which became a linchpin of the growingmunity. Aside from property and riches, Cain alsomissioned a few items for his girl to have when she is all grown up. This includes a crimson scarf of the Commissariat, a ck undercoat, a custom Mastercraft power sword (With a rechargeable power generator), and a few other items that could help in case of emergency. Also, by the order of William, Eleanor received a nanomachine injection to enhance her as she grow. These machines don''t have AI but have the ability and instruction to help the baby''s growth progress and ensure her survivability in the future. Unknown to everyone including William, the nano injection worked too well as its original purpose was to create a superhuman soldier capable of performing top human condition and peak. Ultimately, by the time Eleanor reached the age of 18, she was already a warrior and leader in her own right as she serve themunity within her ability. After receiving Cain''s written will from her uncle, King Benton (Formerly a crown prince Benton), Eleanor inherited everything that was Cain''s and learn the true purpose of the ne she had been wearing since her first birthday. After opening the pendant and watching the first recording, Eleanor learns the harsh truth about why her father left her and was never to be seen again as his destiny was to be the empire she could never reach. Aside from the heartfelt messages and a few small appearances of Jurgen asking Cain if he is interested in Tanna tea, Eleanor found therge number of training video recordings Cain left behind. Mostly involving swordbat, military strategy, etc. From these videos and guidance from Cain, Eleanor''s ability and power increased to the next level, surpassing seasoned leaders and warriors. Ultimately, Eleanor left the former capital city of Terranovis to find her own path and destiny just like her father did. Wearing her father''s crimson scarf and a ck undercoat of the Commissariat, she became a famous explorer, most popr dance/singer, warrior, a general of a liberation force, schr, and much much more. By the time Eleanor returned back home, she became a legend and a hero as her tales and adventures were written and published in many books for all to read. To this day, in Cain''s Finest, Eleanor''s full portrait stands next to her father''s as her red long hairy over her left shoulder, wearing a famous crimson scarf and ck undercoat while cing her legendary sword down with two hands on the pommel, posing as great leader and daughter of the Hero of the unknown empire beyond the stars. Chapter 112: Arrival of Alderim Chapter 112: Arrival of Alderim "Diplomacy is the ability to tell someone to go to hell in such a way that they look forward to the trip." - Sir Winston Churchill, British Prime Minister and 8 days before the party, Crown Prince Benton and his party arrived on Terranovis ahead of the schedule. As an ally of the new government and personal friend of the ruling leader of the giant figure within giants, Prince Benton''s status dramatically changed. From a childish and immature leader to aposed leader, Prince Benton''s calction to support the band of mercenaries changed everything afterward. At the political level, many of the nobles position themselves in a neutral switch to supporting the royal family after news of William''s victory arrives at Alderim. This resulted in Prince Benton taking major control of the political influence as well as gaining a positive position on his step close to the crown. The Alderim itself managed to take one deep breath when news of the Legen have fallen. Due to years of war and conflict, the destruction of the enemy nation gave peace of mind to everyone including veterans and widows of the old war. Of course, this onlysted a few days as regr folks moved on to their normal life but the knowledge that a hostile nation is no more removed the weight from everyone''s shoulders. On the level of nobles within Alderim, there is still a division within. Half of the nobles who supported Prince Benton and the royal family gained arge amount of influence while those who didn''t lost the opportunity and power. Not to mention the suspicion of William and his newly founded nation wasn''t something the nobles were happy about as it became the greatest threat to them. It makes sense as William possesses the most powerful military force in the world and is capable of destroying it if he wanted. The news of the victory was somewhat exaggerated but that is how news traveled, from person to person. From the massive army of giant knights to a walking cathedral and flying chariots, the story is unbelievable to many but those who witness the Terranovis swear it on their god''s name. (Note: William didn''t summon the ships from the inventory since he still needs to figure out how to return to 40k. Also, there are a lot of mouths to feed if he summoned them.) Lastly, the news of Rana Bassilo Beckett''s resurrection shook the religious side. Aside from the family''s horror and relief which prevented the head of the Beckett family from assembling the military at William''s fortress, the religion of the New World became moreplex. The night Rana came back as a Living Saint, the world''s boundary of divinity changed as a native of the New World became a servant of the foreign deity who wasn''t supposed to be here at all. Through Rana, Star Child gains more strong position within the New World and didn''t have to worry about losing reserve power, unlike the four Chaos gods who failed. The native deities made exceptions to Rana''s conversion but made clear to Star Child that there will be no more converting of natives. The party that came with Prince Benton wasrge number as Prince Benton brought 150 knights from the Order of ck mes and 300 soldiers. Leading the knights and soldiers are newly promoted Knight Commander Sir Robert Dolven, elder son of Sir Dolven who previously fallen in the battle against Chaos Warband near Greenhill. Next to Crown Prince is the guild representative Mia and a group of officials from different guilds. Mia came to act and represent the adventurer''s guild and negotiate the establishment of the new branch within Terranovis. The final word will be determined by William and since Mia knows William, the masters of major guilds decided to send her as head representative. With them, they brought supplies and materials wagons to ease up the negotiation. Many of the nobles came with Crown Prince including Rana''s family and nobles who support the Crown Prince. Many came to Terranovis to confirm the rumor for themselves and the moment they entered the capital, they saw how wrong they are. The weing ceremony of Prince Benton was assembled with arge number of Mordian Iron Guard lining up with their weapons up and discipline that could intimidate the individuals who bear harmful thoughts towards the new nation. After Iron Guards stood Death Korps of Krieg and their signature gas masks. Since they had no need to use the artillery, Lord Creed decided to use Krieg''s intimidating nature to its full effect by cing them at the end of the Astra Militarum formation. Because of capital security, the full number wasn''t assembled but it was enough for who difference in power of the military forces. Standing behind the entire formation of the Astra Militarum are groups of Imperial knights and Titans. To the left stood the Knights of the Freedes while the right side has Warlord Titans positioning themselves to block the very sunlight. Finally, the Imperator ss Titan, the avatar of the Machine God stood in front of the entrance to the Fortress Monastery. At first many including Prince Benton thought the Imperator ss Titan was some kind of majestic statue but when the upper body lowered itself to look at the party, everyone freaked out and some even cried due to sheer fear of death in real life. Entering through the main entrance, the Legion of cksouls assembled in the line of formation with bolters in front of them. The Space Marines are fully equipped with power armor but what got everyone''s attention was their helmet. Glowing with blue from their visor, the cksouls Space Marines raise their bolters and gave salutes with their weapon the moment the first captain of the firstpany gave themand. After passing the formation of the Space Marines, the edge of the stairs was held by the captains of eachpany with their g bearers standing behind them to represent eachpany. On top of the stairs stood William and Rana, the two most powerful people in the Terranovis. Rana is wearing her Living Sain armor while William is equipped with his terminator armor. Standing behind the edge of the power couple is Lord Casten Ursarkar E. Creed who oversaw the whole thing and listen to every report through his vox earpiece. The overall appearance showed the power and might of the Terranovis that which no one in this world has ever seen before. -------------- "Wee to Terranovis, Crown Prince." William greets Prince Benton with his right hand out to give a handshake. "Thank you, Lord William and it is good to see everyone once again." Taking William''s hand, Prince Benton shook and ept the hospitality of his friend. The entire city cheers as citizens of the new nation wee the delegation of the neighboring country with flower petals thrown in the air. Seeing the handshake from the two leaders and timing it right, Lord Creed signal the pilots of the Thunderhawks to fly over the capital. With the sound of a whoosh, the nobles saw flying metal creatures flying over the fortress and leaving the white trail. Every noble and delegate couldn''t close their mouths after witnessing the capability that William possessed as well as the grand weing. Still, there is one person who reserved herself as she was more focused on what she could gain from this event, including the new alliance between Alderim and Terranovis. Lady Gabrie Van Shaw, the daughter of Countess Shaw and Great Analyst of the Northern Fox covered her mouth with her fan as she smiled as she follow the rest of the nobles and entered the fortress. -------------- For most of the day, William and Prince Benton met with each other to negotiate how two nations will respect each other and assist if others require help. On the surface, this was the natural and proper procedure to sign the treaty between nations but secretly, William requested Prince Benton to take over the Terrnovis once he and his men leave the New World. At this point, William has just enough ships to leave the New World. The problem is how to leave the New World and jump into the 40k universe as William doesn''t know the way or path. Not to mention remembering the Star Child''s order on ying the Mother of All Evil Dragons isn''t aplished yet. William could guess this final request from the Emperor''s fragment is the final piece of the puzzle on how to leave this ce and be able to travel through space. Still, The matter of leaving his people who are native to this world concerned William. For this reason, William decided to sign the secret deration to pass post-Terranovis to Prince Benton to ensure the people have the leadership they need to continue. Prince Benton epts William''s request with an additional condition which is watching over Lord Commissar Cain''s child. This will ensure the safety of Cain''s child but also make sure no one will take the advantage of the child once he or she is ready to receive the gift from Cain. Meanwhile, Rana''s family reunites with their now Living Saint once again and took their time to ask questions. The news of the religious miracle is rather umon overall as divinity is somewhat active in the world of magic and sword but actually having a family member bing one is rather rare. Rana did her best to answer the questions and demonstrate her new position to her father and family. That, of course, eases the tension but the problem once rise when Rana''s mother saw bits and small clues that Rana showed without realizing. After time passes, Rana''s mother, Lady Beckett asks her daughter to sit with her privately to have a mother-and-daughter moment. Following her mother''s request, Rana''s family members left the room including the Sisters of Battle who were acting as maids in secret. Even though Rana rejected the idea of having the Sisters next to her, the new Sister Superior forced Rana to have maids just in case as typical Sisters are above paranoid ( And yes, maids did have weapons on them just in case). "Rana, my dear. I can see you changed thest time I saw you but you can''t hide from your mother''s eyes." Said Lady Beckett as she ce her teacup down and look at her daughter. "What do you mean, mother?" Rana genuinely said to her mother as she didn''t know what she meant. "Don''t you know? A clear sign of sensitivity to smell when you predict what kind of meal your maids brought. Your craving for certain types of desserts and the sudden change of temperature you felt when you shivered in the middle of a conversation. Those are early signs of pregnancy, my daughter." "WHAT!" Hearing the shocking news, Rana paused for a few seconds before shouting with surprise. "I''m guessing your change of physical body might have dyed the few signs but a woman''s body doesn''t lie no matter how changed it is. So, does Lord William know of this news?" Lady Beckett smiled but Rana is still processing the news as she didn''t consider the possibility at all. Seeing the reaction, Lady Beckett ced her hand on Rana''s and begin tofort the Living Saint. The news reminds secret until the night of the party and this event results in a path that William didn''t expect to take. Chapter 113: The Northern Fox Chapter 113: The Northern Fox 2 Days before the party, Lady Gabrie Van Shaw entered William''s office after three long days on the waitlist. Because of William''s position of power and multiple requests from the high-ranking people, low lever noblewomen such as Lady Shaw had to wait longer than usual. Still, considering the long list of people and some don''t get the opportunity to meet the Chapter Master, Lady Shaw was fortunate enough to meet the man who Rana kept secret a few months ago at the royal party. "Lady Shaw, it is good to finally meet you in person. I assume your mother is busy with the expansion of her territory?" Said William, who extend his hand to show the way to the seat opposite to his own. "Thank you, Lord William. As you asked, my mother is busy establishing the city and fortress to make sure no vampire would dare to attack again. This is also the reason why I requested to meet you. To renegotiate our deal since circumstances have changed." Gabrie said and sat down. Secondster, a young man with a butler''s uniform came with a cart full of tea and snack came in. Unknown to Gabrie, William pushed the button on his table to call in his personal butler. Of course, the butler isn''t a member of his battle brother or Chapter Serf (Since there is no need to recruit new Astartes as William can simply summon fully active members of the cksouls). The butler ced drinks and snacks down on the table and left the room with his empty cart. With everything ced, William pour two cups of tea and gave one to Gabrie while taking his own to enjoy the scent. Due to his own biology of superhuman, anything of normal human food isn''t much for him or his battle brothers. Each chapter of the Astartes has a special diet they must go through to maintain their calorie intake. Chapters such as Space Wolves have a feast of Vikings and ales whenever they desire which is every day. The Blood Angel on the other hand mixes their wines with blood to subdue the thirst for a long period of time. If normal humans attempt to consume the food meant for the Astartes, they might end up unable to digest the food itself or die in overconsumption of the food as it is high in calories. For this reason, whenever Space Marines eat with humans during certain events or situations, they are eating empty calories as it is not enough to sustain them or give back the energy they are burning naturally. "Thank you." Gabrie took the cup and wait a few seconds to adjust to the temperature. The scent of the tea was unusual and the tea itself require a certain taste to it but it was enough for her to ept the hospitality of the Chapter Master. "The tea is¡­ unique," Gabrie said and ce down the cup as tea wasn''t for her taste. "Yes, the tea is called Tanna and I start drinking this due to certain someone. Anyway, let us get to our business. What do you propose on the new term of our deal?" William swift his position of power as he went into business mode. Previously, the deal between William and Countess Shaw was done by Rana but now as leader of the country, the responsibility went to William who is the sole leader of the powerful nation. "We like to maintain the current deal but want to add a few more to bnce the equal trade since you have ways to provide goods now. Before, Shaws had been providing building materials and war resources in exchange for a city and fortress. Now, with these changes, we can have trade and maintain an equal share of the profits without one giving up thend." Gabrie mentions the previous condition of the deal as well as a few of the modifications to let William know what to expect. After hearing Gabrie''s summary of the new deal, William request Gabrie if she have the hard copy of the papers which she provided. After going over a few pages, William ce the papers down and told Gabrie that he will go over them with his advisors. On political terms, William won''t be the one who will read it but rather his team ofwyers and politicians within the administration level. "I will wait for your answer hopefully after the party. I do have one more but this is more of a request than a condition of the new deal." "Please, tell me what it is and I will do what I can in my power to help." Said William as he grab his side of the snack and ate a few without worrying about appearance. When men of his size are hungry, there is nothing that could stop him and the image is thest thing William is currently is worry about as his primary goal is to find the information about Tiamat (Queen of all chromatic dragons, not the hive fleet). "The fortress is a key location as it is the bottleneck of the vampire invasion but it is not enough. You personally led the men to retake the fort and managed to take out one of the major vampire lords. The problem is the vacuum of power and ording to my report from the intel, other lords are currently reestablishing the power structure." Gabrie continued. "The problem is when they all decided to attack the fortress to take revenge for their current situation. I humbly request your aid to take out the hostile forces before they regain their footing once more." Thest statement wasn''t asking for his help to defend but rather to take out the entire faction before they be a problem once more. William fully understands the potential issue that the vampire faction can bring as their endless army of undead and monsters could overwhelm the fortress''s defense. "Unfortunately, I can''t leave the capital as I have many responsibilities. Still, since Countess Shaw is the only trade partner who agreed to help me during my time of need, I will send thepany of my battle brothers to end the root of this vampire headache once and for all." William then wrote something down in his notepad with his finger and close the cover when he was done. What William did was an official request from the Chapter Master to assemble one of thepany''s captains to discuss the matter as well as if captain''s rmendation or advice. While hearing Gabrie''s request, William considered which battle brotherpany to send. Obviously, William decided to send thepany of former Blood Angels as their expertise in blood and vampirism will give a certain advantage against actual vampires. Also, it is kinda interesting setting to send Space Vampire against fantasy vampires. When William meets thepany captain, they will discuss battle tactics as well as William''s experience during the taking of the fortress to understand the enemy. The wholepany won''t be sent in to take out the vampires but considering there are multiple lords and minor lords within vampire factions, William might end up sending most of thepany to wipe them outpletely. ''Never finish the job half done.'' William thought to himself and turn his gaze back to Gabrie who he sensed something was off. Instead of relief at William easily epting the request, Lady Shaw seems disappointed and a bit upset. "Are you alright, Lady Shaw? Were you expecting some kind ofplex negotiation and challenges? Don''t worry, my battle brothers will be more than enough to handle this matter without additional forces from your territory." William reassures Gabrie as he mistook her difort and upset behavior for a number of his battle brothers William is willing to send. Apany of Space Marines is a total of 100. In a normal situation where conquering a country sizend, usually takes an army of tens of thousands of soldiers to aplish this. For Space Marines, Some say a squad of Space Marines can change the tide of battle while an entire chapter can swift the war entirely. Sending 100 Space Marines to take out fantasy vampires should be more than enough to wipe them from the map. "No, it''s just that you ept the request without hesitation or second thought. Considering it is another major conflict, wouldn''t you consider leading your brothers personally in the field? I''m sure my mother would feel morefortable if you do." Gabrie said, hoping to have William join the uing war against the undead faction. William felt something was off as he sensed there is something more going on in the dark. Feeling this matter requires more investigation and information, William decided to stay with his decision until he can learn more. "I can assure you, apany of my battle brothers can resolve this matter without my presence. Now, if we are done, I have more appointments and people to meet. I will have my answer for the new deal by the day after the party." William pressed another button and one of the royal guards entered the door to escortdy Shaw out. Gabrie left William''s office without hesitation and left as the royal guard followed her. With the guest gone, William recalls the butler to clear the snacks while he himself review the paperwork left by Lady Shaw. William isn''t much of a diplomat or trade negotiator but he has excellent memory in which he memorizes the entire 20 pages of a document in less than 20 minutes. ''Doesn''t look like to have any intention to harm the deal or give one side an advantage but something is telling me something is wrong.'' William closed the document and finish his Tanna tea. The taste indeed requires certain adjustments to enjoy it but William didn''t mind as it reminded him of home back on Earth. "Bring in the next appointment. Also, send in more Tanna tea." William pressed another button to let the royal guard know and ready himself to be diplomatic. ------------------- Gabrie was escorted out from William''s office by the alone royal guard. When they reached the main exit, the guard gave a simple salute and return to his position, leaving Gabrie. ''That didn''t go as I wanted,'' Gabrie thought to herself and start to walk. By the time she reach her room, it waste afternoon as dinner will be served within a few minutes. Wanting to refresh before attending the dinner with the rest of the delegates, Gabrie enters her room and locks it with a sign hanging outside not to disturb her. Just as she was about to undress, she suddenly felt a presence in the room and immediately fall back to the corner of the bed where her weapon was hidden. Before she could reach for the weapon to defend herself against an unknown intruder, a voice spoke like a whisper in which she stopped, recognizing the voice and its owner. "You should hide your de more carefully. It took me only a few minutes to find the de under the bed and other four more within this room." A man in the shadow of the room said and toss the long thin de towards Gabrie''s feet whichnded not too far away but far enough for her to reach for it. "What are you doing here? I thought I told you I can handle this matter by myself." Said, Gabrie as she just stood still peaking on the de from the edge of her eyes. She knows the man well enough that she can''t win against him in a fight but as her mother''s daughter, she won''t make it easy for him to take her life without a fight. "I know what you said and I don''t care. You were supposed to convince the Chapter Master to start another conflict in which he should participate personally. I had expectations from you." The man in the shadow said and step out with each step giving a heavy sound as his armor weight in. The dark blue with silver and green armor emerges from the shadow, towering at Gabrie''s height. Gabrie has no idea how this man managed to walk about without anyone noticing him or his massive armor but one thing is certain, he is a man rted to Wiliam and his kin as he possesses simr weapons and armor. The giant man stopped a few feets from her and took his helmet off, showing her his face which surprised how young the man was. Bald and handsome but somehow forgettable after not seeing the man for a day, the giant man put his helmet next to his left arm and gave Gabrie a small metal box. "This will help you convince if you wish to. Once our deal is over, I will have my men release your mother and the rest of the family. I swear by my honor." Said the man. "What is this?" Gabrie said as she hesitate to ept the small metal box. "A solution to yours and mine, if you desire to use it." "How do I know after all this you will keep your end of the deal?" Gabrie finally epts the box and put it in her purse to keep it safe. "Because my name is Alpharius and I always keep my end of the bargain. You bring the Chapter Master out of this fortress and you will have your family back." Alpharius put his helmet back on and left the room without care. When Gabrie followed him a secondter to see where the man left, she saw no one as a man named Alpharius simply vanished. ''Very strange and he can''t be trusted.'' Gabrie thought to herself and close the door, this time making sure no one else is in her room, she checked the metal box carefully. After finding a small button, Gabrie heard a voice she recognized from the box. The voice of Rana Bassilo Beckett, the Lioness of Argus, and her mother. Chapter 114: The Party Chapter 114: The Party Night of the Party, The party started with a bang as members of the Astra Militarum disy their capabilities and weapons of war. After the performance and machines flying over the sky, the member of the Mechanicus plugs a few wires and brightens the entire fortress and the city itself. Many political delegations and nobles were blown away by the lights while few were frightened by the sheer power and ability. Members of dwarfs diplomats possess simr technology butpare to Mechanicus, the difference is massive. Many human diplomats from different nations changed their minds the moment they saw the military power of the Astra Militarum. At first, their objective was to take advantage or see what kind of faction Terranovis will be as Legen lost their reputation and status after losing the war with Alderim. Now, seeing the potential and possibly a powerful ally, all of the diplomats are eager to meet William who isn''t a king but a leader of the entire nation as its master. For the Elf delegation, the power of the machines impressed them but in the matter of power source. Talking to the Magos of the Mechanicus, the power source itself is advanced beyond the Elf representative''s understanding and beyond magic itself. In the end, the idea of trading pieces of knowledge didn''t work out as Mechanicus didn''t use magic and Elfs doesn''t have the level of forges or machinery. After the disy of the Astra Militarum and Mechanicus, everyone was escorted inside to enjoy the refreshments and given a moment to talk among each other. Of course, Crown Prince Benton present himself with other foreign nobles and royals as a personal friend of William. Because William is known only through rumors and stories through bards'' music, many from farnds don''t know or fully understand William''s aplishments. For this reason, Crown Prince gathered a quiterge number of people who wants to know about William before meeting him in person. For the past few days, William had meetings with various people from nation to nation as well as royals. But due to limited time and arge number of people, many didn''t get to see him in person. Those who didn''t meet him in person only know how he looks thanks to the portraits which many assume is an exaggeration due to the unbelievable tale it tells through painting. A few minutester, the announcer of the party stomps the golden staff three times on the marble floor to gather everyone''s attention. The loud but clear banging of the golden staff immediately got everyone''s attention as it was a signal of most importance. William''s royal entry to the party. "Ladies and gentlemen of the highest position, may I present the Chapter Master of the cksouls, the Knight Lord of the Metal, and the God Emperor of Mankind''s Chosen. Chapter Master William Nullinanis. With him, the Lioness of Argus, The Living Saint of the God-Emperor, and the living symbol of the Sisters of Battle, St. Rana Bassilo Beckett." With a booming voice, the golden doors opened wide from the second floor and two giant beings of great power entered the ballroom. Wearing a golden and red dress, Rana entered the room with her right hand around William''s left hand. Her beauty caught the attention at first nce as her elegance and beauty shone throughout the entire room (Also having a golden halo helps). Aside from her enchanting beauty, her physical appearance also matched Rana''s face as her tone muscle and height gave an aura of power with a mix of female warrior charm. Walking next to Rana, William also entered the room with his formal clothes tailored for his size. On his is the power sword he received from his first captain who personally forged the sword in the honor of William and his position as the Chapter Master. Unlike his previous sword which was ck Temr''s ck sword, this one was forged by the former member of the Smanders and crafted at the end with STC technology. The sword was given a name after the great fire drake, Novros the Hearth of the Fire. The sword wasn''t the only thing William received. Each captain of the former chapter gifted William with their own respected chapters of the old. ----- The first captain (Former Smanders) gifted William the power sword that burns red when activated. The second captain (Former Imperial Fists) gave a golden crown that generates a temporary power shield to protect William from ambush. The third captain (Former Blood Angels) gave a belt with three rubies made from in hydra hide. The fourth captain (Former Ultramarines) gave William the ring made out of the blue sapphire that has an emblem of the cksouls. The ring can generate a short-range pulse that can knock out hostile unconscious as well as machines. The fifth captain (Former Space Wolves) gave Viking-style fur cape using a in beast from the New World. The cape gives protection from the elements and is tough enough to withstand standard weapons such as des. ----- William''s height and size above everyone else intimidated every guest as they didn''t expect him to be so tall and big. William''s hand is big enough to lift a full-grown man and he is strong enough to rip a man in half with sheer strength. The aura he gives off is also different from Rana as his presence is something else. Due to his nk ability, William can make people ufortable but thanks to his mastery, he has total control. Because of this, people around William sense nothingness and sometimes lose track of his very presence. Think of someone who suddenly appears and the moment you see that person, you are caught off guard and surprised. That is William if he wanted to be and this became a problem if he felt wanting to prank people including Astartes and Sisters of Battle. It came to a point where the captain of the honor guard wanted to put a bell on William''s belt so they can track him without putting a tracker. Thanks to Rana, William received full attention as he walk down the stairs. When the two finally reached the end, William spoke with the voice of authority in a moderate tone to wee the guests. "I wee you all to Terranovis. As you may know, my name is William the Chapter Master of the Legion of the cksouls and I hope we can establish a friendship tonight that could benefit everyone in the future. Now, please enjoy your night, and please be respectful to others." William said to everyone and node to head servant. The head servant with a golden staff bangs the floor twice and doors on the first floor open to direct the massive dining hall. Leading the crowd, William and Rana took the main table of the dining hall and servants directed the guest where to sit and pour drinks. When everyone took their seats, a small army of servants deliver tes of food with fine wine. Besides the main dish, the tables have other foods so guests can enjoy them to their fullest. The party continues and the guests got to taste what Imperium finest got to offer including entertainment. While enjoying the dinner, the guest got to see thebat demonstration from the Astartes from a differentpany, and a musical performance from the Sisters of Battle. By the time dinner is finished, the doors to the ballroom open once again and wee the guests back with musical notes performed by the famous bard from the guild. The leading bard in his fancy clothes sang and yed lute while a small orchestra follow the lead to boost the music. "Oh my, it seems the party is just starting." One of the royal family members from the coast nation said to himself as he enter the ballroom. "Yes. In a short time, they managed to change the entire room with a stage, chairs, and tables for us to enjoy." King from the dessert tribe nation said and grab a drink from the walking servant who is carrying a tray of drinks. With a number of guests returning back to the ballroom, the night continues as a number of people finally get an opportunity to talk to William and Rana. With a number of people wanting to talk to William, the lines began to start that resemble something simr to meeting with Santa on holiday. William did his best but night suddenly stopped when ady from Alderim, Lady Gabrie Van Shaw approached William and Rana. "What a wonderful night you are hosting tonight. My Lord and mydy, I do have something you must hear." Lady Shaw presents a small metal box to William and presses a button that ys a recorded message loud and clear. For an unknown mechanism, the metal box hacked the entire voxmunicator and broadcast the message beyond the ballroom. As the message yed in front of William, Rana, and everyone to hear, every member of the senior Imperial Guardsmen, Astartes of the cksouls, and Sisters of Battle heard as well. "By the Emperor''s throne!" Sister Superior who heard the entire recording said without realizing it and left the monastery momentter with an army of sisters behind her. Fully equipped with power armor and weapons on their hands. At the same time, an Alpha Legion Space Marine makes his move after receiving the signal from the metal device he gave to Gabrie. With a smile on his face, his power armor began to turn invisible, and a secondter, Alpha Legion disappeared entirely as not even the sound of his footstep can be heard. Chapter 115: Child of Hope Chapter 115: Child of Hope "This is a lie." By Alpharius Omegon (Maybe, possibly, ???) ----------------- When the Emperor created his 20 Primarchs and Space Marine Legions, he design them ording to his needs for the Imperium. Magnus the Red, a powerful psyker who was destined to seat on the Golden Throne and control the Emperor''s Webway. Horus Lupercal, a grand military leader and able to handle any military or diplomatic issues as a leader among his brothers. Leman Russ, Jaghatai Khan, and Lion El''Jonson. The military generals and des of the Emperor. And there is Alpharius Omegon, the literal representation of intelligence and sabotage on the gctic scale. The 20th legion''s Primarch, also known as Last Primarch was foundst near the end of the Great Crusade. Already possessing a small fleet of spaceships, Horus found hisst brother in the misunderstood conflict in which he ultimately weed his brother into Imperium. This is a lie. Unknown to everyone including 18 Primarchs and Imperium itself, Alpharius was the first to be found by the Emperor after four Chaos Gods scattered 20 super babies into the warp. By chance or sheer luck, Alpharius''s baby podnded back on Earth after traveling through the warp and was secretly retrieved by the Emperor. To keep this matter secret, Emperor assigned his right-hand man, Malcador the Sigillite to raise the boy and teach him everything he need to survive including the ability to blend in and be incognito. It is said that Alpharius can block a psyker from reading his mind and is able to walk among people without being noticed or remembered (Example: Do you remember who walked beside you this morning? You just brush that person from your memory. That is what Alpharius is to everyone if he wants to be unknown). While Emperor and Malcador kept the greatest secret from everyone, Alpharius also have a secret of his own. Ever since he was young, he felt something was missing, a piece of himself that isn''tplete. Thister was discovered to be true as he found his other half, another 20th Legion''s Primarch, Omegon. Alpharius Omegon is in fact a twin Primarch who separated during their scattering through the warp. Alpha Legion is a very different type of Space Marine Legion. Following their gene fathers'' example and military doctrine, Alpha Legion became masters of intelligence gathering and sabotage. Every Alpha Legion changed its face to look like Alpharius and Omegon''s faces and identified themselves as Alpharius, no matter what. Later during Horus''s heresy, this confused other legions as a report of Alpharius Omegon''s appearance was confirmed everywhere. When Rogal Dorn and his Imperial Fists confronted the Alpha Legion and Alpharius, the Primarch of the Imperial Fists ultimately in his traitor brother with his own chainsword. Later when Rogal Dorn told his brother, Roboute Guilliman that he killed Alpharius, the Primarch of the Ultramarines simply asked Dorn ''Which one?'' indicating that there is a possibility of Alpharius may not be Alpharius but Omegon (Or none as Alpha Legion Space Marine pose as Alpharius). Due to their secrecy and being a spy faction, no one truly knows Alpha Legion''s loyalty. Some say that they are still loyal to the Emperor as one of their warcries is "For the Emperor!" but others point out that they sided with Horus during the Hersey and are still active as spies for the traitor legions. No matter who is correct, Alpha Legions is very effective and dangerous within the 40k universe. Imagine, a perfect spy in every Hollywood movie and enhance with Space Marines gene seeds. Once, a small group of Alpha Legions operatives managed to kill billions of people using simple bacteria of Xeno origin. The bacteria managed to kill essential crops in Agri-World that supplied multiple key Imperiums including hive and forge worlds. After Agri-World failed to produce food for theses, the entire sector fell into chaos as people rioted and attacked the ruling government, demanding food. In the end, billions starved to death and destabilize the sector entirely. The ultimatebination of sabotage and effectiveness beyond imagination. The most terrifying thing about 20th Legion is their current number after post-Horus Hersey. Currently, no one including Abaddon the Despoiler doesn''t know the real number of the 20th, and their participation in each ck Crusade is barely noticeable. This also includes what kind of resources, manpower, and the number of ships are under 20th control. In short, just like the Hydra emblem, Alpha Legion always has someone to rece the head when it is cut off. "Hydra Dominatus!" By Alpha Legion ----------------- "What is the meaning of this?" William shouts with rage in his voice. The entire room went quiet and many of the guests cover their ears with their hands as the volume of William''s voice is something they never experienced before. Lady Shaw also covered her ears with fear as she realized that she may have angered a being beyond her capability. The whole purpose of ying the recovered information was to show that she has the advantage and have William take her into his study so ultimately she can lure him out of the capital city. This n usually works and she has done simr cases to ensure her demand was met during negotiations such as trade and political matters. Usually, when men are found out that their honor and dignity are actually wed, they want to control the matter best as possible. In most cases, men tend to move the matter into a private room which Lady Shaw can exploit to her advantage. But tonight, it backfired as William''s intention after hearing the recording wasn''tpliance or maintain secrecy from everyone. "I don''t know how you have this technology but what concerns me is the content itself. You will answer my questions or else I will have your head right now." Drawing his new sword, William''s de glows red as the forge itself, brightening the entire room and generating tremendous heat. "William, please, she must have a reason for doing this." Rana tried to calm down Master of the Fortress as she ce her hands on William''s wrist and lower it down. The glowing de is lowered from Lady Shaw''s direction but the tension in the room increased as William wasn''t done with Lady Shaw. "You will answer my question even if this means I have to break the treaty with Countess Shaw." William lowered his voice but the power of the words and their meaning remained effective. With arge number of guests confused, Rana tookmand of the room and have servants escort the guests to another room where they can be entertained and remain calm. The situation overall wasn''t aplete disaster as many assume thedy with the metal box offend the ruler of the fortress with a foul gift. That is until disaster walked into the room as thest guest exited the room. Heavily armed Sisters of Battle entered the room with Sister Superior leading them. Once again, they entered the room with fire in their eyes and each step with a mission to do something not even William can predict. "Is it true? Do you carry the child of the Chapter Master?" The new Sister Superior, Sister Marina asks Rana and examed her body to make sure the message from the vox channel was true. Common misconceptions about Sisters of Battle are that they have to be pure of all including remaining virgins for life. This is not true in certain cases where the Sister of Battle has an intimate rtionship and even shared a bed with a man for a night. Because of their lifestyle of purging, it is a rare privilege among Sisterhood to share bed or even have a rtionship. Of course, if regr men of the Imperium have iron balls like Cain to spend a night with battle harden female warriors of the Emperor. As for the Living Saint, it is apletely different story as they are considered the living embodiment of the Emperor''s will, and it is never considered by any mortal man. Until now. "Is it true? Do you possess a child of the Emperor''s hope?" Sister Superior Marina said and this time it confused everyone including William. "What do you mean by that? Aren''t you about to go on a rampage because Rana and I are going to have a baby?" William asks Sister Superior as he is surprised by Sister''s question and not burning him with mer at the same time. "Why would I oppose the will of the Emperor? Last night, he came to my dream and delivered a divine message to me about how his new hope is through the child from his living will and chosen warrior of great achievement. The child must and will be protected, I swear in his divine name." Sister Superior then kneeled and at the same time, all of the Sisters did the same and made an Imperial eagle with both of their hands. ''Star Child, you damn clever golden boy.'' This was the only thing William can think of as he connect the dots after receiving new information. "Mydy, what is your will? From now on, we, the Sister of Battle will stay with you day and night until the child of the hope is born. We won''t fail you on the holiest mission." Hearing this from Sister Superior, Rana made a face that show irritation as if something she worked hard to get rid of returned at thest minute before bed. While this is going on, one of William''s honor guard approach Lady Shaw and stand behind her, making sure she won''t do anything foolish. Sensing this has to end and returning back to the main point, William turns his attention back to Lady Shaw who is still trying to figure out a way to turn the situation around. "You, Lady Shaw will be in my custody until I find out who gave you this metal box and its content. You are not my prisoner but until I find out what is going on you will be under my protection as you can''t be the mastermind. Honor guard, take her away." William took the metal box from Lady Shaw and order his guard to take Gabrie away. As the honor guard is about to take thedy away from the room, Willia appraises the metal box to see what exactly it is. [An ancient vox recorder x1: This recorder was used before Great Crusade in Terra. With therge memory and battery life to record the message, it was mostly used as a reporter''s recording device which can be attached to drones. Note: Modified for an unknown purpose.] Thest part of confused William and raise his head to see Gabrie about to step away from William as a guard stood next to her with his halberd in his hand. Immediately, William once again grabs his power sword and draws the weapon out. In a single motion, he strikes down the honor guard with the intention to kill him once and for all. The swing of the sword made arge arc of red and yellow glow as William''s de went down while everyone who saw couldn''t react or stop William from killing his own honor guard. Meanwhile, through William''s eyes, he saw the full name of Gabrie hovering over her head while his honor guard have [???] hovering over his. Chapter 116: Walking Armory Chapter 116: Walking Armory ng! William''s sword shed with the honor guard''s de a second before it could hit the guard''s head. After barely escaping a certain death from Chapter Master''s sword, the honor guard pushed against William''s strength and managed to hold it to a stalemate. "You are not one of my honor guards. Not only have I memorized all of my guard''s names but I also recognize their movement and mannerism, you don''t match none of theirs." William said to the intruder his reason without exposing his ability of appraisal. This revtion shocked the fake guard as he believed his infiltration was wless. With the new revtion, the fake honor guard pushes against William''s strength but at thest second disappeared entirely. The moment everyone realized what just happened, the intruder reappeared a distance away from William with his weapon down. ''What was that? He was here a moment ago but he suddenly vanished as if he just teleported.'' William thought to himself and ready his sword in case he need to take action. Meanwhile, his honor guards took action and surrounded the intruder with range weapons. As for Rana, she and the Sisters of Battle evacuated civilians including Lady Shaw from danger as they realized the true enemy is in fact superhuman traitor Astartes. "Chapter Master William, former ck Temr, and Supreme Commander, Imperator Fratrum. You earned your titles fairly." The intruder said genuinely as his grey silver armor slowly vanish and reveal the true colors of the power armor he is wearing. Designed to look more like scale armor, the purple and green power armor appeared. d with a traditional traitor style of armor, the Alpha Legion Space Marine even had his marker on his shoulder pad, scales of hydra, and horns in his helmet. At first nce, William saw the standard model of Chaos Space Marine but after observing more detail, he saw a few adjustments to the armor and changes unlike he have ever seen. One thing that caught William''s attention, attached to Alpha Legioner''s hip is a head of a Necron with a cyclops eye, and cables are linked to his helmet. In a closer look, William identified the Necron head as to be head of the Cryptek, the Necron equivalent of technologists and engineers. The Cryptek''s head was blinking as if it was processing something and by just looking at it William knew he need to act fast. With no hesitation, William gave themand to attack but before anyone could follow themand, the traitor disappeared and reappeared in front of William, about to stab William''s stomach with a modified sword between the power sword and Necron hyperphase sword. Surprised by the attack, William quickly react and was able to deflect the iing fused de thanks to his mastery of all items and superhuman reaction. The attack wasn''t done as the traitor Space Marine continue his attack while tossing a small metal cube toward William''s honor guards. ''That is Trazyn the Infinite''s Tesseract cube. How in the world did he get that?'' William quickly identified the mysterious cube but it was toote as the cube unleashed creatures that were contained within. Out of the cube, a dozen Drukhari appeared and dash toward the honor guards with the intention to kill. "Dark Eldar Subi!" Immediately, the honor guards change their weapons to closebat and pick their opponents. Subi paired and attack the honor guards with ferocity and attempt to find weaknesses between joints. Believing honor guards are another Astartes, a few Dark Eldars underestimated their opponents which resulted in a brutal but quick death. "We must help the Chapter Master. These Dark Eldars are nothing but a distraction." Lieutenant of the honor guards said through their vox channel and form up to deal with nuisance once and for all. Meanwhile, William is still dealing with Alpha Legion and his unknown ability as each time William though he has the advantage, the traitor disappears and reappears in a blink of an eye. ''What is his deal? He is equipped with all kinds of Necron techs. He even has Trazyn the Infinite''s Tesseract cube.'' William managed to quickly analyze the situation and change his tactics to match the enemy''s strategy. Based on what William can observe, the traitor is using the head of the Cryptek and its ability to disappear and reappear like a teleportation. Believing his next step, William quickly draws the ck sword of the Emperor''s Champion from his inventory and shes his opposite side to kill the traitor just as he is about to reappear. William was correct to make a secondary attack with his freehand but to his surprise, the traitor reappeared a few inches away from the tip of the sword with a different weapon. Now holding a spear simr to Alpharius Omegon''s Pale Spear, the traitor stepped to the side to dodge the ck sword and swing the spear with the intention to slice William''s hand. Seeing how he is about to lose his hand (Again), William quickly adjusts his stance with superhuman speed. At the same time, he put away his ck sword and Novros to bring forth the power hammer. "I got you now!" William shouted and m the traitor with all his might but before he could actually hit the target, the traitor disappeared once again and reappeared next to William, barely dodging the devastating attack. ''Ah, crap.'' Just as William was about to receive a deadly attack from a strange spear, a golden spear parries the enemy weapon with its holder generating golden light through her. The Living Saint entered the fight as Sisters of Battle followed her with bolters ready. "Take out the Dark Eldars. This one is mine." Rana gave hermand and the Sisters follow her order as they scatter to take out the Subi. With additional reinforcements and firepower, the honor guards and Sisters of Battle took out Subi much quicker than before. Still, the problem lies with Alpha Legion Space Marine as his ability seems to be more trouble than anyone William and Rana faced before. "Aim for the Necron head! It must be his source of power." William said to Rana while he change his weapon once again to wield two swords. Hearing this, Rana changed her tactics, she focus more on Cryptek''s head instead of the traitor''s. The golden sword extends and transforms into a spear and the battle of the spear began as a traitor and Living Saint exchange blows while blocking each attack with ferocity. Seeing an opening, William rushed to the enemy''s blind side with his two swords ready to sh on the sides. But to his and Rana''s surprise, the traitor managed to block William''s attack with Dispersion shield, another wargear of the Necron, belonging to Lychguards. ''He is just like me. He has a power of inventory.'' The realization finally hit William and as he was about to withdraw his swords, the traitor vanished once again, leaving William and Rana facing each other. Reappearing a distance away, the traitor holds his position as if he needs a break. ''This changes everything. His arsenal is beyond Imperium standard and somehow he managed to possess Necron wargears. No, the problem isn''t his weapons, it''s the Cryptek''s head. He must be using it to teleport at will.'' Prioritizing the problem one at a time, William signals Rana with his hand. Understanding the n, Rana rushes the traitor with her spear while William went around to corner the enemy. Just as both Wiliam and Rana are about to hit traitor, he vanished once again but this time, Alpha Legion is the one who was surprised as when he reappeared, a chandelier was dropped on top of his head. A few seconds back, A moment before William reach the traitor, he threw his ck sword toward the wall to cut the rope holding the chandelier. The chandelier was positioned opposite from where the traitor was standing but based on his pattern of reappearance, William made a calcted guess and made his move. The moment the traitor reappeared, the chandelier hit him a secondter right on top of him. The chandelier didn''t do much damage to the power armor but it was enough to damage the Cryptek''s head as it sparked and blink nonstop. "Aren''t you full of surprise? Looks like you figured out after all." Said the Alpha Legion. With his source of teleportation gone, William was certain he can face the enemy head-on until the traitor said something unexpected. "There are limits to utilizing the power of the Chronomancer. I have been pushing its limit time maniption to the point it was burning my armor itself." Hearing this, William realized what was going on until now. The traitor was stopping the time each time he was in danger instead of teleporting. ''Damn it. Good thing I got lucky with the chandelier or else this fight would turn out differently.'' William proceed to bring out his bolter pistol and fire at will to kill the traitor quick as possible but it was useless. Anticipating the attack, the traitor change the Chronomancer''s head with something else and activated. William''s bolter rounds went through the traitor and hit the wall behind him. Holding a metal sphere in his hand, the traitor was able to phase through the bolter rounds without any harm. Seeing the new Necron artifact, William recalled a certain item from Lord Commissar''s report and connect the bots. This Alpha Legion is the same one who impersonated the Emperor''s Champion and stole the sphere under Cain''s nose. The one who called th Cassimer. "Aren''t we a bunch of walking armory? How do you feel that everything you throw at me doesn''t work at all?" The traitor mocked William and activate the metal sphere once again. This time, instead of phasing this time, he turned invisible without leaving any trace including the sound of his steps. "He just has more tricks under his sleeves," Rana said to William and brought out her shield to block any attack that coulde at any moment. As for William, he bring out his heavy mer to scorch the area to ensure he wouldn''t miss but to their surprise, no attack came, and soon honor guards and Sisters came to their aid after ying all Subi. "Did that traitor just leave?"Baffled by the traitor''s unusual move, William have his guards scan the entire room and initiated the fortress lockdown. To his and everyone''s surprise, the traitor was no way to be found as Alpha Legion managed to escape after realizing his Dark Eldar distraction was all killed. ---------------- After William is certain the traitor is gone and has triple security for the duration of the unknown foreseeable future, he have all of the guests return to their room with extra security. As for Lady Shaw, she was escorted to her room until William can personally have word with her tomorrow. William''s intention isn''t to torture Gabrie as she is still a nobledy of Alderim and Prince Benton wouldn''t have someone from his kingdome to harm until the investigation ispleted. Still, William made sure a few of the Fenrisian Wolves are ced in front of the room and had the entire pack patrol the fortress to find the traitor Space Marine. After everyone returned to their room for the night, William sat alone in his study to analyze tonight''s event including how to counter the Necron technology. Not only did the Alpha Legion possess the ability to manipte time and phasing but he also had Trazyn the Infinite''s Tesseract cube and inventory ability. It was as if the traitor was William''s mirror opposite and equipped with weapons to counter William''s wargear. "Is this another attempt from the Chaos? Why didn''t he finish me or Rana off when he had every opportunity to do so?" William said to himself as his terminator armor made a small noise when he moved. Just as William reach for his cup of tea, someone silently came to his side and handed him the cup. Half a second after realizing he wasn''t alone, William got up and pull out his ck sword at the new intruder. [Why don''t we talk before fighting again? I''m sure you have a few questions about tonight and I''m sure I can answer them.] A Necron Overlord with the metal hood on his head said to William as he step backward with two hands up as if he was surrendering. Trazyn the Infinite, the self-proimed Archaeovist of the Solemnace Galleries came to William''s personal study with no intention to capture William at the moment as he has a bigger problem. Chapter 117: We are Alpharius Chapter 117: We are Alpharius [He stole almost everything I have including my Tesseract cubes! Can you believe that? I have never been so humiliated since Orikan the Diviner destroyed my collection.] Trazyn the Infinite expresses his frustration to William as if William was Trazyn''s therapist. The whole conversation is on one side as Trazynined about how he lost his equipment and was bested by the Alpha Legion Space Marines. Yes, Marines as in there is more than one Alpha Legionnaires currently and they are up to no good. ''Funny how he mentions his friend and enemy, Orikan the Diviner. I guess his previous experience with Orikan''s time maniption helped him identify Alpha Legion''s scheme, even though it was toote.'' William connected the dots based on the story. Trazyn managed to identify and track the ones responsible for the theft of his properties. In an ironic way, this was funny to William as Trazyn is known for stealing within the Necron faction and in the 40k universe. To be outsmarted by a ''human'' is entertaining and bruise to Trazyn''s ego. While William isughing in his mind, Trazyn continued ranting. [I only needed a few specimens for subspecies of Dark Eldars. Just as I was about to make my collection I got ambushed by your traitor cousins and in a blink of an eye, I lost all my stuff including a few of my own body parts.] This intrigue William as he quietly listens to Trazyn''s rant. The Necron Overlord was holding his signature staff so he didn''t lose that one but him losing his equipment and cubes containing gods know what, William began to worry about what the Alpha Legions are up to. Hearing enough of Trazyn''s rant on how he got taken down like his victims. William decided to gather his own intel from the Necron Overlord. "Tell me, Trazyn. How is this my problem? You lowered your guard believing you were invincible and you got jumped by a few traitor legionnaires. Sounds to me this is your problem, not mine." William baited Trazyn as if he didn''t care and ced his sword down to show he isn''t worried about Trazyn at this moment. After all, Overlord did lose his Tesseract cubes, the 40k equivalent of Pokeball. [You lesser race don''t understand the danger those guys possess. Your traitor cousins have my Tesseract cubes and it contains dangerous beings beyond your imagination.] "I''m guessing it is your collections but what''s to worry about them? Don''t you imnt the mindshackle scarabs? If Alpha Legions release your creatures it is their loss as you are the only one who can control them." William''s logic made sense as Trazyn always enves his collection through scarabs and makes sure they follow his everymand unless removed. This is how Necron Overlord participated during the fall of Cadia against ck Legion by unleashing an army of Imperium''s finest without putting himself in danger. [Well¡­ that''s the thing.] even though he is a machine without a soul, Trazyn shows nervousness as if he was just caught with his hand on a jar of a cookie. "What is it? Don''t tell me you didn''t imnt scarabs on your collections?" Said Willliam as he stare at the Overlord with suspicion and wishing he was wrong. William was in fact wrong but it was much worse as Trazyn about to exin. [Remember how I said those bastards took a few pieces of my parts? Well, when your cousins took some of my parts, they took my head. Not only they managed to maintain my head intact but somehow the head didn''t return back to its original form of surrogate host. Using mymand protocol from my matrix, they haveplete control of the mindshackle scarabs. If it wasn''t for that I wouldn''te to you in the first ce. I¡­ I need your assistance.] Trazyn said as he y with his thumbs and bit embarrassed by the fact he lostmand of his toys. "You got to be fracking kidding me. Youe to me after youpletely lost control of the situation? Not to mention you teleported me to Death Guard''s ship and attempt to capture me not that long ago. I don''t even know why I''m listening to you in the first ce." [Well, don''t take it personally on the Death Guard ship incident. You did blow up the ship in half and it took great effort for me to salvage what I could from the aftermath.] "Don''t take it personally? You teleported your warriors to capture me and my honour guards after I tookmand of the enemy ship. You set me up and how can''t I not take it personally?" William ms his fist on his table to express his anger as he remembers how close it was to being captured by Trazyn. [You can''t me me for acting in my nature. Just as you need to wage war against non-humans, I need to do everything in my power to record and preserve the history of the universe.] "History of the universe my ass. You just want to collect things because you can''t control yourself and keep your mind sane." William grabs something from his table and tosses it toward Trazyn. The Overlord catches the item in midair after identifying the item as nonthreatening. Opening his palm, Trazyn saw a golden badge with the symbol of the Legion of cksouls. Unable to express his confusion through his metal face, Trazyn stared at William with his head tilted slightly to the left. "What you are holding is my chapter''s honor badge, the first of its kind. I n to give those to certain individuals who aplish great deeds for the Imperium and my chapter. I''m giving it to you so you can get off my back. Consider this your only collection of my Space Marine chapter." [You know I not going to stop just because you gave me a first-edition badge. Anyway, we are going off the main topic.] Trazyn put away the golden badge into one of his pockets and continue talking. [If one of your cousins releases the specimen from the Tesseract cube, you can say goodbye to this world because you will not able to handle them without me. We must destroy my severed head and retrieve my items from them.] Trazyn said with concerning tone even though his voice is a machine. This finally made William worried as he start to realize Overlord might have brought something terrible with him to the New World. "What exactly is in the cube, Trazyn? You still haven''t told me what exactly what''s in the cube to make you worry about this world." [After finding out you and your traitorous rtives here, I decided to bring a few things with me for¡­ protection. You may know that I brought Orks warband from the War of the Beast but what you don''t know is my second cube holding great force in case I had to wage war against well, everyone. My second Tesseract cube contains a splinter fleet of Hive Fleet Leviathan and when they are released, we are doomed.] -------------- Beyond Fort Stormfist, thend of the undead and vampires. Standing on top of the castle wall, Alpharius uncloak his invisibility after teleporting to the location his brothers have been broadcasting a signal beacon. It was unfortunate to lose the Chronomancer''s head but in the end, the mission was aplished. "You are early, Alpharius. I assume your mission was sessful?" A second Alpha Legion Space Marine appeared from the shadow. Equipped with the same color and type of power armor, the second traitor looks exactly like Alpharius. "Yes, brother Alpharius. The mission was sessful even though there were a few hups. The Chapter Master of the cksouls wille and when the timees, we will aplish our mission." the first Alpharius said to the second Alpharius and both men walk towards the outer edge of the castle wall, two superhumans saw an army of various factions from different worlds. The primary forces were made out of vampires and undead of all kinds but one thing that stand out was the Vampire Lords'' necks as eachmander had the mindshackle scarabs attached. The secondary forces are made out of Dark Eldars and hoard of monsters from the alchemy of madness. The third, reserved army is the Tau Empire''s expedition forces. Believed to be lost and all dead, no one would have guessed that Trazyn captured the entire expedition forces during their voyages to unknown space. All two armies have Necron mindshackle scarabs on them, ready to obey all orders from one of the Alpharius who possess Trazyn''s served head. "Are we certain Alpharius? Will the chapter mastere?" Second Alpharius question the first Alpharius. Just before the first could answer the second one''s question, a third Alpharius appeared and answer the question. "He wille Alpharius. The bait is ced and traps are set. Chapter Master William and his forces have toe to us or else," Third Alpharius who have Trazyn''s head attached to his belt grab a cube from his belt pouch and show it to his brothers. "The New World will be devoured by the Great Devourer and everything he loves will end. Prepare yourself, brothers. We are following the will of our master and for the greater good of the universe." Chapter 118: We are the Hammer and Light Chapter 118: We are the Hammer and Light Next Day, "Now, exin yourself," Rana said to Lady Shaw as eachdy sat down as if it was a simple conversation between nobles. But this isn''t simple as it seems as Lady Shaw is currently on house arrest under William''s order for her betrayal. "What can I say to justify what I did? My mother and everyone I care of is taken hostage and to ensure their safety, I had to do what was told to do. My only instruction was to make sure Lord William goes outside the fortress, nothing more after." Lady Shaw shows remorse but also a concern for her family as she knows something terrible would have happened to them by now. "Why didn''t youe to us? You know William and I are willing to help if you asked us." Said, Rana. "Do you truly believe it would have worked? I, ady of the Shaw household asking you and the giant warrior for help? A simr giant who ckmail me with my family''s life and you expect me to ask you, who physically changed due to an unknown deity''s blessing and leader of giants with mysterious origins? I did my investigation on Lord William and I found nothing about him before he made his appearance in Greenhill. How can I trust anyone at this point?" Lady Shaw said to Rana as her face turn red and tears up to blink of crying. "You have a point but you are wrong," Rana said to Gabrie and grab her hands to ensure her of trusting her. "We have known each other for most of our lives. You may not know this but I always envy you and your gift. I know you foresaw the Legen invasion and made preparation by persuading your mother a year ahead. Thanks to you, many of the cities made reservations for supplies and I know you are the one who sent the reinforcement by asking King Benton after hearing of my counterattack against invaders. You are someone I admire to be and how can I turn away when you need help?" Rana reveals her secret admiration to Gabrie. Rana, who is known for her courage on the battlefield was in fact admired by many but she herself always admired Gabrie for her strategic mind and wide view of the nation''s needs. "How could I trust anyone when I was pushed to the corner? He had spies everywhere and everything I did resulted in failure. The man known as Alpharius is beyond my ability and I couldn''t do anything except obey his instruction." Gabrie said to Rana as her eyes tear up. Just as Rana was about to say something, the doors opened and William in his terminator armor entered the room without his helmet on. "And that is why I''m here to handle this ''Alpharius''. Follow me," William raises his left hand to show the way for Gabrie to follow. William''s facial expression is hard to read as he maintains his stern face and tone ofmand. Gabrie got up from her sit and walk towards the exit. Rana got up but William hold his hand to stop her from following them. With no exnation, William guide Gabrie and left the room in silence. After walking for a few minutes, Gabrie spoke first. "Are you going to execute me for what I did? You said you will handle the man named Alpharius but what will happen to my people? They, no, Alderim need your help." "..." William didn''t say anything and continued walking. "Say something, Lord William. Will you doom everyone because of what I did? You can''t be this callus." Gabrie''sst words made William stop and turn around to face thedy who is now horrified by a giant demi god-like warrior. "You are still alive not because I''m a kind or forgiving person. You are alive because of Prince Benton''s personal request, if it wasn''t for him, you would be in a very different situation. As for Alderim, it is not my concern as I have my own to rule and protect. Your action fromst night shattered the rtionship and trust between us. I have no obligation to stop this man, Alpharius as he is no longer in my realm." William''s cold voice made Gabrie shiver in fear. She knew the consequence of her action but to sever the rtionship between the two nations is extreme. Gabrie couldn''t think of any excuse and remained silent, regretting all her actions and being unable to fix her mistakes. William continues. "That is what I would have said if you simply attempt my life for your own personal gain." William then opens the door to reveal the open balcony of the fortress. The sunlight temporarily blinded Gabrie as it took her a few moments to adjust her vision and see what was in front of her. She and William were standing on the second floor with stairs on each side and a clear view of the main entrance to the fortress. In front of Gabrie''s view was an army, an army of huge magnitude that never anyone have ever seen before. A massive assembly of Astra Militarum of all kinds is in formation, ready to deploy. Various military vehicles ofnd and air are standing behind the guards while two Freedes Knights stand ready as pilots and Tech priests make thest-minute checks. Behind the Knights are Space Marines, ready to lead the Astra Militarum and everyone as a spearhead of the formation, waiting for an order from their Chapter Master. With more than half of William''s forces assembled, a man with the highest ranking within Astra Militarum approached William and Gabrie. The man only has one arm and is aged beyond his natural life but his eyes show the discipline and life of a long military man, Lord Commander Casten Ursarkar E. Creed entered the scene. "My lord, as youmanded, the majority of our forces are assembled and ready to deploy on yourmand." Lord Commander Creed salute William and turn around to face the army as each and every one of them faced where William and Gabrie are. "Why?" Gabrie can only ask in the simplest as she couldn''t understand what was happening. One moment ago, she was ready to ept her faith as a dead woman and now, she is about to witness the greatest military force gathered to invade. "Why you ask. I''m not a cold-hearted man who would turn a blind eye to allies who are in trouble. Your mother and I had an agreement, this makes her problem, my problem. You, Lady Shaw, are not alone and I will make sure the world knows of it." William said to Gabrie and gestured for one of hispany captains to join him. A rough-looking man in his power armor and his giant wolf join William and Gabrie. Gabrie once again is terrified by the monster size wolf and unable to move but soon found out she has nothing to worry about as William asks her gently after a man in power armor stopped. "Lady Shaw, do you have any item belonging to your mother? "What? Oh," Gabrie hesitates for a second before bringing out a small pouch. Inside is a locket of hair and from what William could guess, it belongs to Gabrie''s mother. "Captain, will this be sufficient for your wolves to track?" "Yes, Chapter Master. My wolves will track the scent even if it''s the end of the world." The Fifth captain of the cksouls said and ept the hair lock from Gabrie. With the key item to track the missing noblewoman, the former Space Wolves took off with his wolf and rejoin his packs of 13 Space Marines. "Where are they going?" Gabrie asked as she saw arge group leaving the army and disappearing somewhere else. "They will be leaving ahead of us for a special mission to rescue your mother. My intelligence informed me that Alpharius went beyond the fortress wall, to thend of the vampires. The intel also informed me of the possible location of the hostages as Alpharius didn''t have time to relocate them. Don''t worry, we have a way to travel faster than conventional methods and by the time we arrive, they would aplish their mission and secure the temporary base for us." William ensures Gabrie as he recalls what information Trazyn told himst night. One thing is certain about old Trazyn, he knows how to locate certain things, including various listening and tracking devices in his properties. With his vanguards gone, William turns around to face the army and activates his vox channel to broadcast his voice. "This is Chapter Master William of the Legion of cksouls. It''s been a peaceful day untilst night. The traitors once again appear before us and made a mess before escaping from justice. This insult can''t be ignored. It is possible that this could be a trap. But, I will not ignore this as my duty demands the destruction of the traitors. We are the protectors of the men, the first andst line of humanity. We are the Imperium''s eternal shield and de against unholy foes. We are the hammer of the Imperium and we are the light against the darkness. Emperor protects!" "Emperor protects!" The entire army shouts as one, shaking the very ground and bringing the might of humanity into the new world they stand. ----------- Divine Realm, ''Man, it is taking so long.'' Star Child said to himself after observing the current event in the New World. The progress of William and his ultimate battle is taking more than Star Child''s liking. Even though he himself is immortal and possesses the power of the gods (Doesn''t mean he is one of them), the eventuality of William''s decision will swift the path Star Child predicted. ''Maybe I can make a few adjustments to speed things up. Wait¡­ let''s not rush things likest time. I might end up making more mess than before.'' With that, Star Child closes the rift mirror with a simple wave of his hand. William will confront the 20th and make a discovery that will lead to the final phase of the Star Child''s n. With it, he himself will gain the ultimate vessel and return to the material world and William will return everyone who was summoned back to their original world, in exchange for his own life. The great acts of sacrifice. There is always an individual who made the ultimate sacrifice in exchange for good of all living. Malcador the Hero, Sanguinius the Great Angel, Rnor the Ancient, and countless souls of the Imperium''s finest who stood the very ground to fight the forces of Chaos. William will be no exception in the end. Star Child has foreseen the possible future and he will be the one who makes the greatest sacrifices just as other have done before. His deeds won''t be recorded in the walls of the Holy Terra, and his achievements won''t be recognized as they will never see the light. Just like millions of names and their small victories that shaped and will shape the Imperium for ten thousand years since great Hersey. "My lord!" A feminine voice called upon Star Child while he was deep in his thoughts. The owner of the voice appeared in bright light and hovered near Star Child. Armed with golden armor and white wings, the Living Saint Celestine appeared before Star Child and bow with grace. "Yes, my child. You havee a long way," Said Star Child. Normally, Living Saint appears to him when she has something important to report such as world-ending events or a great cmity from beyond the stars. "My lord, I have found it! I found the worthy vessel for you to return to Materium as a living, breathing being once again." The excitement in Celestine''s voice made Star Child remain silent as if he need to process something in his head. At this moment, the only thing Star Child can think of is how everything suddenly changed and how it will impact the future as it opened a new but simr result in the end. ''Well, that is unexpected. I guess I have more work to do.'' Chapter 119: Sons of Ravens Chapter 119: Sons of Ravens "Help, I need help with James. He needs a healer." An olddy chained up with shackles shouts with her lungs out as she seeks help in the dark and cold dungeon. A few minutester, a door opened and someone entered the room, reeking of the smell of ale. "Damn it, shut your mouth, hag." A rough-looking man armed with a sword and bottle of ale in his hand said to Countess Shaw after he kicked her stomach. Countess Shaw attempted to help her servant who was captured with her a few weeks ago. Unfortunately, the armed man had a different idea as he just came to physically abuse the prisoners. "In the end, we only need you and no one else. Make any noise and I will kill your servant until you understand your ce." The man then ms the empty ale bottle on to servant named James''s head, shattering his skull and bottle. "No!" This is all Countess Shaw can say as the man kick her once more, interrupting her from saying anything else. "I said shut up! He is not dead. See? He is just flinching, alive and well." Just as the man is about to draw his dagger to end James''s life, a small group of men enters the room. "Dale, the boss said to bring the olddy to him. Looks like he had it with waiting and all," One of the men said to the man name Dale and have others step forward to grab the countess. "Fine. But she needs to learn the lesson." Dale then proceeds to stab the unconscious servant''s neck, ultimately cutting it with a huge wound. The blood gush out from the man as he shook but it quickly ended, his soul and heat leaving the body in the cold dark room. "James, you poor soul. Kelemvor, Lord of the Dead, please guide him to the afterlife and judge his noble soul fair." Countess Shaw made a prayer as she is dragged by tworge men. After reaching the first floor, the countess saw the outside world through the window for the first time in a few weeks. The sky is red as the sun was about to set and darkness is about to slowly engulf the heaven above. The interior of the building is stone and old wood, countess guessed that the men who kidnapped her in the middle of the night based their hideout in the old forgotten fortress somewhere deep in the forest. A few minutester, men and countess entered the main hall where tables and chairs are shattered everywhere and candles barely lit the room as it was ced without proper cement. Many of the men were pleasant as some were eating and most are drinking what the countess assumed are cheap ales. "Well, about dam time. I was about to send a search party to find you all," Sitting in the middle of the group of men stands a small but well-built man armed with two short swords. Countess Shaw immediately realizes that this man is the leader of the gang and a nasty one at that as a man with no big stature usually relies on outsmarting the opponent and a lot of backstabbing. She has seen the type before during her prime as an adventurous nobledy. "Mydy, wee to my small but humble kingdom. My apologies for not seeing you in person in the first ce but as you can see, I have to oversee 50 men''s well-being and such. But now that you are here, I was hoping to discuss your price for freedom. You know, to end this nightmare once and for all." The leader of the gang said to countess while smiling with such evil that Countess Shaw knew she is doomed either way. No such criminal would let a head of the noble house go after receiving the payment and without a doubt, able to identify the criminals to ce a price on their heads. "What is the price of the freedom that I can only enjoy before your dagger stab me in the back? I don''t believe you and there is no reason to believe you in the first ce. You can cut my throat right now and I will dly ept my death, for I know my daughter will avenge me and my servants by cing your severed head on a pike." Countess Shaw leers the leader of the criminals with an iron will. She lived a long life and she isn''t going to beg to bunch of low-level criminals to live a little longer. "Nice speech, mydy. You are right, I for sure won''t want any loss ends after receiving my coins. But there is something you need to know, your daughter is in on this. She is working for my employer and doing his bidding to do something. You have no one and I for sure will have my reward in the end." "You lie. There is no way my Gabrie is colluding with your kind willingly. My daughter is strong and she will avenge my death in the end." Countess Shaw said with a stern voice but her eyes reveal her true feeling as her eyes tears with sadness. Her daughter is working for a mysterious man and knowing her own daughter, by force in exchange for the countess''s life. That is why she is alive, to control her daughter and the authority of her region. "You or your master won''t have your way!" With that, Countess Shaw bites her own tongue. To release her daughter''s burden of being a ve to criminals and ending her life on her own ord. "What! That damn old hag! Someone stop her! We need her alive!" Completely surprised by the action of the noblewoman, the leader of the gang panic and order his men to stop the countess from ending her own life. It was at this moment their string of fate ended as giants in iron armor appeared from the shadows and began ughtering them. ---------------------- An hour ago, "It took a few hours but we managed to arrive before nightfall. Now, Midnight, do your thing." The Wolf Seer and fifth captain of the cksouls gave his order and right away, his wolf sniff the air to catch the scent of the missing noblewoman. Standing at the location where Countess Shaw went missing, any trace of the missing person was long gone as it was weeks ago when the countess was kidnapped. But for wolves of the Fenris, this is nothing but Thursday for them as they are evolved to track miles of harsh winter climate. Within a few minutes, Nightfall caught the scent in the air and point her head toward the deep forest beyond the city wall. "That''s my girl. Let''s go boys, we got the scent." Wolf Seer hop on the Midnight and led the party asrge portions are former Space Wolves. As for the rest of the party, they are a small group of Space Marines from the different chapters who end up assigned to Wolf Seer''s fifthpany. As usual, these Astartes remain silent but quick and well hidden as their expertise is assassination. ''We will finish the mission tonight and have enough time to drink. Now, what should we do until Chapter Master and his forces arrive?'' The fifthpany captain thinks to himself as he drank his ale from the rehydration tube within his helmet. ---------------------- "What is going on!" One of the armed men shout and before he realized what was going on, his head was sliced in three different ways as lighting ws strike. "Who said that?" A second man asked but just as he finished his words, something big grabbed his head and crushed it without making a noise. When giant men with iron armor appeared, all the candle lights extinguished at the same time, darkening the entire room. With night fallen and the moon covered by clouds, 50 armed men quickly reduced to 20, and secondter, 3. Just as 4th man perished, clouds slowly moved away from the moon, blessing the hall room once again with moonlight. "What the hell just happened?" One of the surviving men standing next to the leader said in a silent voice as he saw the ughterhouse in front of him. Hisrades of many yearsy in pieces and bloody on the ground. No armor could protect them as it was cut with the bodies, and no weapon helped them fight back as they were already dead before realizing what had happened to them. The massacre happened in a matter of a few seconds as if an angel of death came to collect the souls. "I don''t know who you are or how many of you are here but don''te any close! I swear on Mask, Lord of the Shadows (DnD God of thievery and shadows) that I will kill her before you take my life." The leader of the gang draws his short sword and ces it on the countess''s neck to show he was serious. This was a mistake as his primary arm and shoulder fell from his body as something sharp sliced into three pieces. At the same time, two men who were standing next to each other with their weapons out are lifted to the ceiling by thin strings, disappearing into the darkness. A momentter, two men dropped to the floor with body sliced into pieces and their inners sshing the floor like wet rags. "Who, what, how?" The leader who is still alive somehow said to himself as he kneeled to the ground while doing his best to hold his missing shoulder. As for Countess Shaw, she was in shock not from biting her tongue but from the horror of ughter as she didn''t know if this is mindless killing or rescue. Just as the countess was about to turn pale due to the loss of blood, a single giant in ck armor appeared out of nowhere and kneel in front of her. For a moment, Countess Shaw thought the giant was William as she recognized the ck armor, but before she could see the difference in the armor, the giant knight opened a small medkit and start treating her using the small metal object. It was at this moment when Wolf Seer and his Astartes bust through the doors to rescue the countess. Seeing the hostage secured and all hostels taken care of, Wolf Seer snarled as he missed all the fun. It was at this moment when 9 more Astartes in pitch-ck armor appeared from the shadows. Equipped with ck-ded lighting ws, power swords, and modified bolters, former sons of the Raven Lord present themselves in the moonlight. "Damn it all, you ckbirds. You took all the fun out of the hunt." Wolf Seer said to the former 19th legionnaires and approach the countess with heavy steps. "Well, at least the mission was aplished. Countess Shaw, by the order of the Chapter Master William and a personal request from your daughter, we are here to rescue you and secure the legion for uing armies." Said Wolf Seer as he saw the countess quickly recover from her self-inflicting wound as the apothecary managed to finish the treatment. "You were sent by Lord William? My daughter, is she alright?" Said the countess as she slowly got up with help from the apothecary. "Yes, and we are here to end the ones responsible once and for all." "You mean their master? Do you know where he is located?" "Of course. ording to the Chapter Master, the mastermind of all these lies beyond Fort Stormfist. Expect his arrival in a few days as his armies left a few hours ago. Now that you are safe, we are here to secure thend and make sure nothing interferes with the advancement of the invasion forces. We are going to burn them all, mydy. By the All-father and Great Wolf, we are going to purge thend of the undead." With that, Wolf Seer open a waterskin to drink Fenrisian ale. Chapter 120: Return to the City of Deron Chapter 120: Return to the City of Deron Five Days Later, William''s army crossed the border between the two countries and made a quick stop the day before at new Greenhills. Many of the nobles from the Alderim didn''t agree to this sudden arrival of the foreign army but they couldn''t do much as Crown Prince Benton himself gave William permission to cross the Alderim as long as William''s army doesn''t cause any trouble. For the past few days, William made sure his troops move without any issues and send messengers ahead of time to notify the major cities and towns that foreign forces are passing by. This helped the defense force to make the preparation to clear the road while citizens simply watched the parade of soldiers and vehicles they have never seen before. The front formation is met with a wee as Astartes and their shining armor and weapons gave the feeling of noble knights on a quest to y a dragon or fight off invaders. In total, fourpanies of Space Marines (400 total) gathered under Chapter Master William''s order and were ready to crush anyone or anything standing in their way. The middle formation isprised of various Astra Militarum and officers of each regiment. Leading the Astra Militarum is the one and only Lord Creed and his mighty Banede named Cadia''s Warth. Behind him and his tank, his personal Cadian guardsmen took the honor of the first formation while Mordian Iron Guard, Valhan Ice Warriors, and Catachans follow in order. In total, over 3000 Imperial Guards gathered under the order of Lord Creed and Chapter Master. This sudden call to action was rather weing to them as they had been itching for action for quite some time. Behind the Astra Militarum are a small group of warrior women in ck armor. Their hairs are white as snow and armed with weapons that are heavy for an adult man to carry. Their appearance silenced any cat callers while women of all ages admire their presence. Around 100 Sisters of Battle gathered to join the cleansing of the mutants, traitors, and unclean while carrying the banner of Golden Lioness to represent the Living Saint herself. When natives of the world saw walking Imperial Knights, they all panicked and prayed to their gods to deliver salvation due to fear of certain death. Never in their lives did they ever imagine witnessing the walking metal giants armed to teeth and shaking the very ground as two Imperial Knights followed William''s forces. Behind the knights, the artillery unit of Kreig follows the formation as their heavy artilleries and ammunition vehicles took the rear. Even though the Kreigs are support units, their appearances of gas masks and silence made even the criminals nervous as their temptation to steal military goods diminished right away. While the massive formation of the Imperial might astound the citizens of Alderim, their first gaze at the one leading the army made them remember it for the rest of their lives. The Chapter Master William in his all glory rode his assault bike while his honor guards followed behind on their own bikes. Riding next to William, his counterpart, the Living Saint Rana sits in her custom-made vehicle as her entourage of Sisters handles the vehicle itself. William''s forces weren''t stopped by anyone or anything until they arrive at their destination. No noble house dare to challenge the Crown Prince''s decree or William''s authority as suprememander of the Imperium''s finest fighting force. No monsters or highwaymen were encountered during the whole travel as no sane being will dare to fight and wish to survive the encounter. By the time William left the Greenhill, the story of his armies and destination became a national topic. Some spected that William is going back to thend of the vampire to finish the job once and for all. Some start to believe that his mission is divinely given by the gods of their own religion. Very few knew of the reason why William is heading towards thend of the vampire and wait patiently to hear the report from their own messengers. At the end of William''s campaign, the vampire faction waspletely eradicated and Alderim absorb thend after more than 100 years of separation from the nation. William on the other hand obtain more than what he expected from this war as this gave him advancement and one step ahead to return to the 40k universe. ----------------- The City of Deron, half day away from Fort Stormfist, The fifthpany wees the arrival of William''s forces as they open the gates with supplies and ces ready for them to rest. After sessfully rescuing Countess Shaw, Wolf Seer and hispany of Astartes eliminated any remaining henchmen of the Alpha Legion and relocated to the Deron to rendezvous with William''s armies. With support from Countess Shaw, the City of Deron made preparation to weee the forces and assist if ites to military numbers. Deron is a strategic location as it is the only city to locate before entering the only path that leads to the vampire''snd. Also, thend is rich with resources such as iron from iron mines and lumber from the forest which provides multiple resources for trading. Finally, the city itself is the supply line to the fortress that acts as a bottleneck in case the vampire lord decides to invade. In short, Deron is the linchpin of the Alderim''s defense against vampires and their undead army. "Wee Chapter Master. I have my men already secured the fortress and we prepared enough supplies to leave immediately on yourmand." Wolf Seer put his right fist on his chest and wee the Chapter Master. With armies exhausted from the long travel, William informs Lord Creed to settle in the city until William is informed of the current situation. Due to Alpha Legion''s masterful skill in espionage, William didn''t want to risk voxmunication being intercepted by the enemy forces. So, when he arrived at the City of Deron, the first thing he needed to do was to be briefed on the current enemy movement. "Well done, captain. Let us move to themand tent for the salutation update." William said in a neutral tone and by his order, every senior officer gathered to be brief. Themand center is arge tent with a big open space to hold long tables and chairs of all sizes. Sitting in the center of the table, William sat and to his right, Rana, and to William''s left, Lord Creed sat down. After a few minutes of side conversations and servants serving drinks and snacks, the meeting began with William tapping the table with his index finger. "Let us begin this war meeting. I know you all are excited to dirty your hands once again after our previous battle. Lord Creed, give us what you gathered so far." "Yes, my lord. Major Cross, start the intelligence briefing," Said Lord Creed. A young man in his mid 20''s steps forward and activate a hologram projector to show a green-colored map in bird''s eye view. On the far left side is the city of Deron and not far away, the Fort Stormfist can be seen with the symbol of a fist holding a lightning bolt circling on top. On the far right side, arge city can be seen with the symbol of hydra on top, representing the Alpha Legion. "During our movement to rendezvous with the fifthpany, the captain of the fifth send out a few of his scout teams to check the enemy territory." With that said, the group of ck armored Space Marines with a of forest camouge nod their heads in silence. They are the recent recruit and former Raven Guards who merged with everypany. In the short future, William is nning to add a sixthpany with former Raven Guard as captain inmand and master of stealth if the situation demands it. "ording to their report, there are no enemy activities from the fortress to miles ahead. It is as if the enemy pull all their forces to make thest stand even before the war started. Without our orbital support to observe the enemy territory, we don''t have urate intel regarding the movement or position of the defense but for now, we know the enemy positions their defense on major cities including their capital city known as ''ck Phnx''. To reach the ck Phnx, we must pass five major cities and crush their defense if we don''t want to watch our back." "Is this intelligence urate? How do we know of these cities?" One of the officers from Lord Creed''s side asked as he question the legitimacy of the intel regarding cities. "Unfortunately, due to the limitation of aerial surveince, we don''t have exact intel. The fifth managed to retrieve this intel from the old archive thanks to Countess Shaw who provided the ess to her family library. The intel isn''t perfect but this is all we can gather for now." "Thank you, Major Cross. This is a good intelligence briefing considering who our enemies are. Don''t forget, we are about to enter thend that no Alderim ever ventured into in over 100 years. Not to mention that we are about to face Alpha Legion, the 20th and traitor legion of the Great Heresy. We are about to face a legion notorious for their sabotage and espionage expertise. I want everyone to stay alert and triple our night guards." Said William as he observe everyone in themand tent. William saw certainty in everyone''s eyes as their duty to the Golden Throne demanded beyond their limit. "The secondpany will send engineers to the fortress to refit the fortress for our vehicles to go through. The firstpany will provide security outside of the city wall while the thirdpany secures the path leading to the fortress. The fourth and fifth will stay in the Deron to prepare the rest of the armies for the departure in two days. Ladies and gentlemen, we are about to enter the enemy territory unlike we have experienced before. Prepare yourselves, we are officially at war." Chapter 121: Enter the Gigantic Fuck You Gun and the Laughing Madmen Chapter 121: Enter the Gigantic ''Fuck You'' Gun and the Laughing Madmen William''s forces didn''t face any resistance for four days after entering thend of the vampires. Just like in the military report, five major cities were abandoned and no living or undead was seen whatsoever. "Four days of nothing but clearing cities. Looks like the capital city, ck Phnx will be thest stand and major conflict to end this once and for all." William said to Rana as he touch the wall of the gift major city. With every precaution and warning from hisst encounter with the undead, William''s forces were divided into seven different forces clearing five different sectors of the city and castle which is located in the center. So far, no hidden armies, traps, or ambushes were found which made every officer confused. Topletely abandon the formidable and defensible city wall isn''t very logical in military strategy. Not to mention, all five city treasure vaults had their treasures and magical items intact with no sign of tampering or attempt to remove them at thest minute. A city of the dead simply empty and standing without a single soul standing. "My lord, we have cleared the city and are ready to move on your order." One of Lord Creed''s men said to William and Rana after giving a salute. From clearing four previous cities, William''s forces quickly adapted to clearing and securing the area without hesitation. "Good. Inform Lord Creed that we will stay in the city until tomorrow morning. ce guards around the walls and have all the main gates closed for the night." With an order given, the officer quickly left to pass the new instruction to Lord Creed. Meanwhile, William and Rana entered themand center to review the report from the scouts they sent a few hours ago. "No hostiles for miles ahead. Not to mention not a single living soul whatsoever so far. Looks like Alpha Legion was busy after all." Rana said to William after both of them went over the report. "No kidding. This feels like the ssic strategy of attrition and counteroffensive. The problem is that we are not experiencing any attrition at all. Nock of supplies, suffering from extreme weather conditions, or corruption of any kind. I would have said this would be the most ipetent military n done by enemy force but considering who the enemy is, I''m not so sure." William''s stern face didn''t change but his voice told Rana that he is worried about the uing conflict. Finally, after reviewing all the information from the scouts and attending the meeting with all the senior officers and representatives of other organizations such as Mechanicus and Sisters of Battle, William retired for a night while Rana attend a further meeting with the Sisters of Battle. -------------------- Next day, "All units! Halt!" Lord Creed gave themand and all units including the Imperial Knights stopped as they finally reach their destination, the capital city of the undead, ck Phnx. "We are outside of the enemy defense and reach, quickly move to your assigned formation and wait for further instruction." Lord Creed''s voice can be heard from all vox radios and with a given order, all units separated from the marching formation. Everything went well until something unexpected happened. Zeeeee¡­ Zap! Boom! Suddenly, Imperial Knight Gant, Scion of Wrath exploded and lost its right arm. With the sudden destruction of the Imperial Knight and the key unit of William''s force, everyone panicked and move to take cover. "Report, what just hit us?" William entered the vox channel and all he can hear is multiple reports from various units and regiments at the same time. William attempts to contact Lord Creed but once again, another explosion can be heard and hit Scion of Wrath''s left leg,pletely disabling the knight from the campaign. "Heavy units, retreat back! I need eyes on what and where the enemy is." Lord Creed''s voice took over the vox channel and control the situation as multiple voices quieted down. Momentster, William and Lord Creed learn who is responsible. "This is Major Sarkren from Catachan scouts. We found the presence of Tau in sector 10. I''ll say again, there are Tau forces located in sector 10." Major Sarkren''s voice made everyone including William and Rana turn their attention to sector 10 which is further left side of the city defense wall. "You got to be shitting me," William said to himself as his terminator armor zoomed in further to show an enemy beyond the standard range limit. Standing on top of the wall are two Tau KV128 Stormsurge equipped with all kinds of missiles and one gigantic ''fuck you'' gun on the shoulder. Known as Titan Killer, KV128 Stormsurge is a heavy weapon colossus battle suit and possibly the greatest asset of the Tau Empire. Armed with advanced sensors and intelligent systems, this unit has a great advantage when ites to range and it is equipped to prove it. Instead of arms, it is reced with a cluster rocket system, destroyer missiles on the left shoulder, and on its right is arge pulse ster cannon that can fire superheated sma. "This is Colonel Mind. Sir, we have Dark Eldar in sector 12. By the throne, it''s nothing but Raiders and Reavers!" The panicking voice of Colonel Mind can be heard in the vox channel and soon in the distancerge number of Dark Eldar vehicles can be seen,ing fast. "Prepare for engagement. Fortified the frontline and by the Golden Throne someone gives me an urate report of the enemy forces." Lord Creed said and proceed to light his cigar. Immediately, the frontline is filled with walls ofsguns,scannons, and heavy bolters. While this is going on, the secondpany of the cksouls (Former Imperial Fists) stands behind the wall of Astra Militarum with bolters up and tower shields ready. "Artillery unit, open fire when ready." After Lord Creed gave his order, multiple sounds of artillery fire can be heard as sharp whistles cut through the air andnds on the target with booming explosions. Krieg didn''t stop for one second as one after another, shells continue to drop and destroying fast approaching enemy vehicles. "We have flyers!" One of the frontlinemanders reported in the vox channel and William was the first to see what themander meant. Flying high and faster than Dark Eldars, William can see four dozen Tau XV8 Crisis Battlesuits with a hundred drones escorting them. Tau isn''t known for their strong physical trait, so they have battle suits that act as power armor and are capable of traveling long distances thanks to their advanced technology. This also means that they have AI technology that helps them with various things including attack drones. XV8 Crisis Battlesuit is one of Tau''s iconic units and is formidable. Not only suit is capable of following the mind of its user, but the suit can jam the signal, possess an impact field, and have a wide-range sensor to track enemy movement. "I will take care of them," William said and went to work immediately. Using his terminator armor''smand module, William began to hack the Tau''s drones and start giving new instructions. The moment he pressed the confirm, hundred of Tau drones rotate around and opened fire on their masters while matching their speed. Armed with twin-linked pulse carbines, hundred of gun drones lit up the sky as Crisis Battlesuits began to explode and some even crashnd before blowing up. By the time all of the battle suits in the sky went are destroyed, the remaining gun drones fly toward the city defense at high speed. "William, did you just do that?" Rana asked William with confusion as she saw a swarm of drones begin to retreat back. "Yep and watch this," Right after William said, the hacked gun drones descend at a 90-degree angle with intention of crashing into the programmed targets. The two KV128 Stormsurges didn''t have the chance as gun drones kamikaze at them with their guard down. Because they have the high range advantage, the two machines didn''t have their energy field up, resulting in them taking direct damage and getting their primary guns destroyed in the process. "This isn''t over." William then activate one of his hidden cards from the inventory and a secondter, the sky once again lit up as half a dozen Manticore storm eagle rockets flew behind William''s forces, hitting the castle walls and destroying significant areas of walls. [Support Item, Manticore Eagle Rocket x1: Fires six rockets and hits targetted area. Note that it doesn''t summon Manticore as this is only a fire support item] With Tau Empire''s heavy long-range units gone, many of the heavy units of the William''s reappeared from the rear formation. Meanwhile, the frontline is busy taking out fast-approaching Dark Eldars as distance began to shorten. "All tank unit, fire at will." Receiving an order from Lord Creed, every tank from Banede to Leman Russ opened fire on its primary weapons. Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Countless heavy tank rounds hit their target and the sound of the rounds overpowered the sound of the lesser weapons of the Imperium as Raiders and Reavers turn into piles of burned garbage. "All artillery, fire inside of the castle walls. Destroy everything. All units move forward. Tank units quickly advance to the frontline and provide cover." Lord Creed orders his men to advance in which William adds the order by having his secondpany armed with tower shields take the front point of the guardsmen while tanks pass them to provide solid cover. As soon as the main force reach the city''s mid-range, the hidden enemy force appeared from the far right side of the wall. Approaching at high speed and from the undamaged area of the wall, five Tau TY7 Devilfish and eight TX4 Prianha came in high speed. "Enemy in sector 1, all unit fire at will!" Just as themander of the frontline gave an order, William activate his second item from the inventory. Breaking the sound barrier up in the sky, the twenty drop pods crashnd between William''s forces and approaching Tau assault vehicles. Lining up like a barrier, the drop pods of the cksouls seem a bitrger than the usual ones. With a wider body and bigger hatch, William''s new unit appear on the battlefield for the first time and it was a surprise for both sides. When giant hatch doors open, loudughter and the sound of engines can be heard within the drop pods. VROOM! VROOM! "HAHAHAHAHA! For the Emperor and the Khan!" With the thundering sound of an engine andughter of mad men, a fleet of assault bikes, Invader ATVs, and modifiednd speeders charge out of the drop pods without worries or concern about who they are about to face. Formerly known as the Horde of Jaghatai, former White Scars of the Storm of Chogoris entered the battlefield with lightning-fast speed and theughter of mad men who dare to smile while killing their foes. Chapter 122: Lancer of the Thunder Horde Chapter 122: Lancer of the Thunder Horde "If you can see us, we are dangerous indeed. But that is as nothing to the peril you face if you cannot see us, and all you can hear is ourughter." - White Scars Proverb Formerly known as Star Hunters and now White Scars, the 5th legion of the Adeptus Astartes are masters of lighting-fast speed and hit-and-run attacks. Hail from the home of Chogoris, White Scars bears the ritual scars of bravery with honor and the fighting spirit of tribal savagery while possessing the superhuman ability of the Astartes. These traditions and war tactics came from White Scars'' Primarch Jaghatai Khan, whonded on Chogoris as a baby before the Emperor of Mankind started his Great Crusade. Jaghatai Khan as hisst name indicate is based on old Terra''s ancient time of Great Khans where tribes'' leaders bear the title ''Khan.'' Simr to Genghis Khan''s origins, Jaghatai Khan uplifts his people from being one of the weakest tribes to the most powerful on the within his early adulthood. Inheriting the position of ''Khan'' from his father who was in by his enemy, Jaghatai Khan ughtered the rival tribe without mercy. This event led to the total conquest of the Chogoris with each fallen tribe given an option by the Great Khan himself. "Join me or die." As he shows no mercy to his enemy who opposes him on the battlefield and at the table of diplomacy, the Great Khan does rule his people effectively and withpassion. To prevent his people from fighting each other due to cultural differences and as former enemies, Jaghatai Khan decided to mix a newly obtained tribe with others equally to assimte as onerge tribe. This practice not only sessfully unites a into one as a whole butter became a key factor in Star Hunter bing White Scars when Primarch unites with his legion sons. White Scars aren''t much known among Imperium and even within other Astartes Legions,ter Chapters. In their earlier days, the 5th legion is also known as Terra''s Forgotten Sons. This is because White Scars doesn''t boost their great deeds and achievements like Space Wolves or Ultramarines. It came to a point that there are very few records of Jaghatai Khan''s actions during the Siege of Terra except his will to stay loyal to the Golden Throne and his brothers Sanguinius and Rogal Dorn. Jaghatai Khan himself didn''t receive much respect from his brothers during his early years after Emperor found him. Because of his origin on a primitive, Jaghatai Khan had many difficulties bonding with his brothers who aplished many things and ruled a civilization of greater technological advancement. The Great Khan continues his duty as one of the Emperor''s generals and his action speaks more than any songs or poems written by the remembrancers (Historians). Jaghatai Khan and his legion managed to break through enemy armies multiple times which would have halted the Emperor''s crusade. No one dare to stop the Great Khan as even the Admechs of Mars couldn''t stop Jaghatai Khan from installing more engines into his gship, the Swordstorm to go faster than any Gloriana ss battleship. White Scars are the brotherhood of the speed and tribal bond. Lives with the tradition of Chogoris, the 5th Legion is disciplined and loyal to the Great Khan and his word of judgment. White Scars have a tradition known as Scrolls of Vengeance. A long scroll where Khan (Captain or above) can write a name of an enemy who has done a great wrong to the Chapter or Imperium and will be put into the possible quarry for the next Great Hunt of the White Scars Chapter. (Not gonna lie, this is literally a Book of Grudges from Warhammer Fantasy and I just realized it as I write this.) *From a conversation between Khan and Sanguinius during the Siege of Terra. ''Since when was saving mankind from the darkness a sign of weakness?'' said the Khan, ''Sanguinius, my brother andrade, what do you see? Lend me your foresight.'' Sanguinius shut his eyes. Like that, he appeared drawn and tired, a funerary monument to himself. Dorn suppressed a shudder. ''My sight is not so clear as father''s,'' said Sanguinius. ''The Future is ever in flux. Only some events¡­'' He paused, finding the words hard to say. ''Only some events are certain.'' ''Do you see me? What will be the consequences of inaction?'' ''I see fire, and blood and a worldid to waste if you do not act.'' ''If I act?'' said the Khan. Sanguinius opened his eyes to look at him. ''There is a grave risk to you. A confrontation unlooked for, and if you survive, a flight from one danger into greater peril.'' ''Who will I face?'' ''I cannot divine.'' ''Will I save lives?'' Sanguinius nodded. ''Many.'' ''That is what I was made for,'' said the Khan. ''I will ride out.'' --------------------- "OOOHHH!" "HAHAHAHA" A horde of former White Scars rode their rides as madmen while waving their melee weapons in the air. But when the enemy reaches within firing range, all of them quickly ready themselves with discipline and fearsome speed. "Fire!!! Unleash the fury of the Great Khan!" The leading Null Marine shout his lungs out even though he is wearing a helmet with a built-in vox caster. Without a slight hesitation, all of the vehicles open fire and unleash their heavy weaponry onto iing Tau vehicles as they also fire their weapons. To everyone''s surprise, the first vehicle to be destroyed is the former White Scars as a few of the assault bikes blow up after receiving hits from Tauser guns. The destruction of the front row didn''t stop the Horde of Jaghatai as the rest of them simply speed up their vehicles to go much faster and faster. Soon, the Tau side began to receive casualties due to damages from heavy bolters and even a few hits from passing by power weapons. At this moment, Tau forces received an unexpected enemy from above as Null Marines suddenlynded on the Tau vehicles and proceed to breach the hull of the vehicles using their power weapons. These Null Marines are equipped with jump packs and they managed to surprise the Tau because they are the first line hordes who fell during the first range of volley fire. Even though Astartes'' vehicles are damaged and unable to move, the drivers of the former Khans managed to use their jump packs to ambush their enemy from above. "For the Emperor and the Khan!" One of the Null Marines shouts in a thundering voice and threw Krak grenades into the exposed vehicle hull. Following the first Astartes'' example, others did the same and ignite their jump pack to evade the explosion. A few secondster, half of the TY7 Devilfish exploded, leaving the rest to the Hordes of Jaghatai as they turn around for the second round. All of this ended in a matter of three minutes. The walls are down and Tau''s reserve units burn to ashes as former White Scars did what they are good at. Going fast. --------------------- "This is Chapter Master William. Who is in charge of the reinforcement?" William said in his vox channel to his newpany of speed freaks. He is aware that they are under hismand but William must at least know the name of the captain of former White Scars. "This is Goghon Khan, Lancer of the Thunder Horde reporting to Chapter Master. Give us your order and we will bleed your enemy for ughter." The rough but cheerful voice of the Astartes with a deep Asian ent replies back to William. "Take front formation of the siege and take out any potential threat." Said William as he sees the horde of vehicles merges in front of William''s force. "Search and destroy?" Said, Goghon Khan. "Search and destroy." Said, William. "YES, Chapter Master! Let''s go, brothers!" With that, the voxmunication ended as Goghon Khan and his men sped up and leave the front formation with an eagerness to kill any enemy they can find. Seeing his newpany taking front charge of the battle, William turns around to make his first move of his own. "Prepare the Thunderhawks for the departure. I will be leading the infiltration to cut the heads of the hydra." "I will join you as well." A voice spoke behind William and without questioning Chapter Master''s authorization, the Living Saint joins William as both leaders board two separate Thunderhawks. "Rana, are you sure you want to join me? What about our child?" "And leave our child fatherless if something happens to you? Not on my watch. I''m going with you so you don''t do something stupid like dying." Living Saint said to William through a private vox channel andughed a little as she knows William is stubborn to die. "This is why I love you. Don''t worry, unlikest time I have a surprise of my own and I won''t be pushed around by the Alpha Legion." Said William as he watch the Thunderhawk hatch close, darkening the hall of the vehicle. Joining the Chapter Master and Living Saint are the honor guards of the cksouls and veterans Sisters of Battle. cing themselves in respected Thunderhawks and masters, the battle-hardened group prepares themselves for an uing close encounter with the enemy stronghold. [Thunder one and two are ready for flight. Three, two, one¡­unch.] The first Thunderhawk pilot announces through the vox channel and at the same time, the Thunderhawk lifts from the ground. [Everything is good to go, Thunder One, lead the way.] With that, two Thunderhawks left the base camp and proceed to fly toward the enemy castle. It didn''t take long for the two aircraft to receive fire from the enemy''s anti-aircraft defense as flyers began to shake. With eachrge explosion in the air, the Thunderhawk pilots managed to avoid the direct hit and even made a few ariel maneuvers to dodge the iing fire. [Approaching enemy fortress in five seconds. Brace for impact.] With a short warning and five secondster, the Thunderhawk One which William is in, ram right through the stone wall, literally crashing into the enemy castle as if it was a Kool-Aid Man. After receiving the initial impact of William''s Thunderhawk, the Tau Fire Caste ready their ion rifles and gather around the front hatch to take out the intruders. [Sessfully infiltrated the enemy fortress. Opening the front hatch. Good hunting to you all.] The front hatch of the Thunderhawk One opened and before enemy Tau could fire the first shot, thescannon turrets of the Thunderhawk turned around and fired first. When the smoke cleared and all Tau Fire Castes are wasted, William''s honor guards step out to secure the area. William was thest one to step out as he use his helmet to find the location of the Alpha Legionnaire. "We have the location of the primary target. Thunderhawk Two is much closer to the target than us. All units, proceed to the primary location with extreme prejudice." William gave his order through a secure vox channel to his men. Armed with his golden halberd, William led the front with intention of fighting his opponent first. "YES, CHAPTER MASTER!" At once, all of the honor guards respond to William''s order in one voice and follow him in formation to defend William with their lives. Chapter 123: Wood and Rust Chapter 123: Wood and Rust William and his personal honor guards advanced with no intention to stop no matter what. With each step, they take, the enemies tried to stop them but they fail as honor guards managed to take out the target before they could react. At first, the Tau defense force approached with their ion rifles and other various weapons to stop William and his men. The problem Tau didn''t or couldn''t consider were that William and his guards possess the most advanced technology in humanity''s history. The ion rifle couldn''t dent the honor guard''s armor as it simply absorb the energy. The heavy rail gun was simply redirected the moment it hit the energy shield that was powered by the energy from the ion rifle. Meanwhile, honor guards raise their bolters and open fire without any hesitation or remorse on the mind-controlled Xenos. To them, they are obstacles for their Chapter Master and their job is to clean the path so William gotta do what he must do. Killing the traitors once and for all. After finding out that they are facing another traitor legion from the long-ago Great Heresy, they didn''t ask questions or hesitate for a second. Action must be taken and no one will stop them from aplishing their goal. "Section two is clear." "Section one is clear." "Section four is clear." "Moving towards section three. Advancing to the next section." With a clear sign and hand gesture of two fingers forward, William''s honor guard and their captain advance quickly and tactically. Following them, William and the remaining guards follow as their heavy footsteps are covered by the sounds of bolter fires. "We are getting closer, Chapter Master. Still no words from the second team." One of William''s honor guard lieutenants said after checking his helmet. Assigned as amunication officer and equipped with an additional voxmunicator, the lieutenant is one person who stays close to the Chapter Master and provides updates regarding the current battle situation including their infiltration. "They know what they are doing. We must advance and meet them on the route." William replied and move forward as he step on the dead Tau soldier, crushing the whole upper body like candy on the floor. A few minutester, honor guards reach arge door with glorifying designs of gold. By the time William reach them, they already made all the preparation including breach charges and heavy weapons ready for any retaliation. "Progress report," William asks as he ces his hammer down on the ground and rxes a bit. At this point, no amount of firepower or enemies could hurt him or his men. It is as if he is ying a video game with all the cheat codes active and demolishing any enemies with one shot at a time. ''This is getting way too easy and I don''t like it. This is Alpha Legion and they don''t y around doing standard military strategy or siege when ites to fighting an overwhelming opponent.'' William thought to himself and lift his hammer as he saw his men ready to st the door. "All set, clear." With a single pull from the breach trigger, the door was sted with the loud sound of ''Boom''. The door turned out to be a simple heavy wooden door and it could have been easy to just knock it down with a thunder hammer. The whole reason the honor guards decided to use the sting charge was because of multiple life senor detected on the other side of the door. Not wanting to take the unnecessary risk of going full blitz while not knowing who is on the other side, Captain Auguste made the decision to go with a sting charge to destroy the door, expand the opening and disorient the enemy with an explosion. "Go, go, go!" Following an order without pause, four honor guards rush through the opening while two more follow them while holding heavy bolters. Just as the dust cleared, William saw inside the room through the wide opening the door used to stand. The room is beautifully decorated with colorful items and paintings. The room itself is big enough to host a ball and the ceiling has elegant chandeliers all of which are still shaking violently. Out of all things beautiful and elegant, the only thing out of ce was onerge wooden cage in the center of the ballroom and a single Tau warrior in his power suit. Wielding a power ax of his own already high up, ready to strike down the door to the wooden cage. Without a word, four honor guards open fire, killing the Tau in a power suit but not it was toote as his power ax cut through the wooden door like a hot knife on butter. With the cage open, the six honor guards point their weapons in the same direction with the intention to kill anything thates out. What came out wasn''t something they expected as four giant bugs step out from the wooden cage with long antennae and tough-looking carapace. Once again, the honor guards open fire on the three bug-like monsters as they identified them as some kind of Tyranid variant. The problem was that once the monsters'' antennas helped identify the location of their prey, they moved fast, and their tough natural armor was tough enough to ricochet the standard bolter rounds. Seeing that their bolters have no effect the four guards change their range weapons with power swords. Before they have an opportunity to activate their des'' power, one of the monster''s antennae touches the guard''s gauntlet. The moment the monster''s antennae touched the gauntlet, it began to rust, and before the honor guard could react, it fell from the armor, continuing to spread like cancer until the monster ate it. "Don''t let them touch you!" Recognizing the threat, honor guards attempt to distance themselves but it was toote as some of the monsters managed to spread the rust, destroying the priceless STC armor. "Kill this thing now!" The honor guard with heavy weapons couldn''t do anything since his battle brother is so close to the monsters. Instead, two guards dropped their heavy bolters for the power ax and activate the power weapon. With blue lighting fully covering the ax itself, two heavy honor guards slice two of the four Rust Monsters as the monster''s carapace couldn''t withstand the molecule-cutting power weapon. The remaining two Rust Monsters didn''t stop after two of their siblings were in. Instead, they proceed to fish spreading the rust within two honor guards, crumbling half of the power armor and devouring thempletely. The two honor guards who lost their armor didn''t disappear as they finally managed to activate their power weapons and deliver the finishing blow by decapitating the monster''s neck, avoiding the antennas. By the time the final monster was in, the rest of the honor guards entered the ballroom confused and dumbfounded. This is because two honor guards lost either part of their power armor such as leg or arm while the other two werepletely without armor as it is slowly rusting away on the ground. "What happened?" Captain Auguste said and a momentter, William entered the room with surprise on his face. "Well, captain. These monsters ate our armor." One of the guards without his armor said as he is now wearing nothing but a ck fiber muscle suit and ck Carapace. "You got to be kidding me. These are Rust Monsters." William said to himself as he approach one of the monsters but kept his distance from the monster''s antennae. Rust Monsters are one of the D&D''s infamous monsters that no adventurers want to encounter in their adventure. This is because just like their namesake, they tend to rust any kind of metal such as iron to magical ones such as adamantium and mithril. No matter the property of the iron, Rust Monster can turn it to rust,pletely destroying them and devouring them. "A native creature of this world?" Said Captain Auguste as he understood the situation. "Yes, and a bit different from the ones I heard of. Looks like Hydra bastard managed to alter these ones to withstand the bolter rounds. Captain, have the men change their weapons to power weapons and me weapons if they must use range. Don''t want to lose precious weapons by feeding them to enemy pets, do we?" "Yes, Chapter Master." Captain Auguste ces his right arm in his chest and bows a little to salute. As honor guards follow the order, the lieutenant approaches William with a new report. "Chapter Master, I found the location of the second team and they are engaged inbat with the same type of monsters. The Sisters of Battle are requesting additional assistance." Chapter 124: Hydra Dominatus Chapter 124: Hydra Dominatus William and his men redirect their route toward where the second team is. Just like how William''s strike team entered the enemy stronghold, the second team also managed to infiltrate using Thunderhawk Two. The second team leader is, of course, Living Saint Rana Beckett and her elite Sisters of Battle. Armed with bolters, mers, and melta weapons, the sisters in power armor massacred the mind-controlled Tau fire warriors. Because the sisters are much smaller in sizepared to William''s honor guards or standard Adeptus Astartes, Rana was able to bring a double amount of Sisters of Battle into the ship which boosted the already devastating firepower. While William was forced to take the middle stance as his honor guards did their duty to protect and eliminate Xenos, Rana was having a much different experience. Doing what she had been doing before her ascension to the servant of the God-Emperor, Rana position herself in the frontline while using her golden shield and bolt pistol. When it came to closebat, the living saint use her trusty sword/spear hybrid and strike his majesty''s enemy with lightning-fast speed. As they advance further, the type of enemy changes as if someone was adapting to the situation. Descending from the high ceiling with elegance and beauty that could kill a man, a group of Subi of the Wych Cults made their appearance. They are a small group of 8 but it was enough number to ambush the Sisters of Battle as their heads fell from their shoulders as Subi''s deadly des made quick work of them. Realizing that they have a new and different enemy, the rest of the sisters attempt to counter the ambushers but it was a feeble attempt as Subi managed to move faster than the sisters. As one of the Subi attempted to sh one of the sisters from certain death, a golden shield appeared from the Subi''s side, giving one deadly shield bash to the face. "Regroup to the nearest sisters and focus on one opponent at a time. Give them the Emperor''s judgment." The Living Saint, the golden lioness of the Emperor shines brightly as she wields her spear and a shield like an ancient goddess of war while her sisters form up behind her with mers and bolters. Now without an element of surprise, the remaining Subis attempt to do what they can to reduce the number. This was their own mistake as Rana step forward and each of her steps passing the wounded sisters healed and got back up to continue their fight. The second round of the fight began with Rana tossing the spear, piercing the Subi as she wasn''t able to dodge at that moment. Not understanding why the leader of the Sisters throw away her weapon so easily, the remaining Subi attempted to attack but to their surprise, one more fell as Subi''s head explode as the back of the spear hit her head. With the spear returned to its master, the fight once again started and ended quickly as the rest of the elite Dark Eldars fell under bolter rounds and fire of the holiest order. With the victory, there is a loss as few of the Sisters didn''t make it during the encounter. Because they are in the middle of the battlefield and behind the enemy line, Rana decided to leave the dead with a few Sisters to protect their bodies. Team two move forward after reorganizing their weaponry and finally, they made it to the entrance to the room filled with Rust Monsters. Not knowing what is behind the door, the sisters breach the doors and entered the room with precision. Unlike William''s room, Rana''s team entered the trophy room filled with mounted heads of the in monsters of the New World. "Room''s clear. Advancing further." "Confirm, search, and destroy." Five sisters entered the room and a few more followed them as each of them scan the area with their bolters. Unfazed by the stuffed monsters and heads, the sisters advanced but not much as they are weed by the Rust Monsters of their own. When one of the sisters steps on the floor trap, the panel made a ''click'' noise, setting off the trap. A total of seven appeared out of wooden floors and touch everything with their antenna, looking for anything metal to eat. "Fire!" Not knowing what the creatures are, the Sisters of Battle opened fire, and to their surprise, the bolter rounds bounced back as if they were shooting a tank armor te. After receiving the first round of bolter fire without any harm, Rust Monsters redirect their attention to the sisters and attack them. The first of the seven Rust Monster jump on top of one of the sister. Instead of biting her, the monster simplyy its antenna on her breast armor, rusting the area it touched and spreading the rust to the rest of the armor. Seeing what was happening to the armor, the sister panicked and pull out her knife to stab the monster''s exposed neck. With no hesitation or concern for her own life, her sister managed to stab the monster''s neck and twisted it, killing the monster after a few seconds. Her action may have saved her life but it was toote as her upper armor ispletely rusted and fell when she got up from the floor. The rest of her sisters weren''t fortunate as her as some lost their bolter or an entire set of armor as the rest of the Rust Monsters devour any metal they touch with their antenna. Seeing how their treasured weapons and armor are gone, the sisters draw their secondary weapons to y the monsters. Before they attempt to attack the monsters, the rest of the sisters entered the room, and with quick direction from the Living Saint, sisters armed with me weapons step forward, their weapons already ignited and ready to use. "Sisters, fall back and clear the area!" Canoness shout which sisters in the frontline follow the order without questioning it. "Fire!" Rana gave the order and six mers ze the room, engulfing the monsters and cooking them alive. "Woosh." "Hold your fire!" After confirming the death of six monsters, Rana orders her sisters to stop. Not wanting to spread the fire into other areas, Rana uses her power to kill the mes. Confirming the kills, Rana made sure sisters from the front weren''t injured but as expected they were more hurt mentally than physically. "Position the sisters who lost their weapons on the rear while we move to advance. Give extra weapons if you can spare, the enemy now changed the rule of the battle." Rana reminds the sisters and they move forward. After a few more minutes in the hallway, Rana and her group finally meet William''s group as his team appeared on the opposite side of the hallway. "Good to see you, Rana. I see you already got Alpha Legion''s surprise present." William greets Rana as he saw a few of the Sisters of Battle without their power armor. The ones without their armor were in the same situation as William''s men as they wore their ck fiber suits. "Yea, didn''t expect them to use the monsters here. It''s actually kinda brilliant move to disarm the opponents before facing them. I have to give them that at least." Said Rana as she swap her spear for a golden bolter pistol. "Well, they are up for some surprise if they thought a few monsters would stop us from reaching them," William said as his men and Rana''s sisters rechecked their weapons for an uing fight. With thest weapon check done, one of William''s honor guards step in front of the door and burst through as if it was made out of a paper wall. Following the honor guard, his brothers and the Sisters of Battle entered the room with weapons ready. Thest to enter was William and Rana and to their surprise, there was no one to fight or more doors to burst through. "All clear, no hostile or traps this time." Captain Auguste said and he was right. The room is big enough to house a dinner party and nowhere to go further. The room has various statues of humanoid monsters andrge paintings of vampire lords. At the end of the room have onerge painting of a man in red armor holding a crimson sword and looking down with menacing eyes. "Search the area and look for a hidden door. The enemy''s armor signal led us here." William said to his men as he scan the room using his helmet. If this was one of his old D&D campaigns, his old DM would ask his yers to search the room for hidden entrances or puzzles to solve. Stopping in front of therge painting, William saw the painting of the menacing vampire lord. Soon, Rana joined him and stand next to her lover as she couldn''t sense anything active concealment magic. "Looks like he fooled us once again. There is nothing here or trace to follow up." Said, Rana. "He must be here somewhere hiding," Just as William said to Rana, he saw a slight glow from the painting''s eyes. Before he could activate his nk ability to cancel the magic, William and Rana are hit by the ray of magic from the menacing vampire lord''s eyes. "Chapter Master!" "Your holiness!" Captain Auguste and Canoness said at the same time but it was toote as both leaders disappeared from where they stood, leaving men and women of the Imperium finest without their leaders. Just as twomanders were about to order their team to find their lost leaders, the statues of humanoid monsters moved and peel their rock skin as if they are leaves. A total of 12 minotaurs and bugbears approach the leaderless men and women, blocking them from finding their leaders or sending messages to notify the rest of the army. ---------------- Somewhere else, "Back to back, now!" First thing William said after the red light vanished was to secure the area and prevent any blind sides. Following the instruction without asking questions, Rana did what William said and put her back into his. The room is dark and the only light sources were William''s armor and Rana''s golden armor. Not receiving any attack, two circle around in their backs to scan the area. Second,ter, a sound of pping can be heard and both fighters knew who is the one pping as a man in scale armor appeared at his side and begins to lighten up as he passes the pirs. p, p, p. Three slow ps wee the two warriors and Alpha Legion Space Marine reveals himself. Facing the traitor, William was about to fire his weapon when he heard another pping noise from behind. Standing in front of Rana, a second Alpha Legionnaire appeared from the darkness, pping slowly three times. "What is going on? There are more of them?" Said Rana, as she raise her pistol toward the second Alpha Legionnaire. "I won''t do that if I were you," A third man appeared from the darkness, looking at both William and Rana as he made his appearance while holding a heavy bolter, ready to fire at any second. "There is no point fighting. Both of you are teleported far from the main conflict and they can''t track your signal even if you try. Hydra Dominatus, Chapter Master William, and your holiness. Wee to our ritual and you two are our guests and our sacrifice." Chapter 125: Power of the Inventory Chapter 125: Power of the Inventory "A ritual? A sacrifice?" The Living Saint said out loud and as she said the words, she realized what kind of trap she and her beloved fell into. Surrounding two leaders of the ck Souls and Sisters of Battle, Alpha Legionnaires approach them but kept their distance. "Oh, yes. But there is no reason for you to know all the details. Shall we proceed with the ritual?" The traitor Space Marine with a heavy bolter said and somewhere beyond the darkness, the chant of spell began. "Not on my watch." Said William and he is about to activate his nk ability, the second traitor intervenes by attacking William with Eldritch Lance. With a glowing green light, the second traitor fires the weapon from the trip of thence. Not expecting an actual beaming from the melee weapon, William did his best to take the hit without Rana getting hurt. The beam knock back William a few inches but his terminator armor and shield technology managed to prevent any vital damage to the Chapter Master. As there is no damage physically, the real problem emerges as his armor begins to flicker and start losing power. In a matter of seconds, William lost all control of the armor as his terminator armor powered down and began to reboot itself which requires a full minute. "Eldritch Lance with a heavy focus EMP beam instead of ssic Necron disintegration. A little adjustment from our R&D to stop that bulky armor while keeping you alive. Also, don''t bother with your fancy ''nk'' ability. If you try anything funny, Alpharius will kill the Living Saint." The second Alpha Legionnaire said and point his finger at the third Alpha Legionnaire who is now wielding a ck de with a red hilt that clearly says ''Chaos corruption.'' "Hello, my name is Alpharius, and this sword is called ''Sword of Sorrow.'' It was forged from the metal graciously donated by the church of the Adeptus Ministorum and during the process of forging, the de was quenched by the blood of the 1,000 Sisters of Battle. Of course, by stabbing them after each hammering. After itspletion, the sword thirsts for the blood of the Sisters and anyone with the beliefs of the False Emperor. This includes you my dear, Living Saint." The third Alpha Legionnaire exins the detail of his sword and points right at Rana as if the Sword of Sorrow itself was seeking the blood of the believer. The situation turns direr each second as two Alpha Legionnaires reveal a terrifying weapon that could counter William and Rana. With an EMP-sting Necron spear and Chaos Corrupted sword that could harm the Living Saint, both William and Rana turn their head toward the first Alpha Legionnaire who is armed with a heavy bolter. "What? This is just a normal heavy bolter with explosive ammunition. I may be an Alpharius but not all of us have fancy nancy weapons to go around." The first Alpha Legionnaire shrugs his shoulder as if he is not embarrassed about holding a standard heavy bolter while his brothers are equipped with exalted weapons. Surrounded by the three Alpha Legionnaires with weapons that could cause much harm, William and Rana face their opponents in silence. With the sound of chantsing beyond the darkness where Alpha Legionnaires stood, the light flickers as some of the torches move as the wind blew. Just as the wind flickers the torch fire for the fourth time, William and Rana made their first move. Since William and Rana were already back to back, and William''s terminator armor are back online, both warriors made a hard shuffle of 180 degrees, changing their opponents for another half to take on. Now, William is facing the third Alpha Legionnaire with Sword of Sorrow while Rana is facing the second Alpha Legionnaire with Necron Spear. "Oh, shit!" Said the second Alpha Legionnaire "I told you this would happen!" Third Alpha Legionnaire said as he ready his sword against the heavy terminator with imprable armor. "Ah, damn it." The first Alpha Legionnaire, on the other hand, responds differently (For a good reason) aspared to his two brothers. The moment William and Rana switch ces, the first traitor saw William pointing his hand toward him and something came out from his hand. Standing 12 feet tall, armed with the finest weapons and armor of the Necron Dynasty of Nihkh, Trazyn the Infinite appeared out of nowhere and face the ones responsible for stealing his head and collection from his fallen body previously. [I have returned and I''m here to get my stuff back from you, thieves!] Trazyn the Infinite, Necron Overlord, and the Master of the Solemnace Galleries entered the battle as William brought him out from his inventory to even the fight. --------------------- The night William met Trazyn in his study. William was d that Trazyn agree to his crazy idea. The very night Trazyn appeared at William''s study and brought the bad news to him, William made an argument that Trazyn must participate in the fight as he was the source of the problem. "You are the source of the problem and it was your collections that might end the New World. Of course, you will join me in the fight." William said as he point his finger at the Necron Overlord. The moment Trazyn said that one of his collections of the army that was stolen was the splinter fleet of Hive Fleet Leviathan, William wasn''t having it, that includes Trazyn trying to leave the room with all responsibility poured onto William to handle the situation. [But, you are the one with the army. I have none at this point. I have maybe a functioning ship and a handful of warriors. Also, even if I want to, how would you exin my presence to your men? ''Hi guys, Trazyn is going to join us to fight off Alpha Legion who possess Trazyn''s very own armies. Please don''t kill him while traveling to the enemy stronghold.''] Trazyn said as he jokingly wave his hands to show how ridiculous the idea of him joining William''s army was. After hearing the Overlord''s words, William had to pause as Trazyn''s reasoning make sense. No matter how he put it, there is no way his men and forces of Astra Militarum would ept Necron Overlord into their rank. Not to mention Lord Casten Ursarkar E. Creed will have few paybacks against Trazyn since Overlord is the one who collected him during the fall of Cadia. ''Yea, no way my men would ept Trazyn. Not to mention Magos of the Admechs would heavily object to his presence due to his soulless machine body. Wait a minute¡­'' Just as William was going over the reasons why his people would reject Trazyn, his light bulb went on as it gave him an idea. "Hey, Trazyn. You are considered an automaton right? No soul, no flesh, and definitely a robot." Said William as he looks Trazyn and examines the body of the Necron Overlord. [How dare you ce me as some sort of lowly machinery. I''m Trazyn the Infinite and my body is constructed with the finest Necrodermis, a living metal!] Trazyn said as if William just insulted him byparing him with lowly peasants of sorts. Hearing Trazyn''s response, William ce his hand on Trazyn''s shoulder and thought to put the Overlord into his inventory. To his surprise, Trazyn disappeared in front of him and when William open his inventory he found the Necron Overlord in his inventory slot. [Trazyn the Infinite x1: A Necron Overlord and self-proimed Archaeovist of the Solemnace Galleries. With his never dying body and mission to preserve the history of the universe, Trazyn made a personal mission to collect all manner of things including living breathing beings. It is said that his collection over endless years grew so big that the entire is one massive museum and requires multiple lifetimes to see a fraction of his collections. Trazynes with his trusty Empathic Obliterator, backup body, and a few collections of his choosing depending on a situation he got himself into.] "Wow," William said to himself as he read the description of the Necron Overlord in his inventory. After going over the description twice, William summons Trazyn from his inventory, and to no one''s surprise, Trazyn wasn''t happy with what just happened. [What just happened? Why do I feel like I just lose a few seconds of my life?] Said confused Trazyn as his own atomic clock is now not synced with the world by a few seconds. "Well, let me exin," William said to Trazyn and ce his hand towards the chair for the Overlord to sit down. "This is going to be a difficult one for you to ept." After a long exnationter, [No way. Absolutely no way I will agree to this whatsoever. Not only do you imprison me on your fancy power but to do whenever you want isn''t something I''mfortable with. I do the collecting not the other way around.] Trazyn said to William and ce his hand on the knee to show how serious he is. There is no way Trazyn, the Master of the Solemnace Galleries would agree to ce him in some storage like an animal until William sees fit to bring him out. After all, Trazyn is a civilized Overlord, not like that star-gazing Chronomancer, Orikan the Diviner. "Look, this is the only way for me to move you without causing a total purge on your body. What will it be? Don''t you want to get your stuff back from the Alpha Legion and get some payback?" Said, William as he gesture his two arms open wide to show a good reason. [What you said is true. There is nothing more I want than to punish the one who dares to steal from me. An example must be made and I can''t ignore the chance to do so. But still, how do I know you won''t imprison me like some kind of animal for collection?] "Well, for one thing, I''m not you. I don''t have reason to put you in my inventory for all eternity. Second, I''m sure Alpharius has a surprise waiting for me when I confront him and I would like to have my own trap to counter his. In the end, you have your grudge done and I will have one less traitor in my back. What do you say?" [Hmmmm¡­] Trazyn made a thinking noise as he process all the possibilities in his mind. He didn''t like the idea of bing an item to be stored but all he wants is his stuff back and he can''t allow this wrong to be unsolved without getting his hand dirty. After a long silence, Trazyn gave his answer which ultimately led to the present moment where William literally threw Trazyn onto the first Alpha Legionnaire''s face. With a single motion like water, the Overlord of the Nihkh Dynasty cut the heavy bolter in half using a Hyperphase Sword belonging to one of his former Lychguard who perish from hisst encounter with Alpha Legionnaire. [I''m just getting started and by the end of this unfortunate encounter, someone is going to end up bing my collection, willingly or not.] Chapter 126: VS Alpharius Chapter 126: VS Alpharius This will be three separate scenes while it is happening at the same time. -------------- "Beware of an old man in a profession where men usually die young." Trazyn the Infinite vs First Alpha Legionnaire. The moment Trazyn appeared from William''s inventory he was ready to deliver some payback. Immediately after his appearance to the Alpha Legion, Trazyn sliced the heavy bolter that the first Alpha Legionnaire was carrying using his Hyperphase Sword. After disarming the enemy''s weapon without hesitation, Trazyn increases his movement by overclocking his body to take advantage of the surprise attack. [One, he is disarmed and requires a few seconds to unequip his damaged heavy bolter. Two, he will pull out a secondary weapon which most likely will be melee to counter my Hyperphase sword. Three, instead of termination, catch him for my exhibit, ''Battle of the xxes Neb.'' Oh, the poetic justice.] All it took was microseconds for Trazyn to process his thoughts. The moment his objection was identified and the situation recognized, the Necron Overlord pull out his Tesseract Labyrinth from his pouch with his free hand. Like lightning speed, Necron Overlord threw his Tesseract to capture the defenseless Alpha Legionnaire that is until something appear in front of him out of nowhere, bing a scapegoat for the traitor. [Interesting. A whole crate of heavy bolter ammunition. You have the same ability as Chapter Master of the cksouls. Very interesting.] Quickly realizing what just happened, Trazyn pull back from the close-range melee fight to prevent himself from being captured again. "You will have a hard time capturing me. I have limitless items while you don''t with your Tesseracts." The first Alpha Legionnaire spoke and pull out a power sword from his inventory. Unlike his previous weapon, this power sword wasn''t decorated with Alpha Legion color or design. Instead, the power sword previously belonged to Champion of the Smanders as the de itself is crimson red, and the sword guard and the hilt was scaly with a color of deep green. [That''s a nice sword you got there.] Even though he was in a life-and-death situation, Trazyn couldn''t stop himself from scanning and praising the sword due to his nature. After a quick scan from his optics, Trazyn was able to identify the previous owner and time period. [Previous owner, Darnassan Draceon the Molten Wall. Champion of the Smander, Last known seen 901M41. Looks like he failed to find one of his gene father''s artifacts after all.] "How do you know of this?" The first Alpha Legionnaire asked as he is surprised that someone was able to identify the weapon of the Chapter''s Champion. [Oh, that''s easy. He once killed me while I attempt to steal Spear of Vulkan. A very big guy for a Smander and knows his stuff when ites to cksmithing.] Trazyn''s voice, even though it is a machine shows a great tone of respect to one of a mortal who managed to ''kill'' him in his long life. "Of course, you know of him. You pretty much know everything when ites to our universe." The first Alpha Legionnaire said and activate his power sword. When activated, the red de was engulfed by the blue but a secondter, the color of the energy and debined and changed, turning purple. [Very interesting weapon.] With new excitement running through his mechanical body (in this case his body greatly heating up) Trazyn decided to disy the first Alpha Legionnaire in the center of the 20th Legion''s gallery instead of cing it in some background of a named battle. Trazyn could vision the disy as the first Alpha Legionnaire will be his finest and most eye-catching while holding that sword in his hand. [Capturing you will be worth all the problems your brothers caused me so far.] Before hisst word could be heard, Trazyn swiftly move to the side and pull out another Tesseract Labyrinth containing something else already. What came out made the Tesseract Labyrinth made even the Alpha Legion panic as arge spider-like monster size of Leman Russ tank appeared and looks very hungry. [Allow me to introduce you to a Megaarachind. I found his little guy from named Murder. Previously discovered by Blood Angels during Great Crusade and I took advantage of collecting a significant number of them for my collection. This one is rather young but it should be more than enough to keep you busy from getting close to me.] Trazyn the Infinite said to the first traitor as he step back. The fight between the traitor Space Marine and Necron Overlord turned into a monster fight as Megarachnid slowly approach the traitor with four sharp ws. "A shit." This is all the first Alpha Legionnaire managed to say before he deflects several ws from the Megarachnid. Even with his power sword activated, the first couldn''t slice properly as he was busy blocking and dodging the monster''s attack. Just as Megarachnid managed to overpower the traitor, the first Alpha Legionnaire activate his stolen Necron technology by turning himself invisible. Unable to see the target, the giant spider stopped and search for the prey but it was toote as the traitor appeared underneath the monster and slice the monster''s belly from front to back. Screeching in pain, Megarachnid when into panic and swing its ws wildly but it was pointless as the traitor already managed to dodge the wild attack and decapitate the ws one at a time. In a matter of half a minute, Megarachnid was wless and unable to move as it was missing more than half of its limbs. With the primary threat taken down and unable to fight back, Alpha Legionnaire turns invisible once again and threw an explosive grenade before leaving the monster to its doom. The explosion took out the monster and at the same time, the traitor reappeared in front of Trazyn and grab Overlord''s facete with his free hand. "Nice try but this is checkmate for you. You should have faced me instead of depending on your minions." The first Alpha Legionnaire said and ce Trazyn into his inventory as Necron is not a living being. A sigh of relief came out from the Alpha Legion but before he could organize his thought, a metal hand touched his shoulder te from behind, and to his surprise Trazyn the Infinite stood with an expression of a smile on his face. [You are million years young to defeat me. What you thought you have is an empty shell of an extra body. Now, eternity awaits you.] Said Trazyn the Infinite as he activate Tesseract Labyrinth and capture the unique Alpha Legionnaire for his Solemnace Galleries. Thest thing the first Alpha Legionnaire saw was blinding light as his vision and consciousness vanished instantly. In the end, just as Trazyn promised, Alpha Legionnaire''s body stands alone in the center of the 20th Legion''s disy and is surrounded by the artifacts, war gears, and disy of major events only for one Necron Overlord to see for all eternity. -------------- "You have perverted and twisted the path he hasid for Mankind to tread. As your own decrees have stated, there can be no mercy for such a crime, no pity for such a criminal. I renounce your lordship, you walk in the darkness and cannot be allowed to live. Your sentence has been long overdue and it is now time for you to die." Alicia Dominica before the execution of Goge Vandire Rana Bassilo Beckett, the Living Saint vs Second Alpha Legionnaire. Alpharius was in pickles and he knew he was in trouble just like his two other brothers are. In front of him stands a beautiful woman with the highest lethality inbat as he previously saw footage of the fight between her and Night Lords. The whole point for him to be here was to take out the Chapter Master of the newly founded chapter who heavily uses the Terminator armor. Using the EMP weapon, Chapter Master''s armor will be useless for a short period of time for his brothers to take out the Living Saint. Unfortunately, the n failed and now Alpharius has to face Living Saint with a useless EMP Necron Spear. ''Still, a spear is a spear and it is a Necron weapon. I just have to manage.'' The thoughts came to Alpharius and he handle the spear like a master spearman. To the 20th Legion''s credit, his gene fathers prefer to use spears and served them well. Meanwhile, the Living Saint quietly waits while her shield and sword stay up to protect against any surprise attack. Seeing someone have to initiate the fight, Alpharius readies his spear and took up an aggressive stance. In a blink of an eye, the second Alpha Legionnaireunches forward with inhuman speed. The first strike of the Necron spear is blocked by the golden shield but that was just the beginning as Alpharius quickly spin the spear to make the consecutive strikes. From the outsider''s point of view, Alpharius''s attack is improvised and masterful as each of his strikes aims toward the critical part of the opponent''s body. As impressive as Alpharius is, he himself is troubled as his opponent managed to block each and every attack he made. The Living Saint single handily blocked or countered Alpharius ''s attacks with ease and didn''t show any signs of panic, unlike Alpharius. What is more frightening is Living Saint''s condition. After nearly a hundred multiple attacks, the Living Saint didn''t show a single sign of exhaustion or slowness. Alpharius knew he was fighting a losing battle and he is in deep trouble. His trouble began with Rana''s counter using her sword. The spear de was deflected by the golden de and in a matter of seconds, Rana reposition her sword hand and extended the weapon''s hilt. This caused the sword de to extend directly to Alpharius''s head and without hesitation, the second Alpha Legionnaire activate his Necron phase device to avoid certain death. As a spear de went through Alpharius''s head without harming him, Alpharius move to his left to corner the Living Saint as she is now vulnerable to attack. As Alpharius unphased himself to make his move, he quickly realized his mistake as Living Saint also reposition herself to deliver an attack of her own once again. By striking down the spear on the ground, Rana managed to swing herself to face now unphased Alpharius. With her primary weapon now a pole and using her momentum, she use the sharp edge of the golden shield to strike Alpharius''s chest. The destructive power of the shield bash push back Alpharius''s entire body while his chest te cracked. ''Crap. That was¡­'' Alpharius couldn''t finish his thought as Rana charged towards Alpharius while he was still flying to the other side of the room. The speed and reflex of the Living Saint surpass the Adeptus Astartes as she already picked up her spear and aim forward with her shield up. Alpharius who is about tond on the stone pir didn''t stop as he activates the phase device to escape the impact of thending. Now, having something to block between himself and charging Emperor''s wild beast, Alpharius got up to make the tactical retreat to reposition himself but it was pointless as the golden lioness break through the stone pir using her shield like ramming siege engine. The unstoppable force of the Living Saint pushed the Alpha Legionnaire into the corner as he couldn''t get enough time to think or react. Once again, Alpharius engage in closebat against Living Saint, and itpletes the opposite this time as a traitor is pushed back with overwhelming force. Having no choice, the second Alpha Legionnaire pulls out a sh grenade from his inventory and tosses it while his helmet went into vacuum sealed. When the grenade exploded, Alpharius quickly pull out a mer from the inventory and was about to aim the weapon toward the target when a sword pierce through the mer and his entire left hand. The de of the sword burned the flesh of Alpharius and enough although his body managed to handle the pain, the problem continue as Living Saint pull out her secondary weapon from her waist. At the same time, Alpharius attempt to fight back using his spear in his right hand but this was a pointless attempt as Rana struck Alpharius''s right arm and decapitate the entire arm. Now,pletely defenseless, Alpharius couldn''t do anything except scream in pain. Meanwhile, armed with a bolter, Rana raises her sidearm at Alpharius''s head. Without giving him a chance to say hisst words, the Living Saint of the God-Emperor fire her bolter. Completely destroying the head of the hydra as his body slump down to the floor and his spear did the same. "This is for ruining my surprise for William at the dinner party." Said Rana, a tone of her voice cold as winter mountain. Chapter 127: VS Third Alpharius Chapter 127: VS Third Alpharius "Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift. That is why it is called present" Chapter Master William vs Third Alpha Legionnaire The battle between William and third Alpharius begins a moment after Trazyn began his counter-attack using Megarachnid. After observing two groups start their fight and making sure no one was there to interrupt their fight, William makes the first move by an unleashing storm of bolter around. The third Alpharius, even though he is fighting an opponent that he wasn''t supposed to fight had a few tricks under his sleeves. Just before the bolter rounds could hit the Alpha Legionnaire, green energy appeared and shielded the traitor. ''Damn, of course, he has the Necron techs.'' Seeing his range option is ineffective, William continues to st third Alpharius while walking closer and closer. Relying on his melee weapon such as a power hammer, William readies himself to pull out his closebat weapon from his inventory when something unexpected happened. A sudden sh of light blinded William and what was standing in front of him is an Alpha Legion terminator armor instead of one with scally power armor. ''He has the same ability as MINE!'' The realization hit William but it was toote as enemy terminator armor punched William using a fully charged power fist. William slide back after receiving the full impact of the punch but thankfully, his armor itself managed to absorb the impact without harming the armor itself. "You thought you have the advantage when ites to power but I have you know that I possess more arsenal than my brothers," Alpharius said and pull lighting ws from his power fists. The battle of terminators began as William pull out his own lighting ws from his inventory and attach them to his own terminator armor. Stomp! Stomp! Stomp! The footsteps of two heavy armors got closer and closer as two warriors close the gap between them. When they finally reach each other, William swings his lighting w from above to sh the third Alpharius. The des didn''t reach the target as the traitor blocked them using his own. Using his free hand, William attempt to stab his opponent but that only made things much more difficult as a traitor countered using his own, cing both fighters into a battle of strength. Using all his might, William''s muscles swell and blood veins pop out as he pushes the enemy terminator, pushing his own body and armor like never before. The overwhelming strength of William''s strength resulted in the enemy''s defeat as Alpharius''s arms are pushed back and finally into his knees. "Embrace his judgment and repent for his light." Said William as he snaps the enemy Terminator''s arms and immediately pull back to stab the helmet. Just as William strike the third Alpharius and removed the helmet of the hydra, he saw something within the armor and realized he had been fooled this entire time. In front of his eyes was a heavily modified servitor with multiple imnts attached to his head. ''Shit, this was decoy this entire time.'' It was toote for William after realization as more terminators suddenly appeared out of nowhere. Surrounded by five Alpha Legion terminators, William removes his ws from the first one and puts them away to bring out his golden halberd. "It doesn''t matter what you bring out to face me. I have the number and more toe after these." All five terminators spoke at the same time with third Alpharius''s voices and circle William with various weaponry. From a power hammer with a shield to duel chain axes and powernce, five terminators possessed unique weapons of their own. "Well, I just have to destroy them all until I find you," William replies back and activates the kic pulse from the previous hit from the power fist. The st of kic energy knock down three terminators while two managed to stay up. It is these two terminators that William went for as his golden halberd lights up and decapitates the first one in half and the second one stabbed right in the face. William wasn''t done as he then twisted the halberd to remove the second terminator''s head to throw it at one of the downed terminators as it was trying to get back up. With a sound bang, the one who got hit by the helmet went back down while the two manages to get back up. Seeing the next prey in front of his eyes, William rushes to the next target and cuts the terminator''s head clean off as a golden de generates unimaginable heat. Next, as the fourth enemy was close to the third one, William use the back of his weapon to trip the fourth terminator and when it went down, switch from halberd to his trusty thunder hammer. With a thundering sound, William ms the hammer down right at the fourth terminator, smashing it to pieces as guts and blood ssh everywhere. Finally, William faced thest Alpha Legion terminator with a red visor beaming with death and carnage. In a blink of an eye, William managed to destroy four Alpha Legion terminators and he wasn''t even breathing hard with exhaustion. Facing the unstoppable force, thest victim didn''t hesitate to charge William while welding duel chain axes. With each heavy step, Alpha Legion got close and activated his chain axes as weapons engines roared like a lion. The charging terminator would scar a normal person but to William, it was another enemy to put down as he countered thest terminator using the top side of his thunder hammer to strike the enemy. The strike from the hammer push back the Terminator and before it could adjust itself to fight back, William already brought out his free hand with bolter in his hand. "Bang!" The sound of bolter echoed as bolter round hit the Alpha Legion Terminator helmet and instantly explode, leaving the body headless. Seemingly done with the fight, William lowers his hammer and looks around as if he was finally able to examine what he has done. Meanwhile, the real third Alpha Legionnaire was still alive and d as he used five decoy terminators in his ce as he wanted to see what William was capable of. ''Hearing and witnessing hisbat capability ispletely different. Good thing I didn''t join the fight.'' Third Alpharius said to himself as he maintain his distance while being invisible. Right after summoning the first decoy terminator armor, Alpharius activate the invisibility device at the same time to distance himself. After that, all he had to do was summon five more to observe and see how much more arsenal to take down the Chapter Master. Third Alpharius concluded that he can''t take down the Chapter Master by himself as William was more than capable of destroying anything Alpharius could throw at him. "I found you," Just as third Alpharius is considering tactical retreat, William''s voice can be heard from his back and he immediately attempts to escape. This was futile as William''srge hand grab Alpharius''s head and began to crush it like a tin can. "You may be invisible but you still generate Necron signal thanks to your Xenos shield and that was more than enough for me to find your location. I realized all those terminators were fake as they didn''t have the energy shields such as yours. Looks like keeping the best thing for yourself led to your death." William said to the third Alpharius and brought his hands together while holding the head of the Alpharius. Without giving the enemy a chance to speak thest word, William crushes Alpharius''s head like a grapefruit. William instantly confirms the death of the real Alpha Legionnaire as he receives the rewards for defeating the enemy. Previously, when William defeated the six Terminators, all he got from them were simple ammunition andmon weapons such assguns. This time after seeing his rewards, William smiles behind the Terminator helmet as he saw the sign that says he defeated the Alpha Legion Space Marine and receives rare items. With all three Alpha Legionnaires defeated, the battle is over and three warriors gather around. Earth of their fight with Alpha Legion was a tough and unique experience as it was an unusual fight. Now one question remains as to where they are as three of them didn''t know how far they are transported to or if they are in the same county. ------------------------- Meanwhile, somewhere beyond time and space, "Come on, you got to be kidding me, I had him." A young man with sses said with iteration as his character was killed by the Necron Overlord. "At least you had a fight. I was literally destroyed by the unknown Living Saint. What the hell is this setting?" A second man, a bitrge for the pants he is wearing and chewing on a biscuit said as his figurine got knocked down in the table map. "I think it went well. I mean we gotpletely murdered but it was a good attempt and I like it. By the way DM, how did you think of these? We usually y army vs army, not single unit fight." A third yer who is much older than the other two asks the DM who nned tonight''s game. Tonight was DM''s first game with these three yers as he joined themst minute in theic book store. "Oh, it was something I have been working on and it is still working progress. By the way, call me Mal, I will be here next week for the final battle to end this conflict once and for all." Chapter 128: Handshake Chapter 128: Handshake "Where I fall ten more shall take my ce! And one hundred each of them! So strike me down! I am the harbinger!" By Saint Onius Pius, while fighting the arch-traitor Horus. --------- By defeating the Alpha Legionnaire, William receives: [Sword of Sorrow: A Chaos-tainted sword forged and quenched from the blood of the thousand Sisters of Battle. The sword was created to be a symbol of the end of the Imperial Creed but resulted in a weapon against believers of the Emperor. Sword of Sorrow can inflict great harm to Living Saints and even dy respawn time for their resurrection. This sword is big enough for Adeptus Astartes to wield as a single-hand weapon.] [Scroll of the Creation and Recognition of ''nk'' Legion: A nk documentation for the official creation of certain Legion which approved and signed by Malcador the Sigillite, the Imperial Regent and second most powerful man next to the Emperor of Mankind. This document is one of countless that were created during Horus Hersey to counter the traitors and protect the Imperium if it ever survives. By filling in the name of the Legion (or Chapter) the name will be officially recognized by the Imperium and ess to the highest order with full authority of the Imperium. No one will question the existence of the organization and only a selected few will know the truth which will be limited information. Those with authority higher than Malcador the Sigillite can overrule the organization in question (Such as the Emperor himself, Malcador the Sigillite, and his loyal sons if they wish to use their authority of birthright). Note: When in contact with the Imperium factions or other organizations, the use of the master code thates with this scroll will give unquestionable authority even above the Inquisition or Chapter Master of the other Astartes. It is important to know that the use of this level of power is not something taken lightly as High Lords and the Grand Inquisitor will take action.] --------- ''Well, shit. That''s a bit overpowered as hell.'' William thought to himself after he quickly read the description of his rewards for ying the third Alpharius. He began to wonder what other kinds of rewards he could obtain if he fought the other two but quickly remove those ideas as he didn''t see one thing that could end the New World. The Tesseract Cube contains the splinter fleet of Hive Fleet Leviathan. [He doesn''t have it. My Alpha Legionnaire doesn''t have the cube I''m looking for. I mean I do like what I got from capturing him but he didn''t have the cube.] Trazyn the Infinite, while holding the Tesseract Cube of his victim said to William and Rana as he examine the cube with a voice of curiosity. William assumed that Trazyn could ess the cube and obtain all the information through his connection with the cube including what his victim possessed and maybe more. One thing for certain, William also didn''t obtain any cube in question. [You my dear, how about you? Did you find anything from your opponent after you brutally murdered him? I assume you know what I''m talking about, a cube simr to what I''m holding.] In desperate hope of finding the world-ending bioweapons, Trazyn rushes the Rana in which Living Saint proceeds to bash Trazyn with her golden shield. "No, I didn''t find any item that looks simr to your cube. Are you certain these traitors were the ones responsible for your loss?" After Trazyn recover from the hit from Rana, she spoke to question Trazyn''s intelligence on who his thief was. In some way, Rana has good reason to question Necron Overlord as Alpha Legionnaires tend to skip on a few important details such as their true intention and actual number of their forces. [You dare to ask me of my intel? I know for a fact one of these men was responsible for the theft of my belongings. I''m just not sure which one, that''s all.] Even in a robotic voice, Trazyn was not fully confident in his answer as William and Rana stared at a lone Necron Overlord. William was certain he didn''t get anything from his opponent as his rewards didn''t contain Necron Tesseract Cube and he sure didn''t see Rana search the corpse of her opponent after the fight. William managed to defeat his enemy just right after Lliving Saint did which didn''t give her enough time to search the body. Trazyn knows this as he was the first one to finish his and observe the other two fights a few seconds before the end of all three conflicts. "Looks like none of them have the Tesseract Cube. How do you want to pursue this? I''ll say we have to regroup with the rest of the forces and find other Alpha Legionnaires." William said to Trazyn to see if he have other ideas. At this point, the one who possesses the cube could release the Great Devourer just by vox silence from three fallen legionnaires. They have to act fast and find this cube soon as possible before it''s toote. After a long silence and thoughts, Trazyn finally spoke, and to no one''s surprise, the Necron Overlord''s next move is something William anticipated. [Or since I have both of you here with me, I could just capture both of you for my rare collection of named Astartes. Imagine, a grand stage where you, the Chapter Master of unknown origin fight side by side with a new Living Saint of the Emperor of Mankind against the champion of the 20th traitor legion. What do you think?] Said the Necron Overlord as he pulls out the new Tesseract Cube from his dimensional portal out of thin air. The neutral alliance quickly ended as it was quickly formed before. William and Rana are now face against the Trazyn the Infinite who have all the reason to collect and make the run to the 40k universe after. "You can try Trazyn but both of us know it won''t be easy. If you just want to dine and dash this New World before the Great Devourer surface from the cube, I''ll say you don''t have time to spare at all. Take your win and leave now, unless you want to risk it all by fighting me and Rana." William casually calmly said to Trazyn but his words were different from his action as William ce his hand on his weapon while Rana grab the Necron EMP spear from the fallen Alpha Legionnaire. William''s brutal strength was difficult enough for Trazyn to fight but for Rana to join with that cruel EMP weapon is insane even for the Necron Overlord. Seeing there is no way for him to win the fight to capture two top prizes, Trazyn decided to take the win he have and live for another venture. [You bring up a good point. I will take my leave and I hope to see both of you in the future.] Trazyn put away the empty Tesseract Cube back into his dimension portal and recently captured Alpha Legionnaire for the future disy. "You made the smartest choice since meeting our short alliance," said William as he put out his right hand to initiate a handshake. The Necron Overlord stare at William''s hand for a second and simplyughed at the sound ofck of air even though he doesn''t have lungs or breathe air for all that mattered. [Hahahahahaha! You do have a sense of humor after all. Hahahahahaha!] After a few more seconds, Trazyn finally stopped but he continue to giggle more while refusing to shake William''s hand. [I will be the Deceiver''s second victim if I ever fall that. Let us just depart and meet again in a better¡­ situation.] Trazyn said and a momentter, a green light engulf his entire body and disappear as he teleported back to his gship. Trazyn the Infinite, the Necron Overlord, and a self-proimed Archaeovist of the Solemnace Galleries left the New World with his fully repaired gship. He and his ship eventually entered the giant warp tear beyond one of the moons, to return back to his homeworld and catalog his new collections for his galleries. --------- "Let''s continue our night game guys. With Necron Overlord leaving the game, Chapter Master of an unknown Chapter and Living Saint decided to find their exit after multiple faire to contact their group. After finding the exit, they continue to move forward with caution as they have no idea where they are or what kind of danger will suddenly appear." Mal said to his yers at the table as he roll the fancy ebony dice. "I roll 13. Let''s see what you guys will y this time." Mal began to check his DM list and in a matter of few seconds, he brought out sheets of paper for the yers to take. "Looks like we are ying Drow." "I''m Drow Swordmaster." "Oh, I got Drow ve Master." The yers quickly review their character sheets and began preparing for the next encounter. The secondary encounter of the unusual fight will begin as Mal ys with his ebony dice with his fingers with an evil smile behind his DM screen. The first night of the game continues as Mal flips a few pages from his precious notebook and starts exining the scenario of the game setting. Two ''NPCs'' continue their advance to find the escape while a group of Drows slowly approach them in the shadows to destroy them. Chapter 129: Dark Elves Chapter 129: Dark Elves Drows are the D&D version of Dark Elves. They are the dark-skinned sub-race of the elves that end up living in the Underdark, the undergroundwork of cities. Due to Drow''s cruel culture and religious beliefs, another majority of races despise and are suspicious of their existence. Church of Lolth is one of the two primary religions of the Drows and the most recognizable one since it is the religion of the Spider Queen. Also known as Queen of the Demonweb Pits, Drows worship Lolth with the practice of sacrifice and killing who are in the way of the church itself (Sounds very familiar). Drows are the chaotic evil and masters of ves who they raided from the surface world. As a sub-race of elves, Drows are long-living beings that use their time to their advantage as they are patient and skillful in their crafts. It is said that Drows Swordmasters honed their skill to the nail as they have hundreds of years to master them all. Drow''s nobles are the pirs of the Drow culture. Each noble house was founded through special traits and possessed special powers that could pass on to the next generations. As Lolth is a female goddess and powerhouse of one of the primary religions, Drow noble houses each have matron mothers who are also powerful priestesses of Lolth. Their influence can reach beyond the house and even ovee threats, mostly from rival noble houses. As evil and cruel as the Drow are, there are few small good Drow. Not crazy as their close rtives but some are chaotic neutral orwful neutral which in Drow''s perspective, it is umon. The most notable name of good Drow is Drizzt Do''Urden, an exiled Drow ranger whoter became an iconic character within the D&D world. Overall, Drow is D&D dark elves and tends to be on the negative side of things. They don''t hold rare gems and gold as valuable things unlike dwarfs but greatly value knowledge of magic and information. The culture itself is cruel and society is run by zealous priestesses/head house and ves of other races as the workforce. In short, it is Tuesday for these folks. ----------------- William and Rana found themselves in a dark hallway that leads to an unknown ce. William spected that they are somewhere underground as his Voxmunicator isn''t working and there is no signal to contact his main forces. At this point, William and Rana hope that their men and women took the matter into their hands and resolve the invasion ordingly. "I''m sure they will find us afterpleting their duty. After all, they are your finest warriors with years of experience and stern minds even in unexpected battle situations." Rana reassures William with a gentle voice and reasonable thinking as both walk in the dark tunnel with light sources. ----------------- Meanwhile¡­ "OUR CHAPTER MASTER IS GONE! WE MUST FIND HIM! KILL THE FILTHY XENOS!" Said one of the Null Marines who just found out their Chapter Master is missing. "Bring out the prisoners. They must know where Chapter Master and Living Saint are." Said one particr Null Marine who is more interested in the integration than the whereabouts of two missing leaders. The city burns as cksouls Marines and Sisters of Battle fully engage inbat without mercy. This didn''t change when Xeno forces and Vampire Lords regained their consciousness as Necron Mindshackle scarabs became useless. Confused and uncertain who the friend or enemy is, Tau forces attempt to retreat but failed as Null Marinesunched a devastating attack to wipe out the majority of heavy units and vehicles. As for the Dark Eldars, they are no match for the newly summoned former White Scars. Their maddening speed of lighting did no favor to the Dark Eldars as they weren''t prepared or ready to face the enemy while under mind control. With the fury matching the Great Khan himself, former White Scarsunched a search and destroy mission to eradicate the taint of the Drukhari. By the time invasion is done, the entire Legion of cksouls Marines search for their missing Chapter Master and the Living Saint. Unknown to them, they have no idea that Alpha Legion Space Marines used the outsourced teleportation magic from the New World. Due to Null Marines'' natural ability to counter the magic, no cksouls Liberians could sense to know what to search for. With no way to find their missing leaders, Lord Creed focuses his attention on maintaining military readiness until the Magos of the Metalica detect a signal from the Chapter Master''s terminator armor. The matter of invasion of the vampirend is done. Soon, Crown Prince Benton''s forces wille to relieve them as promised. Until then, Lord Creed will watch over the main force while Space Marines and Sisters of Battle cleanse the verynd itself as they search and eliminate potential threats within thend. ----------------- Back to William and Rana, Normally, walking into a dark tunnel requires some kind of light source such as a torch orntern, but William and Rana didn''t need them as they have different ways to negative through the darkness. William uses his helmet''s night vision while Rana simply followed William as her vision is never blinded by the darkness. One benefit of being a Living Saint is to be the embodiment of the Emperor''s light. For Rana, walking in the darkest tunnel is like a walk in the park in broad daylight. "William, I have something I need to tell you," Rana said to William as she approach closer to stand next to him. "What is it?" William asks his beloved and is about to turn his head to look at Rana when his helmet disys an alert of something unknown approaching. Without hesitation, William lifts both of his arms to ready his range weapons as his helmet automatically searches for the targets to lock on. [Target found and locked. Fire when ready.] Theputer system announces through the helmet and William pulls the trigger without any question. Echos of bolter sounds can be heard as a dozen rounds were fired from William''s terminator armor. In a matter of seconds, the target is destroyed as William''s bolter did its job by delivering devastating destruction. When both William and Rana reach the corpses of the unknown target, they found a corpse of a monster with a mix of humanoid features. "It''s a minotaur. Was more likely. I wonder if there are more of them?" Rana said as she search for any clues. Meanwhile, William scans the area and attempts to find if there is any hidden path within the dark tunnel. Monsters such as minotaur tend to be difficult monsters for an adventurer''s party and tend to be protectors of some kind of dungeon. "William, look. This looks like a metal cor. Could this monster might have been a ve?" Rana said as she use her sword to lift a metal piece that used to be a ve cor. After one of William''s bolter rounds exploded the monster''s head, there isn''t much to look at but thanks to Rana''s observation, they have a general understanding of possible civilization within this ce. "Let''s move on. I''m sure we will find some people if there is a sign of a ve cor. By the way, we found this as it is." William said to Rana with a certain cue that he doesn''t want to owe anyone money for killing a ve, even if it''s a monster. Worst case, William might end up in a conflict with the vers before he could find out where exactly he is. Two left the corpse and eventually reach therge chamber where the sound of activity can be heard. William is the first to enter the chamber and to his surprise, the chamber is some kind of tomb as he saw five stone sarcophagus with beautiful carvings. Guarding the tomb, eight minotaurs stand with melee weapons in their hands. But what got William''s attention was a small figure in fancy clothes with a vicious whip in her hand. It was at this moment that Rana finally entered the chamber and saw what William saw before. "Drow!" Said, Rana. "Drukhari!" Said, William. Both William and Rana looked at each other for a second after they spoke at the same time. "Doesn''t matter," William spoke without concern as he was more focused on what was in front of him. Just as William and Rana bring out their weapons, the rest of the enemy came out from the darkness above as the rest of the Drows drop from the high ceiling with weapons already out. ----------------- "The ambush is sessful but your opponents are equipped beyond your imagination," Mal said to his yers with excitement. He continued. "The poison darts didn''t work on the giant man as his armor is too thick to prate. Meanwhile, the holy being in woman''s form began to generate energy beyond your understanding. Roll your saves." Mal exined to the yers and instruct them to roll the dice with 20 sides. "Man, I got 7." "I got 14." "With plus, I got 19." "Both of you failed your saves. You on the other hand made the save as you hid behind the monsters. The blinding light came out from the female Living Saint and in a matter of seconds, two of you are blinded due to the sudden light equivalent of the sun itself." Said Mal as he roll the dice of his own to see what will happen next. "Meanwhile, due to your blindness, two of you don''t see the next attack. The giant man opened fire and he rolled critical 20. Both of you are killed instantly. I rmend using your backup character sheets if you wish to continue ying." Mal then gave two sheets of paper to the yers. "You, on the other hand, are safe but lost a minotaur since it was used as a meat shield. Now, roll for your next move." The game continued as two yers took over the two minotaurs for their use while Drown vemaster buff her ve monsters tounch a counterattack. Mal smiled wickedly as the table began to fill with monsters and more dead corpses. The entire encounter turned into madness when Mal rolled for more chaos as five stone sarcophagi popped open and fiverge undead emerged. "Due to the chaos and death, the ancient sarcophagi open as Bonews of ancient times came out with hatred and pain. Seeking to fill their hatred, all five decided to attack all of you including your enemies. Now, roll for a new encounter and hope you survive the murder and torture." Mal said to his yers and roll his own dice as the fight turned into chaos andplete madness without an order. Bonew is weak undead physically and magically but it can''t go down before its master''s death. Until Mal is defeated, Bonews will respawn and continue to kill until Mal is satisfied. Chapter 130: The 5th God Chapter 130: The 5th God "We shall deny Nurgle their flesh to fester and rot. We shall deny Khorne their blood and skulls. We shall deny Tzeentch their destinies and fates. We shall deny anesh their pleasure and pain. Death to the Dark Gods! For the Renegade God! Let the gxy burn!" By: A Dirge of Ml --- Number 11 represents Malice, a renegade Chaos God and was considered 5th among his siblings. Unlike his brothers, Malice embodiesplete chaos and anarchy which leads to his ultimate goal of destruction, including his own. As a renegade and outcast God, Malice''s power is parasitic in which his power grows when Runious power grows more powerful. This means in the 41st millennium, Malice is currently more powerful than ever as the world of 40k is inplete chaos. Even though Malice is a Chaos God this doesn''t mean he is on good terms with his siblings. All four Gods banished Malice from Chaos itself, which left no good rtionship between siblings and ce Malice in a unique situation. Malice is outside of the Great Game and not part of it but still feared and hated by the other four powers for Malice''s purpose is to end all things including Chaos itself. This is why followers of Malice purposely attack other chaos factions, interfering with the Great Game just like how the youngest among siblings always disrupts the game which leads to an argument and chaos. ------------ William ttened a floating undead with his hammer which stone floor cracks and shook the ground. Meanwhile, Rana cut down the enemy one after another as she covers William''s rear with no mercy. With all this effort and killing for some reason the number of enemies didn''t decrease. Instead, more enemies start to appear and enter the battle while defeated Bonews (Undead Monsters) regenerate the injuries and rejoin the fight. The new monsters that entered the battle started the low level. From small monsters from goblins to rat-men, their interruption was nothing but a nuisance as William''sbi-bolters finish the job. That is untilrger monsters such as Oni, Demigryph, Chimera, and other formidable monsters began to appear. Soon, the chamber began to fill with endless enemies and more are just waiting within the opposite tunnel. From this nightmare situation, the only positive thing was that none of the new monsters came back from death. The only creature thates back are five Bonews and they are somewhat easy to defeat as long as William focuses his null effect on his weapon instead of the area effect. The reason why William is restricting himself is Rana is with him and he doesn''t know how his null ability would affect the holy being such as Living Saint. For this reason, William focuses his ability on his weapon and takes the role of the tank and primary target in the battle. "There is no end to this." Said Rana as she decapitated a troll''s head with her ming sword. "I know," William replied while switching hisbi-bolter with a twin barrel heavy mer and proceed to wash the whole area in front of him. He has a near-infinite amount of items inside of inventory and his armor is indestructible with superhuman endurance. Rana on the other hand isn''t as she is still a living, breathing being with limited options when ites to weapons and defense. "No signal still?" Rana asked since signal means William can call reinforcement through his armor-built-in Voxmunicator. "I got nothing. It''s as if something is interfering with the signal. ''Or someone.''" William didn''t say thest part to Rana as he began to suspect something is wrong with his situation. Minators and Drows are somewhat understandable as both beings are from underground and Drows have a tendency to have various races as ves. But to have this many monsters unleashed is just ridiculous unless someone with a higher power has a grudge against him. Just then, something big entered the chamber as a single step shook the very ground simr to what William''s hammer did. A giant humanoid monster entered the chamber as his both hands are sparking with lighting magic. The entire body is bulked with muscles, covered with blue tattoos of lighting symbols and the only cloth is a leather rag. Above everything else, the most noticeable thing about this monster is his singlerge eye that indicates what kind of monster race he belongs to. A Storm Oracle Cyclops entered the chamber by crushing other monsters with ease as his body generates a lighting surge around him. The rest of the monsters did their best to evade the friendly attack but it was futile as Cyclops''s massive size and magic destroyed them without a question. The only thing William can say to himself is "Damn it," before the big monster unleashes a full lighting attack on William and everything around him. Rana, who was a distance away from William at that time witness the whole thing after she slew a few small monsters with her sword. It was at this moment one of the Bonew ambushed her from above while she was distracted and delivered a severer cut from tainted ws. Not even thinking about what just happened, Rana cut the undead monster''s head and engulf herself with light to heal herself. The corruption of the undead attack slowed the healing process which resulted in Rana slowly retreating as she is being pushed by the other monsters. The situation became critical as William emerged from the smoked ground after the lighting attack but couldn''t fight back as Storm Oracle Cyclops mmed William with arge boulder directly on top of him. William started to see a red alert from his visor as his armor started to overload due to stored energy reaching critical while Cyclops didn''t give a moment for him to release it. Just as William got up and attempts to make his escape using teleportation, a giant fist mmed into him which shut down his armor temporarily as it finally reach the critical state. With William down for short minutes and Rana on the corner with a limit, the defeat is near certain as more dangerous monsters entered the chamber. It was at this moment that everything froze in time as something extraordinary is happening in the real world. ------------ The real world (Designation: Prime World), One after another, Mal gave his yers yable sheet after sheet as the majority of them dies without an opportunity to attack the enemy. It came to a point where yers simply rip the paper after receiving the sheets until Mal gave them much more powerful monsters. "Hey Mal, are you sure this is ok? It is getting a bit boring." One of the yers said to Mal after ripping the troll sheet. "Yea, it''s gettingte, and at this point, we are just spending game time with a tsunami of monsters. Why don''t we just skip to the part where we can stop for the night?" The second yer said as he write down the damage his monster character have taken from the enemy Terminator. "I agree. It''s not like we are doing anything except pounding these two none stops for hours. At this point, we are doing nothing but pouring monsters until they are down." The third yer said after he overviews the tabletop to review the situation. From his calction, the Terminator unit has taken enough damage to kill an ancient dragon or other massive boss-type monsters. "NO! We can stop after destroying these two. As I said, this part is the critical point of the story and I guarantee you that it will be worth it." Mal shouted at first and exin to his yers that this will be the end of the session if they kill the two enemies. Of course, he promised a big reward to encourage his yers but at this point, he ran out of time as someone approach his table. "Hey guys, we are about to close the shop. Please finish the game and start packing." The shop employee said to Mal and his group and left as he have other stuff to do before closing the shop. "Damn. I''m so close, I''m a few minutes away from proving to others that I can do what they can''t aplish." Mal, a real name Malice said to himself as he attempt to make his roll using ck dice. His power is limited in this world but he was able to connect links connection between two worlds using his ck dice as a magic temte. Due to his limited power in the real world, Malice decided to use yers of the tabletop game as their gamey can impact the other side without Malice spending his power. There is a reason why Designation: Prime World is restricted to all beings including gods and beings above all divine. This world is where other worlds are created and branch off to infinite worlds. Humans of the real world are gifted with the power to create through their imagination. From the simple romance novel to a dark fantasy where humanity is suffering to near extinction, they are stories of incredible imagination and through these, the worlds are created and continue to live without their creators'' knowledge. With infinite worlds,e infinite beings with unspeakable powers but this doesn''t mean they can do as they wish beyond their dimension. This is because going beyond their world means limiting or even cutting their god-like power. That is why four Chaos Gods were much easier to defeat in the world of D&D as they are restricted from obtaining power from other worlds. This rule also applies to Prime World where there is no other source of magic besides people''s imagination. Prime World has no magic, no chaos, no warp, and no supernatural things that could interfere with the natural order. To disrupt this order means disrupting infinite worlds and it could be the end of all things. If done right, it would result inplete chaos and Malice decided to live up to his name by breaking one rule that shouldn''t be broken. "Wait, young man. I have to talk to you. The rest of you can leave." An old man in a wheelchair approached Malice''s table and spoke with a certain tone of authority. Tired and wanting to go back home, yers gave simple goodbyes and left the shop, leaving human form Malice and a strange old man in a wheelchair. Before Malice can say anything, the shop light brightens and the entire shop began to experience the warmness of summer which is unimaginable because it is the middle of fall. Sensing a power beyond the mortal realm, Malice was surprised for a second before identifying the true identity of the man in front of him. Smiling wide and cruel way, Malice wees a strange old man who possesses the presence of divinity. ------------ Sometimeter, "You do not have authority in this world. Why should I ept your request to simply leave? I''m having a st and mind you, I want to be part of this ''Great Game,'' even if I''m forcing my way to join." Malice who finished packing his stuff except for his ebony dice said to an old man sitting on the opposite side of the gaming table. Malice continued. "When reality tore itself and created the great rift, it gave me an opportunity to make a few changes bying here. The world, the world where fiction is made. A world where an entire universe can be created by mortals who simply imagine it and let it flow by itself like a river. I''m d I came here while my siblings decided to spend their time and energy in another fictional world." Said Malice as he y his ebony dice with his fingers. "You know you are not allowed here. Very few of us who possess power beyond our reality know the existence of the realm of truth and one rule that can''t be broken. I''m here to take you back before all reality copse into nothingness." The old man said as he ce his hand up in the air to halt Malice from speaking. The old man continues. "You had your fun and it is time to return before both of us cause unimaginable cmity." "Are you done? Both of us know you have no authority or power over me since you entered this world. You are simply another me who is causing a massive problem just by existing here." Malice said as he stop ying the ebony dice and make a fist to show his seriousness. "That may be true but my presence wouldn''t be much impactfulpared to yours. Let the flow of reality continue without our interference." Said the old man. The talk of order and the natural flow of things anger Malice as it wasn''t his nature. He had been ignored for long enough in his world to forget about him which he didn''t much appreciate. "You are right about one thing. I don''t have the authority to order you but you are forgetting something. While your siblings y their game in the other world they spent all the warp energy they could bring before falling back into their own. That rule applies to both of us and you have been here longer while I just got here." The old man opens his hand and with great force suddenly pulled from Malice''s hand. In a matter of seconds, Malice lost his grip and dice which the old man managed to retrieve without any resistance. "That is mine!" Malice protested and about to get up from his chair but it was toote. The moment the old man held the ebony dice he began to change as golden light surrounds him. In a blink of an eye, the old man in a wheelchair was no more, and instead, a man wearing a gold leaf crown, and a mix of red and gold clothes stood in front of Malice. Emperor of Mankind spoke as his voice echo through the reality of this world. "Let us depart, Malice, the 5th Chaos god. You will enter this reality no more for I will close the entrance once and for all." The Emperor of Mankind then crushes the ebony dice, breaking the link between Malice and his anchor to the real world once and for all. With terror on his face, Malice attempts to make a new anchor but as Emperor said, he didn''t have his infinite power and by this time, he was nearly depleted to make any changes. Malice vanished in the end, unable to finish his goal ofplete chaos and return to his original universe. The reality slowly began to heal itself but not entirely as one more being''s existence interfere with the process of recovery. "I have done what needed to be done. As agreed upon, I will return and ensure none of my kind wille here again. Do you want ''him'' back?" Emperor said in the emptyic book shop as if he was speaking to someone. The one who Emperor refers to wasn''t Malice as he was asking about someone else. A momentter, Emperor got his answer and smiled as he no longer have an obligation to stay anymore. With a sudden golden light, the Emperor of Mankind disappeared from reality and return to his own, letting the real world heal itself and forever closing the barrier between worlds. ------------ Back to Forgotten Realm, Time resumed in which no one including the divine realm realized what just happened. William only has half a minute before his armor cools down and returns to fighting shape but time wasn''t on his side as a Storm Oracle Cyclops is about to drop a giant stone pir onto him. It was at this moment that everything changed as a barrier made out of pure light shielded William from being buried alive. To everyone''s surprise, the new group joins the battle as a party of adventurers emerged from the tunnel with one particr old wizard casting a high-tier spell to save William and Rana. "I don''t know who you are but stand and fight! Don''t let the dark forces win while you are down in your darkest moment. Stand, warriors!" A leader of the party, a pdin in golden armor, armed with great mace and shield shouts to motivate William and Rana. William who couldn''tmunicate due to his armor in the process of rebooting simply blinked a few times and said to himself even though no one can hear him. "Who the fuck are these guys?" Chapter 131: The Divine Heralds Chapter 131: The Divine Heralds The Party Members of the Divine Heralds: Zerth Graymore (Human): Male pdin and leader of the group with the skill of master tactician when ites tobat. Saro Earthwing (Human): Female druid who is in search of newnd where her people would be able to settle and call it home. The newest member who join about seven months ago. Durand the Golden One (Dragonborn): Male wizard with extensive knowledge of magic and history. Mentor to the current leader and member of the tinum Wings, a secret society that follows the teaching of Bahamut the tinum Dragon. Elda the Brave (Elf): Female ranger and scout of the party. Equipped with a magical bow and trick arrows in which she managed to save the party numerous times. Hand Duuhpim (Dwarf): Male warrior who is armed from top to bottom. A tank of the party and veteran of long wars before bing an adventurer. Ver Ravenwing (Half-Elf): Male rouge and assassin before faking his death to have a new start. Not much is known about him except that he prefers to keep one particr gold coin in his hand as if it''s important to him. Stan Cloudfist (Human): Male monk and chef of the party. Master of hand-to-handbat and an excellent cook who can perform a miracle to boost his party''s morale. --------- "Who the fuck are these guys?" William said to himself as his armor finish its reboot and start to hum. The armor lit with bright light as William activate his armor''s ability to release built-up kic energy from the battle. Boom! Swoosh! A single st from the Terminator armor wiped out the weaker enemies whilerger and stronger ones got pushed away like a rag doll. Even the magical shield that protected William was shattered as magic dispels and Storm Oracle Cyclops had to few steps back to protect itself from the dangerous st wave. "I had enough of this nuisance," William said out loud and point hisbi-bolter right on Cyclops''s head. A burst of bolter fire can be heard and its sounds echo through the hall as the big head of the Cyclops explodes, sshing its insides all over the ce. "Now, who''s next?" William asked but this wasn''t a question as he start sting left and right, following the auto-targeting system to help him hit only the monsters. Following William''s counter-attack, Rana took this as an opportunity to push back as she begin to fight back with her sword and bolter pistol on her hand. Arge group of monsters she was facing quickly crumbled to panic as theirrades fell faster and faster. Creatures withmon sense used this moment to run while animated creatures and undead died by a half dozen in a matter of minutes. While this is going on, members of the Divine Heralds didn''t hesitate to help out the two strangers with unusual weapons. Taking the lead, the pdin raise his sword and charged while two more members followed him. Meanwhile, the Dragonborn wizard and druid cast various spells of protection on the frontliners so they have a higher chance of survival. The ranger and rogue aimed their bows to take out the long-distance enemies as they have high ground to take advantage of, but the truth is due to William''s vicious firepower, all they could do was take out a few survivors attempting to run such as ones from Rana''s fight. There was nomunication between the party members as each and everyone knew their role in the fight. Their experience and trust among the members are synced to each other and individuals'' actions didn''t interfere with others. When the three melee fighters managed to get down from the high ground, a decent number of monsters nearby attacked as their escape is now somewhat blocked. The three warriors kept their distance from each other but close enough to close any gap between them. The first among them to draw blood was the monk as his fist smash the Orc''s face in a single blow which he follow with a strike right in the chest where the heart is and causing it to stop due to shock. Pdin is the second one to put down a wolf-like monster as his sword decapitates the monster''s head after dodging the attack. He didn''t stop after this as two more wolf-like monsters jump in to attack the pdin but before they could reach him, two arrows pierced each other their heads as a ranger foresaw the iing attack and took them down right away. The dwarf warrior on the other hand came to face to face with arge troll who is about to club him in the head. Shielding himself with a tower shield, the dwarf warrior took the full force of the attack from the troll and withstood it without any damage or pushed back from the impact. On the other hand, the troll''s expression changed to shock as it didn''t expect a small creature to survive the attack, this moment of shock gave the dwarf a chance to fight back as he use his strength to push back and swipe his single-handed ax on the side,pletely cutting off the troll''s left leg and follow up with strike in the head as troll got down on its knee. Eventually, the massive fight end as William and Rana fire more bolter rounds towards the hallway in which few of the monsters ran off to. With the threat taken care of, William turned his attention to the new arrivals but stay alert as he doesn''t know if they are allies or another trap. "Thank you for the help. I''m William, Lord of the Terranovis and Master of my legion." Said, William. Approaching William and standing next to him, Rana also introduce herself to the neers but was much more rxed, unlike William. "My name is Rana Bassilo Beckett, the Duchess of Agrus and Living Saint of the God-Emperor." "It is an honor to meet you two. My name is Zerth Graymore, a leader of our small band and his loyal servant of the Bahamut." Said Zerth. William finally noticed the symbols within the pdin''s armor which shows the insignia of the tinum Dragon. The blue shield with the head of the dragon in the center of the shield. Realizing that he is within the group of honorable adventurers, William finally lowers his guard as he rxes his hands in which few of the adventurers saw. Following the introduction from the leader, the rest of the group did as each member said their name and their role within the party. epting their introductions, William proceeds with sharing information about how he and Rana ended up here. The exnation only took ten minutes as it was simple to change traitor Space Marines to some evil cult members and followers of the evil god. William also points out that he is looking for his men and doesn''t know where he and Rana are as they were teleported during the military campaign. The question of their location picked Durand the Golden One''s interest as he join the conversation. "We are currently inside the Tomb of the Yar, the fallen great wyrm ck dragon who was believed to be a close inner circle member of the Dragon Queen before betraying her and ultimately failing. As for the location of the tomb, we are in the Southern Nuskein which is made out of the massive swamp." Durand''s words of Dragon Queen got William''s attention as Star Child previously mentioned her name and how her fall would help William escape to the 40k universe. "I''m not familiar exactly where we are but I know of Nuskein. I think we are southwestern region from where Terranovis is located." Said Rana but William didn''t pay much attention as he was more interested in a clue to one of the dragon masks. "By chance, are you on your way to clear the tomb?" William asks in the hope to see if he can join and find one of the lost dragon masks. For many, the quest of the Dragon Queen is to stop the cultist from summoning her but for William, his mission is to summon her and defeat the Dragon Queen to gain favor from the divine realm. With the favor from the divine realm, William can proceed with moving all his forces to space and to apletely different universe. "Sorry to say but we already clear the tomb. We identallye across your situation when we got lost, attempting to find the exit." Said Zerth. His tone of voice and facial expression inform William that he is telling the truth but not all the truth as his voice is hiding something from him and Rana. "In that case if you don''t mind we like to join you and find the exit. I can''t wait to return home and rx." Rana said as she remove a piece of meat from her shoulder using her fingers. Hearing this, female members of Divine Heralds show signs of agreement. "In that case let us move on. I don''t want to attract more unwanted attention from the remaining monsters if they regain their courage to attack us." Said Zerth and gestured to William to follow him. The two groups proceed to leave the hall filled with dead monsters and move towards the unknown tunnel with William taking the front as walking shield. William suspects Zerth and his party might have the item he is looking for and to his knowledge of Forgotten Realm, a pdin of the Bahamut the tinum Dragon exploring the tomb of the ck dragon isn''t some random encounter. As William moves on and removes obstacles, he decided to question the adventurers when he gets out of this tomb and makes contact with his men on the surface. William''s divine mission to summon and y the Dragon Queen beings as Ver Ravenwing''s bag containing the ck dragon mask remains unnoticed but to everyone''s surprise, one of its magical properties will activate when the mask itself leaves the tomb. Chapter 132: Quest from the Divine Chapter 132: Quest from the Divine William, Rana, and the Divine Heralds walked for hours to reach the surface. During the process of reaching the exit of the tomb, the party encountered various monsters which they easily disposed of. William and Ran learned more about the Divine Heralds and their mission. As everyone decided to stop to rest, William and Rana sat around with most members and exchanged information including why the group of adventurers are in the tomb of the most fearsome dragon in the world. The party itself is a rather old one when it was formed but members of the party changed as time passes and gained certain fame among a few cities. The origin of the party is long forgotten but ording to the tale, the higher pantheons decided to select their best and brightest to serve as guardians of the righteous and punish the wicked. Now, the party is working as high-ranking adventurers but their goal reminds the same recently the party received a message from the local oracle nearby city and a task that would change the fate itself. "ording to the oracle, we are to retrieve the artifact known as the dragon mask belonging to the Yar, the Great Wyrm. When we return to the city, we will receive further instruction from the oracle and what to do with this foul artifact." Said Durand the Golden One as he exin their mission to Rana. Since meeting them, Rana got very familiar with the party as their fame and tales were spread all the way to her home country. "Do you know who sends the divine message to the oracle? Was it Bahamut? Or was it Tyr, the God of Justice?" Rana asked as she went over the names of the old gods in an attempt to remember the previous members of the party who might have worshiped them. Even though she is now the Living Saint of the Emperor, she is still native to this world and remembers the existence of the gods of the old. It makes sense that she has certain knowledge when it came to local religions and rtion to the fame adventurers. Hearing her bombardment of questions, Durandughed and even sparked a fire from his mouth as he attempt to control his old body. "Hahaha, please forgive me, mydy. I may be the oldest veteran in the group but I can''t handle your enthusiasm like I used to. To answer your question, the message came from all of them. For whatever reason beyond our mortals'' understanding, the divine realm gave themand in unison to retrieve the artifacts." Thest part caught William''s attention as he knows the existence of more dragon masks and what they have is only one, belonging to the ck dragon. "Are you telling me there are more of you out there and on a mission to retrieve the rest of the masks?" William who is without a helmet asked as he took a bite from his ration pack design for Space Marines. William did provide small supply packs for everyone such as food, water, and medical kits during their break but his ration pack wasn''t something he rather gives away as highly nutritious and calories could kill a normal man. "As you guessed, we are not the only one who is on a quest to retrieve the masks. There are others like us who are followers of the righteous seeking the other artifacts in other parts of the world. There are five artifacts in total and we will meet them after we receive the second message from the oracle." Durand said as he epts the bowl of soup from Elda who is next to the small cauldron. The party was eating fresh food for the first time since entering the tomb as William provided the supply of fresh vegetables and meat to be cooked. The road of adventurers is hard and straining as food is one of the most important parts of life. You never know when you will eat a decent hot meal on the road and perishable supplies tend to expire in a short period of time, this is why most meal adventurers eat hard rations such as biscuits and dry food. Having a hot meal is rare but it helps with the psyche and recharges the body from exhaustion. William providing the fresh good is a godsend to the Divine Heralds as their supplies were gone two days ago before meeting Williama and Rana. "I see. That means there are four or more adventurers with simr tasks as yours. This is a relief but also worrisome." William said with concern while others didn''t understand what he meant. "Lord William, would you mind enlightening us on what worries you? This is once and a lifetime mission from united gods. What can be an issue?" Zerth Graymore asked William while he held his bowl in his hand. "Lord William is not talking about the mission itself but rather a wider problem that coulde from it. Such as what could be so big that requires a unified force of all gods and goddesses?" Stan Couldfist answers the question for William as a wise monk chopped fresh ingredients for the cauldron to be cooked. "He is right. While you were exploring the tomb and retrieving the ck dragon mask, the outside world went through wars with forces from other nature. I believe my quest and yours are intertwined as I was also tasked by my god to find and y Tiamat the Dragon Queen." Said, William. Rana nods her head up and down as she agrees with William''s words. William''s words shocked the entire party as there was no mention of ying the Dragon Queen. Tiamat, thewful evil dragon goddess and Draconic pantheon is one of the most fearsome beings in the world of the Forgotten Realms. Not to mention she is the sister to Bahamut, the god of metallic dragons. The task of killing a god is beyond imaginable and requires the resources of the nation. The reason is simple, summoning the deity requires a massive amount of magic and souls (if ritual requires) which is not a hundred percent guarantee. The other problem is what happens next after summoning a god. Forcefully summoned to the mortal realm isn''t something a deity prefers and it would be seen as a weakness by other gods. This usually ends with an entire civilization being wiped out by the deity itself or by the wrath of Tarrasque. On the other hand, ying an evil god can be rewarding and the names of the one responsible can reach the divine realm, giving an opportunity to join the pantheon and to be a legend among mortals. "I''m the Chapter Master andmander of the nation. My mission is to y the dragon queen and embark on a crusade to return home. It will be a task in which no one has ever heard or will learn beyond this moment." William''s words gave heavy pressure and responsibility that outsiders could understand. As William was about to finish his ration pack, he heard a beeping noise from his helmet. Showing no excitement, William ces the helmet back into his head and exam the cause of the noise. After a few adjustments, William took his helmet off with good news. "It seems we are much closer to the exit than we thought. When we are done resting, let us move forward." ----------------- Hourter, William and the rest finally exit the tomb of the Yar. Unlike the entrance that Divine Heralds went inside which is covered with swamp and rotten trees, the exit was a few miles away with a decent amount of greennd and trees. "I missed the smell of fresh air." "Can''t wait to sleep in a soft bed after a bath." "Ale and food first. We have aplished the task given to us. We deserve a good feast." Thest one came from Hand Duuhpim and as he is a dwarf, his priority was drinks and food for his belly. "Let us find out where we are first before¡­" Before Zerth could finish his words, an arrow struck him in the leg, incapacitating the leader of the party. "Take cover!" Rana shouts amand and pulls out her golden shield to provide a cover for the party while William scans the ound for an enemy. To his''s surprise, he found hundred life signs, surrounding the exit and the entire party. ''Shit, here we go again.'' William thought and bring out the heavy weapons to engage the enemy. Without asking any questions, William opens fire and starts sting the grasnd and a few of the trees. Instantly, bloody mists paint the green grass as bodies exploded and enemy numbers begin to decrease. "Open fire!" The man in the dark hood said and a few dozen others in the same clothes fire their arrows but it was a pointless effort as William''s armor simply deflect the flying sticks. It was going to be an easy victory that was until magic spells began to fly in the air instead of arrows. "Fireball!" "Ray of frost!" "Chaos bolt!" "Storm Sphere!" Thest one surprised William as a 20-foot radius sphere of wind blind his vision and prevents him from firing any more projectiles. William simply hunkers down to the ground and activates one of his support items from his inventory to wipe out the spell casters. [Marauder Bomber Strike: An fly-over bombardment using Marauder Bombers, a fearsome aircraft of the Imperium Navy known for extreme range and going beyond safety measures to aplish mission objectives.] Using his helmet console map, William ces the direction of the bombardment. Five secondster, his helmet received a radio signal, andmunication from the Marauder Bomber pilot can be heard. "This is Halo Wing One receiving a strike order. Order confirmed and proceeding the bombardment, stay clear if possible." Five wings appeared out from the cloud and descend in formation to make the drop run. Firing a jet engine into max, Halo Wings 1 to 5 flew over the location where William selected, and in a matter of secondter, a zing line of fire gulf the grass field. The fire spread like a raging storm and enemies vaporize into ashes and blew over as if they weren''t even there a few seconds ago. "First round is good. I say again first round is good. Going for a second round," This was thest time William heard the ace pilot''s voice before three massive creatures appeared from the sky and crush the Marauder Bomber like an insect. William and others immediately recognized the creatures as their massive bat-like wings cause smoke to clear and ws to rip the steel tes like paper. Three creatures each have scales like a snake but it is stronger than steel as nothing other than a magical weapon can pierce them. As their scales are tough and durable, the colors are different. The first creature is blue, the second one is green and the third one is pure white. One thing that is recognizable is how each monster has a different head size and character even though they are the same species. The three Chromatic dragons join the enemy side as they crush the bombers with their ws and teeth. As they fly over the burning field and white dragon sts its breath weapon, freezing therge scale and extinguishing the fire. All three dragonsnd in the burned field and to everyone''s surprise a rider can be seen as a blue dragon lowering its back. The man was wearing much more decorative clothes but one thing got William''s attention. The man was wearing a golden mask with three dragon head figures on top. Three dragon masks were already in the enemy''s hand and they are here to collect the fourth one from William''s group. The cult of the Dragon finally made its entrance. Chapter 133: Dragon Mask Chapter 133: Dragon Mask Dragons are very powerful and magical creatures within the forgotten realm. They possess the natural ability to wield magic power and are capable of casting powerful spells that could devastate brave but foolish adventures. The dragons are mostmonly divided into two categories. Chromatic, the evil dragons that are based on colors such as red, ck, blue, green, and white (Order of powerful to less powerful). The metallic is a type of dragon that can be identified as metal such as gold, silver, bronze, copper, and brass (There are more but these are the most known) in which they are generally good and righteous beings. Even though the colors of their scales can identify their natural personality, the dragon is still a dragon and very aggressive towards anyone who dares to challenge them. There are a few other subraces of dragons aside from true dragons. True dragons be more powerful as they age and have four-legged, wings on their back, with a powerful tail that could destroy apany of cavalry in one swipe. Meanwhile, lesser dragons are the ones that possess a characteristic of the dragon but don''t get powerful as true dragons even though they do get older. These are Dragon turtles, drakes, pseudodragons, and wyrms (There are many misconceptions about wyrms are in fact true dragons. This is in fact wrong as wyrms have only two legs and support their upper body using wings to crawl. Also, wyrms can''t use magic unlike true dragons, and don''t have the ability tomunicate with lesser races). Possessing powerful magic, strength, and the ability to fly, dragons'' dangerous weapon of choice is in fact their breath weapon. There are different types of breath weapons based on the dragon''s type and as previously stated, their breath weapon gets stronger as the dragon itself gets older. There is fire, ice, acid, lighting, and some cases poison breath that could end the nation in one night. "Dragons? Splendid things,d. So long as ye look upon them only in tapestries or in the masks worn at revels, or from about three realms off." By Astragarl Hornwood, Mage of Elembar. ---------- Three Chromatic dragons wait with snares and stomping of their tails onto the ground. From William''s view, the situation went from easy to very difficult as evil dragons have a bad habit of annihting the battlefield with no remorse. One thing Western media got a Dragon right is that ''the downed dragon is a dead dragon'' from the movie How to Train Your Dragon. Dragons have a huge advantage when ites to flying as their ability to take flight and breath weapons be a one-sided battle if the opposing party doesn''t have a method of countering the dragon''s strategy. ''And there are three of them working together. Great, more headache for me.'' William thought to himself as he positions himself to be in the front center of the party. If ites to shove, William is once again willing to aggro against all three dragons while others act ording to their role in the fight. "Kill them all. The artifact won''t be destroyed." The dragon rider gave his order and with no hesitation or moment to consider who gave themand, all three dragons open their mouths and took deep breaths to unleash one of the most powerful breath attacks known in the forgotten realm. "Everyone behind me, NOW!" William quickly orders everyone to stand behind him and expand his energy shield. A few secondster, the three massive breath attacks came as the ground shook and everything turn dark inside of William''s energy shield. The first attack was an acid attack from the green dragon as everything around them engulf with green acid. The second one came from a white dragon and its ice attack was cold enough to freeze acid and anything that survived the acid itself. Lastly, the lighting attack from the blue dragon struck the solid ice surrounding the energy shield and shatter it like a ss globe as ice shards flew off like projectiles. While all this is happening, William''s energy shield endured as William saw his shield meter decrease slowly but within green range. "Spead out the moment the attack is over. I will take their attention." William instructs everyone and brings out his range weapons while preparing himself to rush the dragons to get up close. "Got it." Said Rana and others nod their heads in agreement. Secondter and end of the breath attack, William lower the expansion of the energy shield and charged while firing his bolters. William expected the rounds to heavily wound the dragons as bolter rounds are designed to hit hard and explode inside of the enemy body. To his surprise, the bolter rounds explode immaturely as something shielded all three dragons simr to William''s energy shield. ''Shit, they cast a protective spell to protect themselves from potential harm.'' William switch his range weapon to something heavy and with a blink of an eye, William held a sma cannon with an additional powerpack to boost the firepower of the shot. "Eat this!" William pulls the trigger and forces his sma cannon to fire at once without safety measures. The weapon mummed for a second before the massive blue ball of sma fired from the cannon, The sudden change of attack surprised all three dragons and a rider when an armored giant fired a strange but powerful attack simr to an advanced offensive spell. The blue dragon and its rider was William''s target in which dragon attempted to dodge the attack but failed to do so as something prevented it from doing so. Before realizing what happened, the blue dragon received full damage from the sma cannon, leaving a giant hole in the chest with scales melting like an iron te meeting forge fire. The blue dragon fell down forward with no idea what just happened as thest thing it remembers is the ground shaking due to its massive weight. Meanwhile, the dragon rider failed to keep himself from falling off and dropping to the ground but managed to keep his mask on. With one dragon down, the other two dragons decided to attack William without realizing what happened. Before the sma cannon hit the Blue Dragon, Rana, and Divine Heralds sessfully spread around and perform their role without failure. Using magic of their own, the wizard and druid managed to tangle the blue dragon''s feet before William fire his weapon. Meanwhile, Rana and others sneak around the other dragons to attack the nk while they are focused on William. zing with a golden spear, Rana jump high and threw her spear with all her might. The spear hit true and before realizing what just happened, Rana''s spear pierced the green dragon''s head, splitting it into two and missed William''s shoulder by a few inches. Rana wasn''t done as she extend her golden shield and using the sharp edges, she drop from the sky with the shield''s edge towards the dragon''s neck. The Living Saint''s golden shield bleeds the green dragon bypletely beheading the neck, giving it no chance toe back as undead by other forces in the future. Meanwhile, the rest of the Divine Heralds ambushed the white dragon from all sides and attack with all their might. They may be veteran adventurers with the highest rank but facing the dragon head-on is an impossible task. This is why their strategy depends on striking down before giving an opportunity to fight back. "Take the legs!" Zerth Graymore said as he strike one of the front legs using his blessed longsword. At the same time, Hand Duuhpim, the dwarf warrior ms the dragon''s rear leg using his heavy Warhammer which the dragon slumps down to the ground as its lower leg failed to support the massive weight. Meanwhile, Stan Cloudfist positions himself on the other rear leg with full focus on his fists. "Clear sky palm strikes!" The monk''s multiple attacks hit valuable spots of the dragon''s leg and thest attack caused the leg itself to explode from the inside, crippling the dragon for good. Finally, Elda the elven ranger seeing the chance, fires her arrow as the dragon roar due to massive pain. The arrow flew above William as Elda hide herself on higher ground and waited for a chance to deliver a deadly blow. The deadly arrow hit the white dragon''s mouth, piercing the inside and through the brain. Seeing this, everyone cleared out to avoid the deadly drop from the dragon''s upper body and its head but just as it wasing down, the white dragon registered the downfall of its neck and open its mouth. As it was bleeding through its mouth, the dragon attempt to deliver ast stand using a breath attack. Seeing the danger and range of its powerful attack, William unhook his sma cannon power cable and overload the power cell the cannon was equipped with. "Eat this!" With all his strength of superhuman, William throws the heavy sma cannon as it glows blue. White dragon, unable to close its mouth or inability to move whatsoever couldn''t do anything but receive a strange metal tube that glows with a mysterious light. After the sma cannon went into the dragon''s mouth, the cannon exploded with enough power to destroy a dreadnought. Boom! When the dust cleared, the headless white dragon fell to the side with its entire upper body mostly gone. The three Chromatic dragons that possess enough power to destroyrge cities were easily vanquished by followers of the good. But, before anyone could celebrate incredible victory against the dragons, Zerth cried out loud due to pain as two daggers pierced his back. Ver Ravenwing stood behind his party leader with a small bag in his hand while holding a third dagger in the other hand. "Long live the mother of all dragons." The traitor pulls out the ck dragon mask and puts it on his face. The moment he ced the mask, a sudden wave generated from him and rippled the air itself. "Come forth and serve the followers of your queen." With simple words, a massive shadow flew over with the sounds of pping wings. Looking up, William and others saw a fourth Chromatic dragon with scales dark as the darkest night with glowing yellow eyes like a shiny reflection of three moons. The ck dragon and guardian of the Tomb of Yar respond to the summons. To kill anyone who stands against his creator and mother of all dragons. Chapter 134: 7th Level Spell and Unexpected Results Chapter 134: 7th Level Spell and Unexpected Results Star Child, a piece of Master of Mankind''s soul gave one mission before departing to the 40k universe. One and only mission that must be aplished so Williama and everyone he summons can leave. ying the mother of all evil dragons, Tiamat the Dragon Queen. The quest to defeat the Tiamt isn''t some humor that Star Child demands but rather one of the deals he made with local pantheons. To cleanse the taint of Chaos that invaded the Forgotten Realm, remove all foreign mortals including converted ones back to their home universe and finally, gain favor from the divine realm by taking out one of their to-do lists. Bypleting the third quest, the gods of the Forgotten Realm will remove the barrier that prevents mortals from leaving the world itself. This means William''s starships can leave the''s orbit and able to reach one of the moons that hid the warp portal. Already having a considerable number of ships in his inventory, all that William has to do is y the Tiamt which is not as easy as it sounds. For a story purpose, Tiamat isn''t in the mortal world as she is currently a ruler of the firstyer of hell. Considering that all evil beings including monsters end up in hell after their death, the firstyer of hell isn''t the yground or easiest as many think. Just like how 40k''s Khorne''s realm is aplete bloodbath, death, and murder, Tiamat''s realm is the same and bloody. One crucial thing is that Tiamat wants to leave the firstyer of hell but is unable to do so as she is under reluctant service to the Greater Gods, Bane the ck Hand. Long story short, she needs a massive ritual sacrifice and enough hoard of treasure worthy of Dragon Queen. For this reason, the Cult of the Dragons dedicated themselves to summoning the Tiamat, believing in an ultimate reward for their own self-interest. ----------------- The ancient ck dragon appeared and stood between William and the traitor, Ver Ravenwings who now possess the ck dragon mask. Growling and leaking acid from its mouth, the ck dragon of giant size shows its teeth while waiting in order to attack its prey. "You may kill them all." Said Ver Ravenwings, the traitor''s words immediately gave permission for the ck dragon to open its mouth, about to unleash an acid-breath attack of its own. "Oh, hell no!" William, bring out one of his heavy mers from his inventory and pulled the trigger. With the ck dragon''s mouth open but unable to attack at that moment, William''s me attack hit its mouth''s inside, literally giving a taste of fire directly. ''Dorn''s attack philosophy: The best defense is absolute attack if needed.'' ck dragon roar in pain and start rampaging the ground around it. Still, this is a dragon and an ancient one at that, it took only a few seconds to recover from the fire attack by bringing out its own acid attack, extinguishing it as it made rain of acid. William wasn''t the only one who reacted to the ancient dragon''s attack. Working together, Rana and the rest of the adventurers moved to a new formation to counter the legendary monster. The Living Saint once again brings out her spear with her shield and dashes forward to strike the dragon''s chest. Meanwhile, Divine Heralds react ordingly to support or attack from their own sides. "For the Emperor!" Rana''s warcry can be heard as she delivers a piercing attack to the dragon''s chest, aiming for the heart. To her expectation, the ck dragon had its own barrier spell protecting its body as the spear tip couldn''t prate the scales. Just as she anticipated the dragon''s extra protection, Rana made her next move using her own shield. She bashes her shield to the other end of the spear, giving a powerful push. The additional force sessfully break through the protection spell and it suddenly shattered like ss. It was at this moment, the Divine Heralds jump in to attack. A sword, a war hammer, an arrow, offensive spells, and bare knuckles came in at once. The opportunity of a lifetime to hurt an ancient dragon came but this was nothing but a wishful moment as the ancient dragon''s own offensive spells activate at the same time, precisely four level 6 spells. The first spell engulfs the ck dragon with a boost of all stats. This doubled all physical ability including the extension of its health points as Rana''s spear slowly begin to pull back from the flesh. The second spell erges the dragon itself, bing bigger than before and its natural weapons much more dangerous. The third spell reactivates the protective barrier spell, giving immediate projection and making it much stronger. Finally, the fourth spell adds resistance to elements including fire, ice, and lighting. This buff spell gave much more boost to the already powerful dragon as its original purpose was to fight another dragon from a different color. These four spells were this ck dragon''s trump cards and the sole reason why it managed to reach ancient status, until now. Fearing none, the ancient ck dragon utilizes its two front ws to attack the Divine Herald''s front-line fighters. The first to receive the deadly w was Stan Cloudfists. The wise and talented monk/chef attempted to dodge the attack from the empowered dragon but he was too slow as ws shed his lower half. His two bodies were thrown to two different ces and his demise shocked the rest of the adventurers as he is the first to be fallen. This didn''t stop the dragon''s second w as Hand Duuhpim, the tank of the party became a second victim. Using his steel shield, the dwarf did his best to withstand the attack but failed as his shield shred like paper and was thrown to the mountain like a rag doll. Still alive but critically wounded, the healer of the party, Saro Earthwing made an earth shield and cast healing root to the downed dwarf. Meanwhile, Durand and Zerth made ast stand with the Dragonborn wizard casting a powerful spell to fight the ancient dragon, somehow. Rana, meanwhile hanging with her spear still somewhat intact to the dragon''s chest attempted to regain her footing as a dragon was wildly moving around. It was at this moment that she saw the ground getting much closer as the ck dragon simply drop to the ground, using its massive body weight to crush the Living Saint. Unable to escape in time, Rana use her entire lower body to withstand the dragon''s body frompletely crushing her to the ground while she holds the dragon''s chest using her two hands. Sensing that its prey is somehow still alive underneath its body and two adventurers in front of it, the dragon opens its mouth to use an acid-breath attack. It was at this moment William stepped in front of the dragon with something in his hands, a fully charged thunder hammer and he is ready to strike down with all his might. Kaboom! The sheer power of the thunder hammer shook the very ground and swamp as the massive hammer of the William hit the ground while the dragon''s head remained intact. ''It changed its head position at thest second as I strike down my hammer!'' The realization hit William hard as a dragon bites William whole and starts to chew. An ancient dragon lifts William''s terminator armor while its big teeth attempt to prate his armor tes. It was thanks to William''s invincible armor that he is still alive and not dissolved by the acids. William attempts to free himself using a frag grenade from his inventory and throws it down its throat. The grenade exploded a secondter inside the dragon''s stomach and it deliver enough damage to make the dragon drop William and cough a stream of blood. Without thinking, William pulls out his ck and red power swords to duel wield to attack the dragon but to his surprise, the dragon managed to counter William by delivering a powerful tail swipe. The impact of the dragon''s tail threw William into the other side of the battlefield and into the swamp. It was at this moment Durand the Golden One finish his 7th-level spell and cast it. The golden light shined through the wizard''s staff and when it dime down, there were no changes as even the ancient dragon didn''t sense any damage. "Durand, what the hell did you do? It didn''t do anything!" Zerth Graymore shout in panic as he was expecting some kind of tactical advantage. To his disappointment, there was none and everyone is about to die due to the wizard''s failed attempt to cast a powerful spell. "Oh, it did something, my boy and you are about to witness it." Durand, the Dragonborn wizard said with confidence, and just as he said, the result came in a figure of golden light. Rana, who was buried underneath the dragon''s massive body lifted the dragon using only one hand. Her appearance was the same as before but instead of 6.5 foot-tall Living Saint, she is now 13 foot-tall Living Saint with the strength to back it up. "I cast a powerful duplicate spell to copy the dragon''s status buff and ce it on one person who is the closest. For some reason, I couldn''t cast it onto Lord William but thankfully, Lady Beckett was there to take the spell." Durand exin to his party leader and student as he leans on to his staff due to massive exhaustion from casting the spell. Zerth Graymore barely heard his teacher''s words as a golden giant of ady stood with a dragon above her head as if it was a pile of straw. Rana, who is now physically buffed with exactly four spells of an ancient dragon smiled with joy as she use her free hand to turn her spear into a long sword and begin her work for the Emperor. Using her powerful strength, Rana toss slightly toss the dragon in the air, and with lightning speed, she flew to the side, giving her room to intercept the dragon as it being to fall. Timing perfectly, Rana''s golden de and the legendary monster''s neck met in which by the time others realized what just happened, the ck dragon was missing its head andying on the ground as the dust slowly clears. "That makes it the fourth andst one out of five colors." Rana proudly said as she held the dragon''s head with her hand and sword in the other. No one knows how long the effect of the duplicate spells wouldst with her but for now, Rana who is now bigger than William stood with a big smile on her face. Meanwhile, William finally got back up from the swamp and saw the result of the battle between Living Saint and the ancient dragon when his helmet caught a motion of two beings fighting each other not that far from him. William identified the two beings as Rev the traitor and the dragon rider who wore the threebined dragon masks. Rev is busy fighting the cult leader over hisbined dragon mask while the rider attempts to stop him but quickly failed to do so as a dagger pierced his heart. The death of the rider wasn''t missed as Rev quickly grab thebined mask from the dead and ce his own ck dragon mask next to it. The legendary items soonbined into one and just as Rev was about to ce it on his head, an arrow hit him in the back as Divine Herald''s archer finally made her move. Elda the female elf archer knock the send arrow and hit the traitor''s lower back, making it painful as she could but delivering a lethal shot. Seeing this, William decided to join the archer as he also pull out his long-range bolter and quickly aim through his auto-targeting system. With a simple pull of his trigger, William fired his bolter gun just as Rev managed to ce a fourbined dragon mask onto his head. To his no satisfaction, William''s bolt round didn''t hit the target as Rev disappeared as bolt round hit the tree behind him. "An instant teleportation!" William said to himself as he failed to hide his surprised reaction. "The mask must have a precast spell the moment it isbined and ced on to user''s head," Durand said as he slowly walk with help from his student. Next to them, Rana approached and jump onto William''s arm but due to her size, she actually hugged him and managed to lift him with his armor on. "I thought I was going to lose you for a second." Cried the Living Saint as she finally rxed and showed a feminine side. "Ok, ok. I''m fine. Would you please put me down?" William said to Rana and she did. The battle ended on William''s side as the winner but the real victor was the traitor as the ultimate price is now in the enemy''s hands. Still, William has one more opportunity to change the course of the war against the Dragon Cult as thebined dragon mask needs one more mask to be finished. The red dragon mask still needs to be found before meeting one of its requirements to summon the Tiamat. Now, out from the Tomb of the Yar, William was able to contact his forces and request a pick-up from his Thunderhawk to regroup. Knowing what ising next, William decided to take the Divine Heralds with him and n the next course of action for the uing battle. Chapter 135: Lost Time and Ruined City Chapter 135: Lost Time and Ruined City William''s vox request for a Thunderhawk was immediately epted as it seem his forces were looking for him and Living Saint. An hour or soter, the howling three Thunderhawks arrived and unload two toons of elite guardsmen as they secure thending zone (even though it wasn''t necessary as William and others already established it long ago). To William''s surprise, an office to greet the Chapter Master is Lord Creed, the suprememander of William''s Astra Militarum and senior advisor. Lord Creed in his wisdom and years of experience in the service to the Golden Throne gave a data te for William to read before exining the detail within. "You are joking about this report, right? I have only been gone for like half a day." Said William after reading the detailed report from the data te. "No, my lord. You and Lady Beckett have been gone almost a whole week. I assume wicked warp magic that teleported you cause the loss of time." Lord Creed said to William while he ignore the whole different situation that was going on between his men, Living Saint, and reptile-like Xenos called Dragonborn. "So, while Living Saint and I were fighting and exploring the dungeon to escape, my entire chapter went on their own version of crusade?" "Well¡­ considering that you anddy suddenly disappeared. Each of thepany captains decided to level the whole region looking for you. From investigating the trap chamber that teleported you here to cleansing every tainted city, let''s just say vampire taint is no longer a thing." Lord Creed continues. "During this time, Sisters of Battle did their thing which is burning all heretics who forsaken humanity while Knights and Titans return to the capital for theplete repairs/blessing of the Machine God." "What about you and Lord Commissar Cain?" Asked William as he wanted to know how his advisor and hero of the Imperium reacted for the past week. "Knowing you and how you always return to us with new tales of adventure, I decided to send Lord Commissar Cain back to the capital with half of our forces. As for myself, I had my men secure the ck Phnx (Enemy''s capital city) in case you and Lady Beckett return to us the same way you disappeared." "I''m surprised that none of my battle brothers joined you when I requested an airlift. Did you have something to do with that?" William return the date te back to Lord Creed and smiled as he knew something was up. After hearing about theplete destruction of the vampire-taintednd and its forces, William knew something interesting must happen before he made a call. "Of course, I had to step up. Your battle brothers including honor guards were inplete mayhem and couldn''t be reasoned with. I had to invoke my authority in order to depart without having the entirepany of Adeptus Astartes weighting down the Thunderhawks. I swear my lord, I have seen more mature cadets in Schr Progenium than Adeptus Astartes howling like madmen." Lord Creed put a fresh cigar in his mouth but didn''t light it due to his old habit. "I understand. It seems my return has to be in haste before my battle brothers decide to march here with the full might of the Imperium. By the way, I would like to invite the adventures I met during my exploration to the dungeon. Make sure no harmes to them as they have vital intel rted to our return to the Imperium." Said William as he turn around to see men and women of the guardsmen having a conversation with surviving members of the Divine Heralds. "It will be done, my lord. Your Thunderhawk has plenty of room for them to join your return." With that said Lord Creed has a few of his men ready to depart as well as nting a few explosives to destroy the entrance to the tomb. The flight back to the main force back in ck Phnx was a smooth transition. There was no interruption such as encountering any flying monsters or uneventful situations such as encountering harsh weather. A short hourter, William and Rana once return to the recent warzone where for them just a few hours was full siege against Alpha Legion. Unlike how William remembered the region, a dark and huntednd is now dark, somewhat hunted, and on fire as even the forest was still burning due to unknown reasons. "Some of the Astartes were conducting a cleansing of sorts by burning down the entire forest using all types of me weapons. I believe their exact words were, "No living even the nts tainted by the traitors shall not escape the purge."'' Lord Creed said thought the voxmunicator as everyone saw barrennd that was once covered by the dense forest that block the sunlight from reaching the soil. Weing the Chapter Master and Living Saint was an entire chapter of the ck Souls and Sisters of Battle as they had been anticipating their respected leaders'' return. The whole scene was the military formation and ceremony of the heroes'' return as nothing in this world could stop them from conducting this event. Thend is cleansed with fire and ashes, cities and unforgiven are burned to the ground, and finally, any sign of taints rted to chaos or local curses were removed thanks to the Null Marine''s nk ability. In short, William''s forces transformed a once-cursednd into aplete restart, ready to be resettled by the humans and other races. "Wee back Chapter Master and Lady Beckett. We have been waiting for your return." The 1st Captain of the 1stpany said as he wee two leaders back. Meanwhile, the Sisters of Battle scream in joyous as their light to the Emperor return to them once again. As this was going on, the Divine Heralds stood in shock as not even adventurers of their level could match the caliber of weing such as William''s and Rana''s. It was at this moment when Durand the Golden One gentlyughed as he was the first to match the puzzles. "I now see the strings of destiny intertwined. William, no Lord William is the one we were supposed to deliver the dragon mask to. It seems our divine mission to save the world is intact." Said Durand. "I see what you mean. They might be the greatest force I have everid eyes upon. No force would be able to match them on the battlefield." Zerth Graymore replies back as he saw a legion of heavy-ted knights and beautiful women in ck armor with fearsome weapons in their hands. What terrified him was the background of the weing ceremony. After founding out that they are traveling to thend of the vampires, every Divine Heralds protested as they knew the fearsome reputation of the vampire ruling thend of the shadow. Now, he and everyone from his party are standing in the ruined city with a massive fortress once before able to withhold a mighty army, smoking while walls are destroyed and roofs are gone due to fire. "Are we sure gods are right about him? I mean, it looks like they are about to embark on a world conquest." Saro Earthwing, the druid of the party said to others in a whisper as she wasn''t sure if William is a side of good. "We were given a promise of protection from the man who is a leader among his brothers, but not a king among his people. I believe there is more to be learned before judging the man." Said Hand the Dwarf as he surprised everyone with his wisdom. "What? I do have insight into seeing the character of a person before deciding who they are." Said dwarf as he ce his bent shield next to him. "Hand is correct. We must seek more information before jumping into the darkness, whether that will lead us to fire or a field of flowers, that is something we must face after." Durand the Golden One said with agreement to the old dwarf''s words and move forwards, to follow the giant man in steel armor. -------- The city was in ruins. That was the first thing William thought when he saw the burned city and fortress castle. There is no way Prince Benton and his people would be able to settle as there is nothing to flow or nt a root into. Maybe after a year or two thend naturally recovering would give the opportunity to settle but until then, thend of the former vampires is nothing but a scorched earth. For this, William knew he is the me as his disappearance led toplete insanity within half of his forces. "I know what you are thinking but look at it on the bright side. We don''t have to worry about leftover curses or monsters. They did well in some way." Rana assures William as she grabs his hand. Feeling the sense of connection with his love, William smiled and move forward with his men and women weing them with cheers. Due to the massive destruction of the city, the remaining forces including Lord Creed''s guardsmen staged their camp within the most open area of the city. With most of the heavy vehicles, knights, and titans returned to the capital, the remaining forces have light vehicles and enough supplies tost long as they need to. After entering the massive tent used as amand center and meeting ce, William received a quick brief of the current situation and he concluded that there is no reason to stay there any longer (Because there is nothing to kill at this point). With their report finished, William gave his side of the story after he and Rana disappeared from the battlefield. The confirmation of the Alpha Legion''s trap, the destruction of their ritual, and meeting the native adventurers inside of the dungeon. William exined everything and moved to the next phase of the tale where he and others had to face multiple dragons after reaching the surface. No one interrupted William''s tale as everyone listen quietly. When William finishes his tale, a representative from the Sisters of Battle asked with one simple question. "So, we can''t kill that reptile Xenos?" "Don''t kill the one and only source of intel we need to find thest mask," William said to everyone in a clear voice as he need Divine Heralds to find thest dragon mask. "For now, we will return to Terranovis for well a deserved rest. We must reach out to other nations to find out where thisst red dragon mask might be. Until then, be ready for anything. If we are toote, we might end up facing another god-tier-level enemy equal to forces of chaos." Said William and dismissed the meeting for the day. He was tired and couldn''t believe lose an entire week from the Alpha Legion''s teleportation. William decided to send out his spies and assassins for intel gathering while he himself do some research of his own from previous campaigns back when he was a normal man. "My apologies for the rudeness of my men. All of you are under my protection and if you need anything just ask me or Rana and we will provide." "We are going to need to report back to our guild what happened to us." Said Elda. "A ce to set tent would be enough." Said Zerth. "By chance any artifacts or books left in the library?" Said Durand. "I need a drink." Said Hand and this made everyoneugh as they suddenly realized they all are hungry. After the initialugh ended, the reality finally hit them as they remember the death of Stand Cloudfist and the betrayal of Ver Ravenwing. "All will be provided. When you are fully rested and ready, I will need all of you to find the final dragon mask." William said to the Divine Heralds and left the tent to find his own rest. Rana smiled and follow William for she must tend to her sisters before they lose their patience and mind. A few dayster, Prince Benton and his men arrived to provide a change of swift as William''s force pack their requirements and return to Terranovis. Their action was extreme but effective as never again did the new territory of the Alderim be thend of monsters or the target of diseases or curses. Chapter 136: Familiar Faces Chapter 136: Familiar Faces Two monthster, After William and others return to Terranovis, Chapter Master personally dispatched spies and Imperial Guardsmen scouts to gather information about the final dragon mask. Because of its importance, William even submitted an official request to the adventurers guild to find any piece of intelligence regarding the Dragon Cult or the location of the red dragon mask for a hefty price of five thousand gold pieces. From William''s request, many of the veteran adventurers ventured out to find any clues rted to Dragon Cult. on the other hand, some of the known schrs and wizards went into deep research to find any ancient text rted to thest dragon mask and itsst known location. Their goal wasn''t the reward money from the new kingdom but also the pursuit of advanced knowledge from the Mechanicus and Magos Vdus Callias. While William and his forces were busy dering war against the 20th Legion and vampires, Magos Vdus Callias and his fellow tech priests were conducting various research from materials from the new world to STC data files. Due to the importance of their research into ultimate knowledge and STC itself, Magos Callias and his tech priests didn''t participate in a military campaign unless it is rted to repairs of the machine sprites. For this reason, by the end of the two months, many of the machines were repaired and ready for duty the moment William decides. Meanwhile, Lord Casten Ursarkar E. Creed and his guardsmen went back into training and preparation for the next military campaign as their nature demands it. Thanks to William''s ability, Lord Creed received additional reinforcement as more regiments were summoned including, [Death Korps of Krieg 111th Infantry Regiment: An expert frontline unit with multiple experiences and long military history rted to the harshest war environment known to Imperium. This unites with three thousand infantrymen and women of Krieg, various vehicles, and a small unit of special Krieg horse riders.] [Vostroyan Firstborn 30th Regiment: A regimenting from the Hive World of Vostroya located in Halo Stars. As their name states, their military men are made out of firstborns from citizens and believed to absolve themselves from the shame that their ancestors failed the Emperor during Horus Hersey. Vostroyan Firstborns are equipped with red uniforms, golden armor, and signature fur hat instead of standard military green helmets. Vostroyan Firstbornses with a total of two thousand men and standard military equipment.] [Tarn Desert Raiders: Expert desert guerri style soldiers with a long history of worshipping Emperor. Desert Raiders are the opposite of the Valhan Ice Warriors to the point that they have a natural rivalry. Simr to Catachan Jungle Fighters, utilize guerri warfare and lighting fast style of hit and run to weaken the enemy before delivering the killing blow. In total, one thousand Tarn Desert Raiders with fast-moving Sentinel walkers, and Chimera APC.] The massive number of new reinforcements made Lord Creed and his officers kept them busy as new people need help readjustment to the New World. It is safe to say, if William wanted to, he can conquer the New World in the name of the Emperor and no mortal can stand up against his military might. While Lord Creed is busy with new regiments and discipline, Lord Commissar Cain and his trusty aide Jurgen were busy running Cain''s Finest as a business boom. This is because of Terranovis''s economy and business trade William managed to secure with various leaders from different countries. With more trade, more people came to visit and this meant more business for the first-ss inn/bar that weed all races including none human. The weing atmosphere and diversity of the inn''smendation spread much faster to the point many of the merchants decide to expand their business outside of the capital wall. Cain saw thising miles away long ago and afterpletion of his inn, Cain purchased morend around the outside wall, making him the biggestnd owner surrounding his inn. Aside from booming business and expanding his inn into a growingmunity, Lord Commissar Cain spends his free time with his newdy friend who is staying with him inside the capital city. With her bearing a child of the Hero of the Imperium and ady of a noble line, Cain did his best to spend considerable time tofort the future mother of his child. Ultimately, Cain invest arge amount of time for himself and the people around him which he didn''t get to have during his service to the Golden Throne. Two months of peace and recovery also meant a time off for tired warriors and this includes Living Saint Rana Beckett. After multiple military campaigns, she decided to visit her family back home and bring her army back home. Before going back, William made sure Rana take half a dozen carts full of treasures with her so her family can pay the wounded men for their retirement and reimburse the family who lost their father or son. Without their sacrifice, William knows he wouldn''t be where he is as Rana''s men did what must be done to secure the Terranovis and save Rana during the battle against Night Lords. Finally, William decided to take his time between personal and search for the final dragon mask. The first few days started with him going after every lead and clue to finding the dragon cult but for some reason, they were nowhere to be found, it was as if the entire cult went underground after securing the ck dragon mask. For this reason, William dedicated his time to research a final ritual of summoning the Dragon Queen and how to defeat her since his mission given by the Star Child is to beat the Dragon Queen. When William isn''t researching or spending his time governing the new nation, he enjoys his free time catching up on the history of the Earth. Using the STC archive and the immense amount of data avable, William searches through the history of the Earth, starting from his era to near the end of the Dark Age of Technology. He personally didn''t understand the advancement of technology throughout the history of mankind but he managed to understand the development ofnguages, cultures, wars, and political viewpoints as time passed. William''s insight into the 40k also helped him with a few sightings of a certain individual who manipted the flow of mankind as a certain event causing benefit to some and loss to many others. ''The destruction of certain super corporations. A power change of certain nations and rebellion on the other side of the globe. There are small clues that William managed to find and who might be responsible. ''I see you Big E.'' William turns off the monitor and steps out to get some fresh air. Massive information from the history of Earth kept surprising him as some of the events resulted from chain reactions from people he knew during his time such as politicians and people with massive influence. Sitting outside and rxing with tea and small snacks as William enjoy the moment of peace. Considering how things turned out after waking up in the forest, William never got a chance to take time for himself and have a moment to go over everything he have done. At least this time he won''t be interrupted by some random monster as he is in the most secure location in the world. That was until someone approach him with urgency in his face. "My lord, I received a message from the front gate that there is a group of adventurers wanting to meet you. They say they have information about the location of the mask." The messenger reported to William and left quickly as possible when he saw William''s face. William wasn''t happy as his moment of peace gotten interrupted by the sudden arrival of adventurers with the news he was looking for. This wasn''t the first time adventurers came to William with a piece of new information that turned out to be a lie or misinformation. After two months of multiple reports and didn''t bear any results, William was about to have one of his men handle the situation until he saw a vox video of the front gate. "Well, I''ll be damned. I know these guys." Said William as he got up and move towards the fortress as he change his mind. Through the tablet monitor, a small group of veteran adventurers waits as the gate guard finally allows them to enter the fortress. Herman, the leader steps forward and his men follow as adventurers known as Firedes entered and are guided to the throne room where William waits with a big smile on his face. ------------------- The meeting between William and Firedes went as you could be expected. When the adventurers entered the throne room, they saw a giant of a man with full silver armor on the throne made out of solid stone, they went into full panic mode due to sheer nervousness. On the other hand, William kept his cool head and maintain the role of the Chapter Master and Lord of the fortress as he gave orders to the Firebaldes to kneel and report what they found regarding the location of the Dragon Cult or dragon mask. As a leader of the party, Herman spoke clearly as he can and provided all the information regarding the location of the massive cult gathering. As of this moment, Herman believes that the cult is still gathering in massive numbers at the ancient mountain to confront something powerful. With a rough estimation of around three thousand strong and various sses including wizard, mage, warlock, etc, the situation could go beyond out of control. William remains silent until Herman finishes his report. Having his helmet on and seated like a status, William''s presence itself trembles, brave warriors, if they dare to stand against it. Finally, William spoke through his helmet, hiding his voice with a vox speaker. "Imend your courage to bring this dire news to me. I will send my men to verify the report and until then, all of you will remain here as my guest." William said and was about to stand up to leave when Herman spoke unexpectedly. "My Lord. I''m not sure if you know this but not that long ago, I met a man in a giant status just like yours. His name is William the Giant andst time I heard, he was in the Alderim capital city. Are you his ''Battle Brothers?''" Herman asked with great concern and William can tell others behind are showing simr faces. William guesses that his name and fame stopped spreading after the founding of his Chapter and was no longer an adventurer. Smiling behind the helmet, William stands up and descends from the throne to approach the Firedes. Standing a few feet away, William order Firedes to raise their heads and after they follow his order, he simply removes his helmet, revealing his identity to old friends from his early days in this New World. "Yes, I indeed found my brothers and much much more," William said to Herman and others with a smile on his face. It took Firebldes a few moments to realize what just happened and when they fullyprehend the situation, they all went into shock as the man they had been searching for since his disappearance reveal himself as the leader of the newly found nation of superpower. "Suprise?" Chapter 137: The Council of Final Quest Chapter 137: The Council of Final Quest Herman and the rest of the Firedes couldn''t speak for a while until they return from the shock. There was no shouting of surprise or ''What!'' but rather a emotional suprise that can be seen through their faces. Even though its been short, Firedes considered William to be their own after William''s firstbat against bandits as adventurers made strong bond of brotherhood through battle. With initial shock passed and William eager to show his old friends their rewards for the intel they provided. William got up from his throne and wee the adventurers with open arms as he personally guide them around the fortress including where they will be staying. For next few days, Firedes lived like a nobles as William''s honor guests and able to move freely with few ces limited to them. As for the rewards, William gave each and everyone twenty thousands golds each and chance to live under Cain''s Community as new members. After hearing this offer, everyone epts as they saw an opportunity to finally retire with no financial burden. Except for Herman who have wife and three children, everyone decided to settledown right away with decree given by William and Lord Commissar Cain. As for Herman, he decided to leave so he can bring his family to their new home. Hearing this, William order his best men from newly foundedpany of former White Scars to escort Herman with Thunderhawk. With help from the Khan of speed, Herman managed to bring his family next day with few bags on their backs as they depart from the Astartes transport ship. As for the rest of the Firebaldes, they settle down in the ever growing Cain''s Community as people of all races, sses and races build homes. Each of the members end up getting a job as guards and hunters as their years of experience as adventurers made them expert in those areas. Later in the year, Williamter learned that each former members of the Firebaldes end up getting married and to his surprise, all of them end up with former all women adventurers who were members of the former hero''s party. William wondered if there was a divine hand work on this or was it a dumb luck of wonder but he decided to just let it go as he and his men soon leave the New World. ------------ Next day, William was busy making battle ns with his logistics team as he now know where the dragon cults are. Just as his third hours into the meeting, Rana entered the room with her causal clothing but rather in serious face for some reason. "Let us take a break for a day. We will resume tomorrow." William dismissed the whole team for the day after realizing Rana wasn''t here to hang around or kill boredom. Afterst member of the logistic team left and closed the door, William stand up to get some refreshments while Rana approach the table and took her sit. "Sorry if I was in the meeting for so long. Why are you here suddenly? Also, coffee or tea?" Asked William as he pour a cup for himself. "Nothing for me. I''m here to speak to you right now." Said Rana as she wait for William toe back to his table with coffee and te of snacks. "Wow, I haven''t seen you this serious since our first campaign to the Fort Stormfist." William finally sat down with two tes in his one hand while third te full of tea pot and cups on the other hand. "I''m serious, William. This conversation was suppose to happen after we escape from the dungeon but with all the craziness happening, I didn''t had chance to speak with you till now." Rana said to William in the manor of very seriousness but it didn''t help as she immediately grab few snacks from the first te to eat it. Seeing this, William pour a tea onto two cups as he knew she can''t help herself from eating the snacks if presented. ''Women¡­ Can''t stop themselves from eating fries when asked if they wanted some before ordering.'' William thought to himself as he pass the first cup of tea to Rana in which she takes it and took a sip. Seeing his wife (Yes, wife as she epted William''s propersal under the Emperor ss Titan) enjoying a moment of peace, William took his own cup to join the moment. After few minutes of peace of enjoying snacks and tea, Rana put her empty cup down to get back into business of being serious. "The reason I need to speak with you alone is because of this." Rana bring out a item from her purse in which shock William as he recognized what it was. The Trazyn''s Tesseract Cube that holds the splinter fleet of Hive Fleet Leviathan. "How did you acquired this? I thought none of the Alpha Marines didn''t possessed the cube in the first ce." William said to Rana as he epts the cube from her hand to ce it on his inventory. The moment he ce the cube onto his inventory he saw the description and it was terrifying. [Trazyn''s Tesseract Cube (Contains the former Splinter Fleet of Hive Fleet Leviathan) x1: A former scattered remnants of the main fleet Leviathan, in which grew strong enough to take its own form of hive fleet. After decades of consuming various species of aliens, Imperials colonies, and other natural worlds, this fleet became known as Hive Fleet Wendigo. The Hive Fleet Wendigo''s primary way of finding their next size meal is by consuming small fleet of spacers such as traders or patrols out side of the star system. Afterpleting the consumption of the fleet, Wendigo trace back the victim''s previous in which lock on as primary target for consumption for the whole fleet. Hive Fleet Wendigo''s main tactic is to use Shadow in the Warp in fullest simr to Hive Fleet Kronos, in which main units are built to fight against beings that possess power of the warp. The key trait of the Wendigo is their ability to regenerate from any wounds including recing missing limbs. With monster units capable of sting Shadow in the Warp and ability to regenerate faster than normal regr Tyranid, Hive Fleet Wendigo have potential to be next threat to the Milky Way Gxy. Unfortunately, during a system to system travel, Trazyn the Infinite intercepted the hive fleet and captured the whole fleet while it was in deep sleep to reserve energy (Trantion: Sleep mode). Current status: Trapped in a time loop of traveling to another system. Total number of the hive fleet: 2,783 Bio Ships, over two billions of creatures.] *Note: In the future if there is a offical Hive Fleet Wendigo, please discard this Hive Fleet as it is for the story of this fanfic. ''By the Emperor''s name. This is a world ending item. Damn it Trazyn, I should have just kept him in my inventory when he told me be brough a splinter fleet. This is entire Hive Fleet ready to consume.'' William said to himself as he begin to generate a fearsome scenario if Alpha Legion managed to summon the hive fleet. It would have been game over andplete destruction of the New World entirely. As William shake his hands, Rana ce hers onto his tofort him as she also understood what was going on William''s mind. "It turnes out after my resurrection, I received same ability to yours. The ability of storage. It took me really long time to figure things out such asmand words and how to bring things out, but I managed few weeks ago. That''s why Necron Overlord couldn''t find the cubr. It was inside of my inventory this entire time and he didn''t know I have one just like you. Silimar to you." Rana said to William as she approach him closer to kiss him. After the kiss, William smiles as he fully recover from the shock of how close they were from the blink of death. William hold onto Rana and whipers to her ear. "The Emperor''s work is never done, my Living Saint. Emperor protects." ------------ Four Days Later, William assembled all officers for the final campaign. The number of people assembled for this meeting was massive as everyone from Astra Militarum to captains of different Astartespanies were present. The giant sized war room is capable of sitting three thousand individuals and center have five sits for the Chapter Master and his chosen individuals. The war room was rowdy as everyone was speaking to each other of wondering what this meeting would be about. From rumor of leaving the New World to finally conquering the rest of the nations, more rumors are invented and spread like a wild fire. That was until main doors to the center sits opens and grand music of the Imperium yed, sliencing the whole room. First to appear from the main doors are Chapter Master''s elite honour guards entered as they held power swords with both hands and ce themselves face to face as they went down towards the center. After their entrance was done, a dozen soldiers of Astra Militarum appeared above the war room as they ce gs of each branch of all military forces under William''smand on the g stands mounted on the high walls. Finally, the g of the Imperium, the Imperium Aqu lower from the center ceiling, to present the central power of the Imperium overall. Seeing the Imperium Aqu, everyone stand up from their seats to show respect. After Imperium Aqu ispletely lowered, the light shines towards the main door as individuals begins to appear and approach the five chairs but not seated. First to enter is Lord Commissar Cain, the Hero of the Imperium and founder of amunity that carries his very name. Second person to enter is Lord Casten Ursarkar E Creed, thest suprememander of the Caidan forces and living legend to all Imperial Guardsmen. After Lord Creed is Magos Callis, recently promoted Archmagos of the Admechs and representatives of the Adeptus Mechanicus and Titan Legion. Fourth is a Living Saint of the Emperor and carries the title of Lioness of Holy Terra, Rana Bassilo Beckett of Argus. Finally, Chapter Master of the cksouls and the one who holds the title of Imperator Fratrum (Commander of the Brother) enteres the war room as his terminator armor weight can be heard with each step he took. William Nullinanis made his way to his chair, the center of the room and position ofmand as room remain silent. Before taking his sit, William scan the room and after he is satisfied, he sit down in which everyone including four senior members of the military forces. The meeting of final quest begin as sess of this quest will allow William and his forces to leave the New World once and for all. Chapter 138: 12th Chapter 138: 12th Three days. The full meeting for William''s finals queststed three days. Before start of the meeting, each leadership from William to squad leaders of the Imperal Guards received the data sheets from the small army of logistics and adminstrations who inputrge amount of effort to organize detailed military n. From subject of food ration to potential loss of military forces after the conflict, massive information took two days. The third day focused on the New World''s lores and myths as dozens of philosopher, historians, and schrs were gathered and tought everything they knew. For William, this was easy subject as he basically knew most of the lores and stories. On the other hand, many of the hardcore veteran officers and Sisters of Battle took great restraint and endurance to learn without setting educators on fire. There was few interruption and rough voices but it was handled quickly by the Commissar Cain and hismissariats without any issues. Overall, the meeting went without any problems or hups. With all the intelligents and informations provided to all officers and leaderships, the departure date are set for two weeks from now. The resources are distributed, everyone knows their roles to the letters and knowing that this final battle will be thest stepping stone to return to the Imperium made everyone work harder than ever. The only problem lies with dozen letters that need to be sent. An official diplomatic letters to several kings and masters of their own domain to let a foreign army of massive magnitude to cross theirnds. No leaders of sane minds will allow this to happen or consider it, but to stand against this means facing the army of unstoppable strength and devastating destruction. Out of dozen kingdoms, only one nation decline William''s request to cross itsnd. A nation with powerful border between William''s path andnd where ritual of Tiamat summoning is going to happen. Unfortunately, William didn''t have patience or restraint to y politics as he knew time is of the essence. ------------ Subject: History of the 12th To the historians, and many schrs from 100 years in the future, the destruction of 12th nation remains mystery as how they faced their end. No record or document survived to provide the true name of the 12th nation. Only that their entire kingdom one day disappeared and only few artifacts survived the trial of time thanks to the trading between nations. ording to the historians, there was no historical record of natural disaster or hostile conflict between neighbouring nations. Simply put, overnight, entire city of hundred thousands suddenly vanished as if gods decided to reshape the world map. Not long after, a nursery song was made for the kids to remember the myth of 12th. "A man in ck and white request an enterence to the kingdom. A man sent an messenger with many gifts, enough to fill the greed of men. The king and his men denied the request by beheading man''s messangers and took the treasures for themselves. Twice the man in ck and white request an enterence, two more times king denied the request. At the end of the third day and beginning of fourth dawn, the kingdom of 12th vanished. No mortal saw 12th ever again, only the gods know the truth and through them lesson can be learned." To this day, the existence of the 12th is considered myth and fairytale to some while others took it literally based on evidence of artifacts and nursery song. Few took upon themselves to research the subject while many brush it off by simply reading about the 12th from the history book. ording to thete king, King Benton Pius Amadeus the 5th, who is ready to embark on his journey to the next life, told his heir, the Crown Prince Benton Pius Amadeus the 6th a tale. A story that couldn''t be believable but swore upon his own soul that his father, the King of Alderim and 4th to his name met an giant warrior in a quest to return home not of this world. To the end, the giant warrior managed to assemble a forces never seen before in the history and achieve many things not even gods can do in short period of time. In the end, warrior and his men left to the stars. To the journey to find a home once lost to them and stopping at nothing, even if gods and devils attempt to block their way. Sign by Headmaster Zuras Mitre The Headmaster of the Royal Academy of Alderim, Archwizard Elements and Master of the Holy Engine. ------------ It took long journey and few obstacles to reach the destination. There was a dy which William wasn''t willing to look over as his mood gotten darker and darker as time were wasted with politics. In the end, William''s hand was forced and to make things go faster, William sent his first, secondpany of Astartes and five member squad of Titans to clear path once and for all. The result was¡­ satisfactory. Considering what the previous prices for ying politics were, William''s only regret was death of his men and innocient citizens who were led by a foolish king. Now, William was facing an destination that is a half a day away as he stood firm with his arms while listening to the Lord Creed regarding of what the scouts reported few minutes ago. As meeting continued, two guadsmen approach the senior leaders with sour face in their faces. "My lords. A group of natives with Xen¡­ I mean, subhumans are here to see you. They are the Divine Heralds." A older and most likely a veteran guardsman said as he quickly correct himself before speaking ill of a group sent by the Chapter Master of the cksouls. "I see. Thank you, guadsmen. You may return to your post. I will handle this personally." William said with most rx tone of voice and dismiss the two guadsmen. "You know, you are way too rx with native of this world. Some of the mens are starting to believe having a Xeno race to help us with this is taint to the Emperor''s holy work." Lord Creed said to William as he ce his hand on the map of the local area as he adjust his cigar in his mouth. It is true that in the name of the returning home, William is more epting of other racespare to other known Space Marines. It came to a point that some of the more zealtious servants of the Imperium began to have conflict thought with an order from the superiors. "I know, Lord Creed. This will be corrected soon and we will operate in Imperium standard unlike how we had to adapt now. For now, let us meet our guests and see what they have learned." William ensure his militarymander of the Astra Militarum and grab his ck sword. William usually put on his terminator armor but that is during actualbat situation. Right now, he is wearing his standard Space Marine armor in which he can easily move and doesn''t take much space in the camp (Much less than terminator armor). With his right hand man on his side and trustly sword of the ck Temr in other, William went ahead to see the famous Divine Heralds to see what they have learned. The Divine Heralds was waiting in the chow area as they were busy eating as if they were starving for days. Based on their looks, they were on a rough shapes and went through more hardship than venturing into tomb of the ck dragon. When William got closer, he saw few of the members were bandaged up with few signs of blood seeping through the cloth. ''Oh boy, this is doesn''t look good at all.'' Thought William as he approach the adventurers. "Lord William!" Zeth Graymore, the pdin of the Bahamut is the first one to wee the Chapter Master. Hearing their leader''s voice, others turn their heads to see while some are still chewing food in their mouth. Saro the druid was eating carrot while Durand the Dragonborn and Hand the Dawrf warrior was eating beef stew. Meanwhile, Elda the elf ranger sit quietly as she consume bread and soup made out of mushroom and vegetables. "Its been a while sincest time I saw you in my fortress. How was your reconnaissance? Don''t tell me you guys attempt to stop the dragon queen all by yourself." William said with cheery voice as he knew they wouldn''t do that. After all, he was the one who sent them in the first ce to make find out the status of the enemy activity. William could have send his own scouts and assassins but it would be pointless when they don''t blend the natives of this world. It would make sense to see an adventurers on their quest than seeing an suspicious strangers with weird equipements. "Well, we did our best to stay clear from the enemy''s main base but we end up encounting few of the servants of the dragon queen and cultists. In the end, we had to retreat but managed to learned that they started their ritual long before we arrived. Unfortunately, don''t know how much time we have left." Zerth said to William and provided much more detail such as location of the enemy base, potential estimation of the enemy numbers and types of enemies including demons spawn of the Nine Hells. "Imend you for providing this information. You did best you can with limited resources and intelligence. You can rest now, I''m here to take the responsibility and weight off from your shoulder." William ensure everyone and gave a envelope with waxed seal of his chapter symbol. "Give this to Guildmaster Mia. Let her know I sent you and you will be reward from my ount with full praise for aplishing your mission without an error." "Lord William, we can stay and help you with your mission. Don''t send us back this early without giving a good fight." Zerth said as he gave his seriousness look and determination of young warrior who wants to prove himself more than receiving fame and fortune. "Are you sure? You don''t want to be here when my men begin their attack. It will be warzone with no mercy or forgiveness." This time, it was Lord Creed to warn the adventurers of theing danger and insanity of war toe. "We are." Every members of the Divine Heralds stand up to show their dedication to the mission and something else that burning their souls to see this event to the end. "We are and we must. At least to make sure Ver pay for his betrayal and avenge death of Stan Cloudfist." Zerth said to William as he show the piece of red and yellow cloth that used to belong to an monk and cook of the party. Just as William was about to speak to ept the adventurers, the ground shook and suddenly, a bright red light shot out from the distance as if mountain itself erupted with full force. With no hesitation or pause to see the omen sign, William immediately turn towards the Divine Heralds to give an order. "I ept your request and from now on, you are under mymand. Zerth, report to the Living Saint and follow her orders as if itsing from me. I will let her know you areing. Lets go people, we have war to start and finish once and for all. Chapter 139: Two Worlds Collide Chapter 139: Two Worlds Collide "Many mouths speak your hunger into this world, mistress. Let me be the loudest." By: A basic prayer to Tiamat ---------------- The ritual is nearly done and soon, goddess is about to enter the mortal domain. The sky darkened and earth shook every minute as presence of the evil itself emit in the distance. The very same location where thousands of cultists have gathered to achieve one goal, to summon the being known as the Nemesis of the Gods to end all (Also, get rich and power, you know, the general stuff). The red beam of light was also noticed by the Divine Realm as gods and goddness saw the beginning of the destruction to the world they know of. Tiamat was known as lesser deity but for some time now, the power of the Dragon Queen grew powerful never before. As if something foreign influence empowered her beyond her natural ability, and she is getting stronger every minute. "So, the time for the final act is here. Let us see what my boy will do." A child of golden light said with no concern in his voice as few of the deities around him turn their faces with worries. The great evil is about to be released and if Star Child''s n fails, the destruction will be catastrophic enough to end many mortal lives and even religions. "Are we certain your followers will aplish what you promised? We ce all our hope on your n. If this fails, we are doomed." A man in golden and silver armor said to Star Child as he ce his hands on the hilt of his great sword ce towards the ground. Once in few hundred years, the gods will send their champions to prevent the Queen of Evil Dragonkind from holding power over mortal lives and the world. The reason the gods didn''t intervene this time is simple, they been busy with four gods of the Chaos from different realm. Of course, they sent their chosen to do their divine duties but unknown to even the gods, the influence of the Chaos reached the arch enemies of the divine realm. That is why for the past year the world has been in more chaos than ever. More of the monsters ran rampage, evil men and women of greater powers made their moves to possess more power, even the demon lord of the one of nine hells emerge to the mortal world because of the taint of Chaos. The presence of these four gods left an strong impression that will require many generations to heal from. The gods and mortals were luck that the Tarrasque remained slumber as that one is just another major headache. "They will aplish their goal. That is as long as you guys keep your promise of letting them go home by releasing the hold of the byond the sky." Said Star Child. The lock on the sky is what keeping his boys from returning home. With the help of the Chaos gods, the forces of Chaos were able to leave how ever they wished. This is why corrupted Battlebarge was able to leave the orbit. As for the Necron Overlord? He had his own way of going around and it made local gods mad but unable to do anything as Overlord had no soul to twist or manipte. "You don''t have to worry about that. Faster you and your followers leave, the better our world is." A goddess of all magic and spells said as she approach the Star Child. Her name is Mystra, Mother of all Magic and the one who governs all magic spells. She is the greater deity and she is the reason why higher magic spells doesn''t work in the mortal realm. In short, Mystra is a big deal in the divine realm. "As you wish mydy. Soon, the two worlds will be separate once again and we will never see each other. Its a pity, I was enjoying the peace of this world, but there are works to be done and small army of zealots to save." Thest one was spoken near silent but also with excitement as if child ready to open his birthday gift. "What did you say about saving someone?" Mystra asked with curiosity. Her time with Star Child was unpleasant experience. This is because Star Child''s ''magic'' is a different domain of its own. Its like trying to control a weave of strings but you can''t because that strings are from a different instrument entirely. The frustration of unable to do a job your is testing Mystra''s patience and she want it to be done soon as possible. "Nothing. Just something I must do right after I get back home." "Tell me, out of curiosity. What will happen to your followers once they return home? Will they finally find peace? Will it be a tale of worthy of legends?" Second greater god approach the group with carefree and wink at the Lady of All Magic with smile that screams max charisma. Oghma, the greater god of knowledge and patron of bards made his appearance as if he is thinking of next best hit music after this blow over. "... Yes, but you have to remember that their definition of peace is bit different." Lord of Mankind said with his best ability to maintain straight face as he can''t tell the truth. This is because he doesn''t know what will happen when William and his men return to the world of Imperium. Will this change the timeline? Will this bring positive oue of beginning of 42nd millennium? He doesn''t know and he sure can''t see it but since William is his champion and most possibly his blood (rtive now???), Star Child is positive it will turn out ok. ''I''m sure it nothing to worry about. What worst thing that could happen?'' Star Child said to himself as he join others to watch the final act is about to begin. ---------------------- 20 Miles away from the ritual site, The tanks roll with engines fuming ck smokes while thousands of men and women of the Imperium finest troopers march towards the soon to be battlefield. Behind them, the two knights and squads of titans of various types join the formation while keeping distance to cover ground and air. Warlord ss Titans made great impression among others as this is their first battle in the New World. Each step they took, the earth trembled and their presence as avatar of the Machine God gave high morale boost to the troops. Meanwhile, Emperor ss Titan kept its distance but maintain its speed to prevent any uncessary idental death. The embodiment of the Machine God and most prized possession of the Mechanicus made everyone believe a certain victory. This is the very same machine that devastated the demon lord Orcus and his army. Now, the walking church titan is here to kill a god once again. "We are making a progress. There are no encounter of an enemy forces or any signs. We are clear for now, sir." A report came from the vox box as Lord Creed sat on his tank turret with arms acrossed. He was riding his tank given by William himself, the Banede super heavy tank while two additional tanks, the Rogal Dorn battle tanks are behind. The sheer firepower of the battle tanks are enough to bring down an small army. Heck, William is certain no wizards can stop the damn thing even if they want to, unless they have anti tank rocket luncher, about dozen of them at once. "Keep your eyes open and ears wide, we are about to make history by killing a god. Let there be no doubt that God Emperor is watching us right now. My soldiers! Today we fight for ourselves. The path to home is near, let us clear it so we can see the light of the God Emperor once again!" Lord Creed gave his speech in all vox channel for all to hear. Moment Lord Creed''s speech was done, all the troops shout in cheer while allnd vehicles including titans made noise, powerful enough to shatter the sky itself. The morale is high, the sprite of the mankind shine bright as sun. Thousands of fighting men and women of the Imperium not from this world took step forward, to face the evil herself. As Lord Creed''s speech boosted the morale, the opposite side replied with their own as roar of the vicious monsters never heard before echos. Making appearance beyond the mountain, dozen flying beasts with massive wings flew high up to the sky. Big red dragons of different colors and size of Bandde battle tank sore through the sky with breath attacks ready to unleash but what followed them behind was much more terrifying beyond Imperial Guards'' imagination as gigantic crimson red dragon covered the sun with darkness using its own body. "Here we go people. Let us ept our weing hosts with everything we got. Fire!" Lord Creed gave his order and once clear sky is now covered with shadows and bright red lights as two massive forces if sizes and number sh. ---------------------- Meanwhile, William, Rana andrge number of chosen troops sat in slience as they listen to the connumation from the vox. The flooding voices between reports, orders and screaming voices of dying soldiers can heard. The battle began with two forces colliding like a wave of ocean to the cliff and cliff is hitting back hard. "Are we certain they will be ok? I feel like we should be there on the field." Rana said as she ce her hand on the de hilt. It wasn''t just her, some of the troops are showing concerns and worry in their eyes. Unable to be with their brothers and sisters in the same battlefield is painful but missiones first. The mission Lord Creed ned must be followed to the teeth and they all knew it. Among others, Tempestus Scions double checked their rifles and powerpacks, the Sisters of Battle made their final prayers for the fifth time to the God Emperor of Mankind, and cksouls Astartes aremunicating among themselves by private vox channel as their helmets clicks with each end of conversation. Only William remain silent with eyes closed as he sat in the front with his terminator armor. Without his helmet on, William show no signs of expression of any emotions. Even though he wish to be with his main fighting force, William knew this is the only way to sessfully stop the Dragon Queen. Infiltration and strike the enemy''s heart before it begins its first beat. With few more surprises on William''s side, he and select number of small forces are on route around to reach the main base where the ritual of summoning is nearly done. Flying high up in the sky, above even for the dragons to notice, the Thunderhawks and Astra Militarum transport aircrafts made their move in stealth. Carrying troops, vehicles and special packages for the final fight. Suddenly, the cargo hold turned red to signal that they are near. William finally open his eyes and put on his helmet. Others did the same and get ready to fight as theirs will be starting soon. With no words of grand speech of his own, William open vox channel and said what everyone in the strike team will remember. "Hit true to the enemy just as our brothers and sisters are doing right now, giving us the opportunity to strike the heart of the enemy. Remember what Lord Creed said, he is watching us right now. We are his de and hammer, we are his instruments of deliverance. Emperor protects." Said William and he turn his head to Rana without vox or speaker on. "And I will protect you as you will to me." With that said, nes suddenly dive deep down and out from the clouds, a half dozen metal birds of other world made its appearance. No longer hidden or need for stealth, all aircrafts open fire on unsuspected enemy forces to clear thending site. In a matter of few seconds, entirending field burn into ashes as tents and any living beings are no more. William''s Thunderhawk made the firstnding and open its front ramp. The first to exit are Tempestus Scions as they begin to scan with their rifles to find any surviving hostiles. After them, Sisters and few Astartes came out with their weapons ready. Finally, Rana and William join the others with resolution to finish the battle. The real battle is about to begin in the heart of the enemy line as strike teamnded in the enemy rear with full might of the Imperium''s finest. Chapter 140: Fire and War Chapter 140: Fire and War "It''s the wings and the tails you really want. If it can''t fly, it can''t get away. A downed dragon is a dead dragon." By Gobber the Belch --------------- The Frontline, Dozen of dragons flew in towards the Guadsmen with mouths open, ready to unleash the elemental breath attacks. Meanwhile, multiple frontline guadsmen open fire up towards the sky withsguns and other anti-air weaponry to bring down the winged creatures. With all the efforts and massive firepowers, the dragons managed to continue their flight towards the frontline as they are protected by the magical shields and other protections. Asgun shots simply dissipates after hitting the invisible shields, the anti-air weapons either explodes before hitting the targets orpletely goes around them as if something was interfering with the targeting system. Until now, standard weapons of the Imperium worked in the New World against the natives of this world but now, enemy of ferocious and seems unstoppable appeared to stand against the might of the Imperium soldiers. An enemy that guardsmen are more than familiar with as they face theing death. Just as dragons are about to reach the frontline, mixture colors of various chromatic dragons suddenly stopped by expanding their wings wide open. The abrupt halt of massive creatures in the midair created a st of winds while many of the guardsmen continue to fire theirsguns and other kinds of weapons with no sign of stopping. It was at this moment, the sign of Emperor''s protection came as Knights and Titans open fire their massive weapons of war. Freede Knights, Scion of Wrath and Spear of Olympus are the first to open fire with wide shots as Knight Gant and Armiger Warglive step forwards. Behind them, tworge Warlord ss Titans also fired as their two massive weapons such as Mega Bolters and Gatlling sters as it took little bit longer to fire upon. Still, with dragons more focused on wiping out the frontline and believing that Knigts and Titans are simply a walking golems, theypletely ignored them, which will cost them their very lives. The massive barrage of heavy weapons and bigger anti-air guns of all kinds pierced the dragons'' magical defense and shattering itpletely. More than half fell from the sky, just few distance away from the frontline as very few managed to survive using their brethren as meath shield. This moment of extra life didn''t help as more attacks came from the iron giants of the unknown origin. In a matter of few minutes, all dozen dragons fell from the sky, all dead and leaking various chemical fluids that would have been their ignition of breath attacks. The firing stopped and just as everyone was about to take a slight breath of relief, a darkness covered the entire battlefield. A shadow that was getting darker and darker as something above ising down with speed and mass to block the sun itself. Looking up, a one single gigantic crimson red dragon is making a dire skydiving directly above the army of the Imperium. The wrath of the Kayrvyrry, also known as Crimson King came from the above high up in the sky as dragon of ancient knowledge and power release his 7th magic spell upon the invading army. In the middle of formation of the Astra Militarum, massive storm of fire appeared, killing and burnig men and women of the Imperium inrge numbers. Just as spell was casted, the Crimson King expand its wings to glide over the dying army, leaving huge wind blows, causing fire to spread and throwing guardsmen from the ground. The Knights and Titans redired their weapons onto new target but just as they are about to open fire, a new problem appeared. In a form of dragon simply disappearing in a mid-flight. "The target vanished." A Spear of Olympus said and quickly scan the area to find the target. "It must be using some kind of warp magic. Open fire, rapid random sequence." One of the Warlord Titan gavemand and fire an anti-air cannons randomly and wide as possible. Others followed and just as they are about to give up, one of the projectiles hit the target and Cromson King reappeared in the air. The problem was that massive dragon reappeared on side of the frontline, ready to unleash a massive breath weapon. "Take it down!" Take that thing down before¡­" Knight Gant said in panic but it was toote. The massive fire ball of dragon''s breath engulf the Knights and Titans in one massive wave. Thankfully, the void shield of the metal giants held against the dragon''s fire breath but to the surrounding soldiers in the other hand couldn''t survive the vicious mes as many who survive the fire storm are now engulfed by the second fire attack. The total number to Imperium guardsmen dropped drastically as battle only started just few minutes ago. By the time second fire attack died down, the battlefield is smoked with burnt smell of human flesh and destroyed equipements. It is living hell incarnate as survivors drag injured ones or attempt to take whatever cover they can find. With frontline decimated and in shock, frontline copsed and no condition to hold any line against enemy forces. This was the moment Crimson King waited for. To bring down the enemy forces with heavy strike before sending armies of Dragon Queen. Sure enough that dozen of his minor rtives are dead but to then end, more of his kind will rise to rece the lost ones when his mother, the Dragon Queen rise from the Nine Hell. The thought of bruning the world to the ashes made the Crimson King distracted in which it didn''t see a massive ma beam in time to dodgepletely. The beam of massive sma didn''t hit the dragon''s main body but hot sma managed to hit the dragon''s right wing, wiping out its entire section of the wing into nothingless. Crimson King roar in pain and immediately use its one of magical artifacts to teleport away from the danger. The ancient ring of teleportation lost its glow as dragon is now safely away from the battlefield but injured, unable to fly ever again. After exming its injury, Crimson King rediret its attention once again towards the frontline. Beyond the frontline and secondly force, a single giant big as mountain slowly walk towards with two massive arms aiming at the hoovering dragon. The Imperator-ss Titan, Apostate''s End recharge its sma Annihtor while its other arm, Hellstorm Cannon raise its cannon and begin to fire in full force. Boulder size projectiles fly over the army and into where Crimson King is. The dragon quickly cast protection spells to protect itself from the unknown attack and to its own satisfaction, dragon was the only thing that survive while entire terrain turned into wastnd. Meanwhile, Knights and Titans emerge out from dying fire and begin to move foward to cover the retreating first line of the guardsmen. With first line nearly wiped out, second line of guardsmen and heavy armor units join the walking giants to reinforce the frontline. The entire battlefield begin to change its shape as if someone is moving chess pieces. "One regiments is down. Any survivors are retreating to the rear line to regroup." "Second line of four regiments are now ready forbat. Eightbat tanks and artillery unit are ready forbat." "Knights and Titans are reporting a green light forbat ready. Supplies of missiles and ammunitions are ready for deployment on yourmand." Various reports came into Lord Creed''s vox box as he and his battle tanks get ready for new second line. With massive loss of military forces, Lord Creed initiate one of his backup ns to reinforce the entire line for all possible oues. The loss was heavy but the result was eptable as dozen massive beasts are down and main target is injured beyond recovery in short time. "All artilleries, begin bombardment. Have our new unit on stand by. We don''t have to reveal all out hand just yet." Lord Creed gave further instructions to the battlemanders. In a matter of few seconds, the Krieg artillery regiment begin their work as multiple shells begin to fly over the battlefield. For the death of sons and daughters of Krieg, and their sacrifice to expend the enemy''s initial strike against the forces of Astra Militarum, the artillery shellsnds on where Crimson King is located as their vengeance echo through the mountain valley. -------- Battle report, Death Korps of Krieg: 111th Infantry Regiment 1st Company: Deceased 2nd Company: Deceased 3rd Company: Deceased 4th Company: Deceased 5th Company: Deceased 6th Company: Deceased 7th Company: Deceased 8th Company: Waiting for redeployment 9th Krieg Troop Transport Company: Deceased Total Loss: 3,814 our of 4,200 Chapter 141: Men and Demons Chapter 141: Men and Demons "Do not look to us for kindness. Do not look to us for hope. We are not the kind children of this new age. We are the rocks of its foundation. If you wish hope then look to what we make. If you wish kindness then look to those who wille after us." By Rogal Dorn, Primarch of the Imperial Fists Space Marine Legion -------------- Rocky and covered with small nts such as bushes, the ritual site of the Dragon Cult was fitting environment for the uing Dragon Queen. The mountain paths are limited and due to high altitude the oxygen are thinner than ground level. Due to thest dragon mask being the red dragon, the entire Dragon Cult gather in massive number to perform the ritual to summon their Dragon Queen. Most of the cultists are humans but there are decent number of Tieflings and half races among the cult. There are massive number of monsters present including half dragons, which are bored from breeding between dragon and humanoid races (Different from Dragonborn as they are race of proud race of their own and shaped by the draconic gods). William''s forces areprised of entirepanies of Null Marines, full force of Sisters of Battle and elite force of Astra Militarum such as Tempestus Scions, Catachans andpany of Cadians Veterans. The moment troop transports flyers and Thunderhawksnded, the troops of Astra Militarum secured thending site as well as Sisters and Null Marines did the same. After finishing securing thending site and killing any survivors, Astra Militarum begin unloading critical equipments for the final battle and various heavy war gears to get ready for final assault. Meanwhile, Sisters of Battle and rest of the Astartes expend the security by venturing further and killing anything that could expose their presence. William, Rana and few of the senior officers of the groups gathered to go over the n one more time before setting out to attack the enemy''s main base. After few minutes of discussion and sharing of ns through date sheet, William was the first to step out from themand tent with full might of the Honour Guards behind him. "Captain Archus, prepare for battle. We are going to spear head the enemy base while rest of the battle group get ready for their part of the n." With William''smand, Captain Archus Auguste gather all of his men and toons of Tempestus Scions to move out. William, in his terminator armor took the lead with gs of Imperium and his legion behind him, carried by the Null Marines given honour of carrying them. William and his one hundred Honour Guards left the temporary base camp with energy that could rumble the very ground. Equipped with best relic weapons from the STC of the Dark Age of Technology, nothing can stop them even if gods and demons waited to. Behind them, Tempestus Scions and few of the guardsmens follow behind with their equipments and supplies. From ammunitions to rations packs, thepany of Imperium''s finest made their march to the battle that''s waiting for them. Less than an hour of venturing into enemy''s territory, William and his men came to face to face against small enemy of Dragon Cultprised of three hundreds of cult soldiers and handful of magic casters such as wizards and warlocks. With no warning from the rear side forces or messangers to notified them of the enemy infiltration, the small army of Dragon Cult was caught with their pants down. "Open fire," Spoken in normal voice with no emotion to kill or destroy, William''smand ignited all of his men to open fire their weapons without any mercy. All one hundred Null Marines open fire all at once. Raoring sound of bolter rounds and other range weapons mown down unsuspecting enemy forces like a wave. Initial attack put down great number of soldiers as explosive rounds pierced the flesh and exploded, causing devastating death around the target. By the time enemy realized they are under attack, the wave after wave of bolters ripped everything including wooden covers such as tables and wagons. Some of the survivors return fire by shooting crossbows and arrows but it was pointless as Null Marines'' power armor simply bounce them like a toothpicks. Magic casters also retaliate by casting various magic spells against William''s forces, hoping to show off their destructive powers. The result was pointless as arrows and crossbows as many of the pure magic spells simply dissipate before it could hit the fully armoured giants. All their dedication to the studies of magic and exchange of their souls for the power beyond the average people ended with realization that their life is in end of the road. With their position was exposed and identified as a valuable target, sma rifle squads change their sights and open fire. Before magic casters realized they are in danger or able to process why their precious spells failed, beam of multiple blue lights with unimaginable temperature vaporize them. As for the enemy soldiers with bows and crossbows, their heads exploded immediately as Null Marines with heritage of Raven Guards took them out with bolter rifles with sniper scopes. None of the enemies had a chance to fight back properly or survive the encounter. As swift the attack was, the fight ended in a matter of few minutes as hundreds od bodiesy around with bodies in pieces. It was onse side battle with no casualties from William''s side andplete destruction of enemy forces including their base camp. "Chapter Master, scouts are reporting ofrge number of daemons approaching." Captain Archus pass the message to William through vox channel built into his helmet. "Prepare the Honour Guards and have guadsmen resupply the ammunitions. This is nothing but a warm up for the real battle. Also, contact the others to let them know we are getting enemies attention as we intended. We will move head on as nned." William said as he reload his range weapons. Behind him, aLeviathan Pattern Siege Dreadnought with multiple purity seals and honors followed William. "Honorable Chapter Master William, what is bothering you to spent your wrath upon unworthy foes?" Veteran Sergeant Raduriel, the senior among the dreadnoughts spoke with speaker as he lost his ability to speak directly with his mouth. With newly upgrades weapons and armour directly from STC forge, Leviathan Pattern is more than just an upgrade and fancy paint job. Armed with destructive cannons, missiles pods and power weapons, cksouls dreadnoughts are more than powerful enough to break the siege by themselves. "This is the moment I been dreading for, Brother Raduriel. To face the demons of the New World, we are about to bet all on our blessed weapons from the Adeptus Mechanicus and Emperor''s gift. The result of the first round will determined the oue of the battle and entire war effort. For once in my life, I''m excited to see what will be of the iing enemy forces." William answer Brother Raduriel with eagerness while double checking his terminator armor''s built inmand module. All of his men including supply unit are all green and all of his honour guards report with no issues after restocking their ammunitions. The first key n of the war effort is about to be tested. For William to be one and only target for the enemy forces to pay attention while Rana and her Sisters breach the main base to wipe them out from the rear. To take down any grounded dragons and rest of the enemy military forces like a hammer and anvil. A ssic military strategy in which William will be the anvil and Rana to be hammer to wipe entire army of cult before facing the Dragon Queen. "It will work, Brother. Trust on the Emperor''s n and servants. This will be our greates test against the forces of darkness since pre founding of Terranovis. Believe in yourself, brother. You are the one who led us to where we are now and you will led us back home." Massive Leviathan Pattern Siege Dreadnought gave inspiring speech to William and to William''s surprise, honour guards with gs of the Imperium and cksouls stand beside him, rallying the men. "You are right brother, your wisdom once again strength my devotion to my brothers and others. We will y anything that stand in front of us. We will march to the enemy''s front and show mankind''s greatest warriors are here to confront them. We will return home and nothing will stop us!" William broadcast his voice through the vox channel and his men including guardsmen cheer with vigorous voices. "Captain Archus, move the men for battle. We have war to win and god to y." ----------- The scouts of the Null Marines stay hidden while dozens of demons with bat like wings pass by. Utilising their expertise as scouts and master of shadows, former Raven Guards stay still and mixed with shadows to be undetected. Iing enemy forces are massive in numbers and sizes. At first, it was humanoids soldiers but gradually, beastmen andrge demons began to appear as if they somehow knew where Chapter Master was. For the enemy to assemble this much number and able to move this quick by sound of bolters wouldn''t be the cause. Somehow, enemy foresaw the first encounter and defeat by the Chapter Master and made a move ahead of the first battle. Just as scoutmaster made logical reasoning, he felt the ground shook as if something big as knights are walking towards them. [We have a problem. Look beyond the army.] One of the scout said using vox machine. Scoutmaster enhance his helmet''s scope to see the source of the problem. Through his helmet scope, scoutmaster saw five massive humanoid creatures following the army of demons and monsters. [By the Emperor''s golden throne, they are big as knights. Have the intel sent to Chapter Master, now.] Just as he finish his sentence, one of the giants grab arge boulder and throws it where the scouts are. Following the example, rest of the giants did same and in few seconds, five bus size rocks are in the air,ing towards where Null Recon units are. [Take cover!] This was thest words Null Marines heard as their location was exposed by the five Eldritch Giants. Chapter 142: Blessing of the Machine God Chapter 142: Blessing of the Machine God "For eleven hundred years, I have fought and I have seen the darkness in our gxy. I have seen the vileness of the alien and the heresy of the mutant. I have witnessed the sin of possession. I have seen all the evil that the gxy harbours, and I have in all whose presence defiles the Emperor. I have seen what you will see. I have fought what you must fight, and I have in what you must y... so fear not and be proud, for we are the sons of Sanguinius, the protectors of Mankind. Aye, we are indeed the Angels of Death." By Dante, Commander of the Blood Angels ----------- The army of enemy forces areposed of thousands of humanoids troops,rge beastmen and demons of various types that could bring terror to all living beings. The power of the demons can be terrifying as their magical ability are powerful but also petrifying as hex and curses are most used. For the demons, just like daemons from 40k the use of hex and curses are to cause major pain and terror to its enemies as it is an entertainment for them. All these and army of cult can be formidable force to fight, that is unless you are a leader name William with hundreds of Astartes equipped with enough firepower to burn the nation down. As two major armies met in the narrow road with two cliffs on each side, William was the first to draw blood in the battlefield as he send team of Space Marine Centurions. The unit of Space Marines equiped with exoskeleton armor over their standard power armor. They are walking heavy tanks and design to take out the fortress walls. Armed with heavy bolters, sma guns, and heavy mers, the William''s Null Centurions took the front line to take the samage but also deliver death to them. The battle starts with a sound of loud bang as Centurions stomp the enemy human soliders and deflects any weak spells due to heavy armor tes. With massive barrage of bullets and other range weapons, no mortal humans can do anything except dying or running away to simply survive. For the longest moment in the battlefield, it was one side range execution as Centurions advanced with ground literally filled with bodies and pool of blood everythwere. Finally, something actually managed to reach the heavily armed Centurions. Large number of beastmens made bold charge against the walking tanks as if they are out of their minds. With bolter rounds shredding the body parts and even leavingrge holes in the main body, the creatures ofrge size and strength endured. Finally, beastmen managed to get close enough to engage closebat against Centurions. This was a bad idea¡­ for the enemies as Centurions got into Emperor''s work by throwing punches. Literally. Even though their weapons are range weapons attached to their wrists, the fists aren''t there for just a show. Centurions'' fists are actually a power fists and it is one of the devastating melee weapon within the Imperium''s. When activated, the power fists cover itself by generating a energy field that can disrupt any solid matter violently. This means that it can rupture flesh like a overripe fruits and tear muscles and bones like a paper due to energy field. It is weapon of terryfing power and personal choice of Ultramarines Chapter Master''s weapon of choice. The Emperor''s work is bloody and messy as ites when its a meleebat. The first beastman attack using heavy sword that is big as adult male but it was pointless as one of the Centurion simply shattered the de with his very own power fist from his right arm. The mean right hook didn''t stop there as that same Centurion sent his left fist, hitting the beastman''s face in which beastman''s back head erupt like a fountain as it left a big hole with brain matters everywhere. [That was excellentbo, honourable battle brother.] One of the Centurions said through his voxmunicator as he did something simr as he grab the beastman in front of him and gave uppercut to the chin. This cause the head to rip from the body, flying towards the sky never to be found again. [Thank you, honourable battle brother, its all thanks to the codex. ''When in closebat, best defese is offense that can break the very defense.''] Said the first Centurion as he continue his fight against beastmen. This time, he grab the two horns of the beastman''s head and brought it down to hit him with his knee. The sheer strength and power of the Astartes went down with feeble flesh and skull. The head exploded and body simply slumped to the ground like a doll in which Centurion simply step over the dead creature''s back, leaving massive footprints. [Let us move forwards. We need to clear the paths so Chapter Master can aplish what must be done.] Said the third Centurion as he kick the three beastmen and proceed to stomp over their bodies while they are struggling to move. It ended with them crushed and death as rest of the Centurions continue their march while killing any stragglers or survivors. [We have seen the death and birth of hundred worlds! The life of Astartes isn''t life of easy or kind hearted. We are the cksouls of the Emperor''s might! Show no mercy, no regrets, and no chance for them to penance for their sins. Truth death hase for you!] The Veteran Sergeant of the Centurions said out loud and everyone did same as they raise their one of their fist high up towards the sky and fist closed and bloodied. ------------- "Did we changed the warcry?" William said to Captain Archus as he watched the fight not that far away. As his terminator armor havemand function and can process all the battlefield information, William was able to observe the fight but also can givemand if he wanted to. "Some of us decided to give a short version since it can take bit of a time during fight. Something simr to ''We march for Macragge,'' or ''No pity! No remorse! No fear!''" Said Captain Archus as he point out the benefit of having shorter warcry. "That is a good point but now we sounds like Night Lords. Oh well, have someonee up with good warcry but also original. We need to update before heading back home." Said William as he watch teh battle continues. At this point, enemy human troops are in full retreat and beastmen are being heavily persuade to do the same. This means the enemymander will send their best andst remaining force to counter the William''s Centurions. They are about to send demons and devils to fight the mortals of other world. "Send out cksouls Librarians and squad of to honour guards to back the Centurions. Make sure to inform the cksouls Librarians to utilise their nk ability to the fullest." "Yes, Chapter Master. Yourmand is our duty and honour." Said Captain Archus and send out his best men for the job including heavy equipped cksouls Librarians armed with force staves and bolt pistols. Unlike standard Astartes Librarians who are trained to use the warp power to its fullest in the battle, cksouls Librarianspletely opposite as they use something more deadly. William''s Librarians use power of the nk and in which make everything that is warp magic or beingspletely useless. The massive down side of the nk ability is that it make the mortal beings really ufortable when they are around the nks in which result in hating them for no reason. This is why nks are fearsome weapon to the daemons of the 40k but most hated within Imperium even among the Temple Assassins. cksouls Librarians are also equipped with gears simr to Culexus Temple assassins that enhance the nk aura in to lethal level. With Space Marine helmet having onerge eye and expand sensor ray in the back to widen the range of the anti-psyker aura, onecksouls Librarian is enough to take down a group of Chaos Space Marines without firing a shot. Soon, four cksouls Librarians and group of Honour Guards armed with bolterguns and powerswords met with Centurions. Nowbined with deadly units of anti-psyker and expert melee/range unit of William''s Honour Guards, Centurions are more than eager to show off their capabilities in the battlefield. The demons of the New World finally entered the battlefield. Their monstrous and revolting appearances can make any mortal men and women trimble in fear but for the Bull Marines, this was another Thursday for them. They are veterans among veterans and design by the Emepror of Mankind not to know no fear. All kinds of demons made their appearance as some are beast like while some are in human but with additional limbs to wield multiple weapons. Some demons are so weird that it looks like nothing butrge flesh with mouths and teeths. In short, they are diabolical and sanguinary looking things that should be exist only in religion''s imagination. When the first demon took the step and entered the nk range, everything changes as demon that looked like beast suddenly lost its strength and its enchanted ming sword lost its me. Other demons didn''t realized what was going on and entered the nk range as well and to their own surprise, they also lost their ability such as magic enhancements and ability to call their dark power. [Looks like our nk ability works on demons of the New World after all.] Said William as he saw the result of the nk through one of his honour guard''s helmet. [Don''t let them survive. Cleanse the taint once and for all.] William gave his order and right away, all three units move fowards with weapons up high and sting wave after wave of anti-psyker aura. Demons on the other hand went into panicking as their powers are lost and unable to think straight as their mental state began to deteriorate quickly. Seeing something is wrong, some of the demons from the distance cast an magic spells to attack the mortal knights but before spells can reach the enemy, it simply disappears as if it was melted away. As mystery of magic being useless are realized by the demons, the ones in front of the formation begin to die as cksouls open fire with weapons blessed by the Adeptus Mechanicus. Before departing for the war, William had all his men and women of the military force have their weapons blessed by the techpriests. Blessed by the holy oil and chant of the secret machine codes, all of the machinery and weapons are fully blessed by the God, a Machine God. With the blessed weapon from the deity, Null Marines made sure no demons are left alive as each bullets and range shots killed the demons which should had been immune to normal attacks. From blood and guts to vanishing the demons, William''s Nunll Marines clear the way using weapons of 40k and blessings from the Machine God. The battle wasn''t battle but rather butchery and massacre. Just as William was seeing the victory, a new enemy appear from the back as sensor indicates a big enemies approaching the frontline. With ground shaking and ear shattering roars, five giant beings can be seen from the distance as their appearance arepletely difference from rest of the enemy troops. The five Eldritch Giants join the battle as they grab boulders from near to throw it at the advancing cksouls. Just as William is about to give send out more units, a new message arrived in his inbox. With no hesitation, William open the message as sender was a leader of the scouts he sent earlier that day. [Chapter Master, please advised. There are more enemy forces advancing towards your location. At least three more armies are assembled beyond where the giants are.] Chapter 143: Gift from the Above Chapter 143: Gift from the Above "Strike fast and suddenly. Attack without warning. Secure victory before the foe is aware of his danger. Remember always, a war is easily won if your enemy does not know he is fighting." By Battle Tactics of Inquisition. -------- [Good, they made themselves bigger target.] One of the Centurions said as he saw iing bouldersing towards the advaning group. As fiverge boulders are toss towards them in the air, five Centurions quickly change their armor weapon system and fires rapid missile volley to intercept the boulders. With satisfying disy of precision, the boulders exploded high up in the sky, turning into pieces and dangerous debris for the enemies who failed to stay clear from the area. Meanwhile, somewhere in distance, squad of scout Null Marines all made their aims and open fire at the same time. The synchronized sound of their new bolters hit all five giants'' heads, prating the thick skulls and immediately killing them with one loud echoing through the mountain range. [Temporary targets are eliminated. Nicely done, Battle Brothers of ck Ravens.] One of the Null Marines said in thanks as he and others advance their position. At the sametime, the scouts who managed to survive the first encounter against the giants before already disappeared from where they were. As they exposed their position due to providing the sniper support, they gathered their equipments the moment they confirm the kills. It was their job to provide the intel ahead of the Chapter Master and his primary force long before they have to face them. But due to some mystery that revealed their location to the strange giants, they had to stay hidden within shadows of the mountain until time was right. When they received the voxmunication that Chapter Master made an contact with the enemy, the scouts decided to make judgement call by killing the same creatures that almost attacked them before. [We will continue the mission. Be advised, three more armies of simr numbers are approaching.] [Let theme. Nothing will stop us from aplishing the work of the Emperor and Chapter Master. There can only be victory.] [Victory to his name, brother.] The scout master said as he signal others and mixed into the shadow, in the matter of seconds, the entire scouts disappeared as if they were never there. ---------- William and his forces are making slow progress but effective one agains the enemy. In traditionally, invader''s number will decrease as death and injuries would slow the advancement of the army. This doesn''t apply for William as he can rece any supplies while number of his troops maintain their vigor as their physical enhancement helps them with no need to sleep or rest for long period of time. William also managed to receive more rewards through the enemy defeat as some of the new rewards are more than just unit summon. While this is going on, William''s other Astartes and Sisters of Battle made their move as William kept receiving countless rewards into his inventory. Soon, William reach one of the high ground to see the wide range of area in front of him. In front of him, William saw clouds of dust in three separate locations as it gets closer towards where William is. ''The Dragon Cult is well prepared for a fight. Its like them gathered everyone within organization and above toplete the ritual of summoning. I need to move fast.'' William thought to himself and scroll through his inventory. Of all items and units he can summon, he wants to see what else is there. After few minutes of scrolling and reviewing the items, William found the item that could make things go faster. -------- Meanwhile, Rana and her Sisters of Battle made an contact against an small army that was patroling the opposite side of where William was. The battlested longer than expected as enemy possessed an half dozen demons that could endure bolter fire. Eventually, Rana and elite group of Sisters had to handle the situation usingbination of faith and blessed weapons in closebat. The demons managed to withstand the attack for long as possible but their end was here and now as Rana slew most of them with her golden sword/spear. By the time Rana''s force was reorganized and ready to move, a Sister of Battle with long range voxmunicator came to deliver urgent report. "Your Holiness, we received a repeating message from the Chapter Master of the cksouls. You must hear this." Rana ce a hand on her helmet to activate her voxmunicator to listen to the William''s message. The content of the message surprised Rana as she never in her life to hear the William say in his own words. A message of pulling back. A retreat from approaching enemies. [This is Chapter Master William to all forces. Stay clear from approaching enemy forces. I will say again, stay clear from all enemy forces. Orbital bombardment will embark in 30 minutes.] ------- "This can''t be right, howe we have to pull back while our brothers are making great progress? What is Chapter Master thinking?" Wolf Seer said outloud as he and hispany made an easy kill after finding a enemy base camp. Beside him was another captain from differentpany. The one who came from bloodline of Dorn and known for their discipline to hold their position even if its theirst stand, the Imperial fists. "Brother, trust the Chapter Master''s judgement. We are here to ce an beacon and provide any backup when it is needed. We are basically away from the main forces until Chapter Master need of our bolters." Captain of the secondpany said to Wolf Seer with a stern face. A face shows an unmovable will and confidence that their Chapter Master will do what''s right in the test of leadership. "I only ask for one thing and one thing only. Strong drink and good fight." "That''s two, brother." "Strong drink and having a good fight are same for me. Its a fight to survive as drinking is test of endurance while fighting an worthy opponent is an test of strength and skill. Its the way of the Wolf King and All Father." Said Wolf Seer as he drank ale from the tube built in his helmet. "The pain and suffering are the path to truth. That is the way of the Rogal Dorn. Our Chapter Master know all of these as he is our elected leader. His calls for an orbital bombardment is sound as it will fastfoward out movement speed. Time is not in our side and this might be his only ticket for a quick victory." "Well, I better seee challenges when we all meet after this. My ax de hunger for decent battle and someone have to write our tale of returning back homeworld." ------- William made a priority call using his authority as Imperator Fratrum and Chapter Master of the cksouls. The call wasn''t made due to fear of defeat or death but rather to save many lives as he can as he made a judgment call that would change the history of the New World. William knew he is making the right call as using traditional method of fighting three separate armies would just slow him down. This is why Dragon Cult is looking for as they need time much as possible. To road block the iing force using bodies after bodies as sacrificial army of followers will give their lives for the Dragon Queen. With heavy consideration which took only half a minute, William made decision to use the item of legendary status. This is the third time he possessed this kind of reward item. First was Terran Ship known as Mother, second was the Emperor ss Titan. Finally, third one is a legendary item, simple but powerful support type. From William''s visor, he saw the description it gave him a chill to his spine. The power in his hand and potential death/destruction is a game changer. After all, he could drop this directly at the ritual site but he wouldn''t do that. After all, he is suppose to fight the Dragon Queen and defeat her, not prevent her summoning to the mortal realm. For defeating Ancient Dragon of the Dragon Cult, [Nova Cannon bombardment x2: A gigantice sma cannon typically mounted on warships and Titans of highest honour from the Machine God. The Nova Cannon is powerful enough to reach speed of light and possess enough destructive power to one shot Titan. The recoile of this weapon is so powerful that a single shot can disable giant vehicle equipped within. Example of this kind of vehicle is Oberon during Helsreach where High Chain Merek Grimaldus order his Tech Marine battle Brother to awaken the sleeping monster from the secret vault belonging to Mechanicus. Single shot from this weapon is enough to obliterate a city into crater.] Countdown for Nova Cannon orbital bombardment. 29 minutes. Chapter 144: Legiones Astartes Battlefleet: Blacksouls Chapter 144: Legiones Astartes Battlefleet: cksouls "If one weapon could be said to exemplify the righteous fury of the God-Emperor''s wrath, it would be the Nova cannon." By Captain Laurent Strophes, A retired Officer of the Imperial Navy who served with honor. ------------- Nove cannon is one of the most used weapon for the Imperium Navy since before Imperium was created. Equiped in front of the standard battleship, the cannon fires a warheads of various kinds including Grav shells which could create a minature ck hole due to artifically created implosion from the warhead. Even though it is a standard primary weapon of the Imperium Navy, the Nova cannon is inurate as requires stability of the vessel and several calction from team of navy crewmen. Most likely, this weapon was used back in Dark Age of Technology withbination of AI to make fast calctor and functioning loading system for the ammunition to make up for the speed and uracy. Now, Imperium have to use hundreds of men power to load and fire its weapon like back in mid-19th century to make up the limitation as technology is in heavy decline. One thing is certain, Nove cannons aren''t used for the typical Exterminatus. Not all Imperium fleets can conduct everykinds of Exterminatus on the. This action requires a specific fleet equipped with right equipment to start bombing the such as use of virus bomb or breaking bombing. There is no point of using virus bombing a if that world is Necron Tomb World, or use of orbital bombardment if targeting world is Water World where 97% of the plent is covered by the water. If it is demanded by the higher up such as Inquisition or Chapter Master of the Astartes, the Imperium Navy fleet will conduct the orbital bombardment with everything they got including Nova cannon to wipe out the. This usually result in turning into ruins but not one hundred death of the as many of the enemies will survive through bunker or underground shelters. On the other hand, if the fleet is an crusade fleet, they are well supplied to purge all xenos or traitors with all kinds of ammunitions are avable for the Imperium. Noca connon is spear point of the Imperium Navy and utilised to fight against the enemy of the Emperor in void battle. It fires powerful warhead in fraction of the speed of light strong enough to break the enemy ship and could change the course of the battle or even the course of the entire war effort in one shot. "The whole principle of naval fighting is to be free to go anywhere with every damned thing the Navy possesses." By Grenfeld, Captain of the Hammer of Justice. ------------- 3, 2, 1. The world saw meteorite in white light tail flying above the sky. Few secondster, sky turned white as light blinded every living thing and ground shook uncontrobly. There was no sound or concept of sound didn''t exist as everything simply went silent, for five seconds. Immediately, sound of massive explosion in unimaginable scale hit like a wave in every direction. Clouds on the sky was no more as they are pushed away in all direction, leaving giant hole in the sky. Trees were kocked down t like as if someone simplyy them down using a hand, all pointing outward. From this unnatural event, the is left with scar visible from the bird''s eye view as massive crater was created. No living things, undead or even supernatural beings are alive from the this impact as there was nothing but dust and fire. [This is Chapter Master William. You may continue with advancement of the troops and elimination. Advise that there is flying debris and potential dust storm.] William''s new order were received by all of his forces and followed ording to their current situation. ------------- Lord Creed''s Astra Militarum forces managed to avoid major loss as their battlefield was far away from the impact of the Nove cannon. The only difficult thing they have to endure after everything cleared was the massive dust storm as it made difficult to see. Still, this sudden change of weather condition made flying much difficult as dragons couldn''t maintain their flight in the air. This only made Lord Creed''s job much easier as Astra Militarum have long history of fighting in any condition includingplete FUBAR situation (Fucked Up Beyond All Recognition). While enemy was incapable of seeing or able to fight, Lord Creed ordered his men to fall back from the frontlineand have all artillery bomb the hell out ofst known location of the enemy forces. The massive artillery fire continued for thirty minutes with no way of confirming if they are hitting the enemy or not. The Kreig artillery did increase their aim every ten minutes to maximise the effectiveness of the bomberment and enemy casualties. This was attack was also carried by the Titans as their long range weapons can hit just as far as the Kreig''s artillery, with help of the superior sensors to identity thergest enemy target. The end result didn''t reveal until dust storm from the Nova cannon was cleared. Effectiveness of the massive long distance bombardment made huge change in the battlefield as majority of the dragon''s troops were taken out while they were confused. Half of the enemy forces were dead or nearly dead and giant red dragon in charge of the fight is heavily wounded due tobination of weapons fire and falling from the sky when Nove cannon hit its target in distance. The frontline battle between Red Dragon and Lord Creedes to near end as old man from the broken simply smiles as he drank cup of Amasec. Even though victory is near and certain, The Commander of the Astra Militarum gave new order to ensure that he is the one who ce the final nail to the enemy coffin. "All units, you may continue engage the enemy forces after Titans confirm the all frontline enemies are dead. Kill them all, let the Empeor sort them out." ------------- Rana stand still while two of the Sisters of Battle dust her armor off mindfully while Rana stood with elegance. Rana''s forces were far away from where three armies were as their mission was to go around the ritual site. To avoid any detection from the enemy partols, Rana ordered her Sisters to stay in stealth while taking out small scouts to maintain their presence hidden. This didn''t work as nned before but dead doesn''t speak which it still counts as stealth kill in certain point of view. "I didn''t expected William to drop a massive bomb from the sky. That wasn''t part of the n at all." Rana said as her shoulder te armor was dusted off by one of the Sisters. "He may be Emperor''s chosen lineage but this is bit much even for him. What could be it that he need to order an orbital strike?" One of the senior Sister said outloud without thinking as she was also covered in dust. By the time she realized what she just said it was toote as Rana reply back. "Don''t be concern with that, Sister. All that matter is that we are safe for now. I will have word with him when we are done." Rana expressed her anger through the tone of the voice in which made two Sisters take step back. Bein upset, Rana light the area around her with growing golden light and steady st of wind generate from where she stood, clearing the dust around her. "By the Emperor''s light, Living Saint cleared the path for us!" One of the Sisters said with devotion as Rana''s small miracle clear the dust and who the path where they must continue their mission. Before that must be done, Rana once again have to make all of the Sisters to raise up from the knees as they start praying with both hands together as if seconding of the Emperor was in front of them. ''I really need to take maternity leave after this is over.'' Rana than ce one of her hand to her stomach as she begin to think of what could be happening in the possible future with child destined to be a rebirth of the Emperor of the Mankind. ------------- "My lord, the enemy forces arepletely decimated with no trace, except massive crater where they used to be." Said Captain Archus as he gave his report to William. William already knew this as before he dropped the Nova cannon using his reward he forsaw the area effect including the damage area it could cover. The result of the one simple attack from the Nove cannon was devestating. The center of the drop zone is left with a massive hole in the middle and three armiespletely gone from the existence. From this massive kill, William received so much rewards that he forced himself to ignore the notification and focus his attention to the battle reports. With four enemy armies taken down and fifth upied by Lord Creed''s forces, William believe that Dragon Cult have no one to send out to face his elite honour guards. Even if there is sixth, William will simply drop second andst Nove cannon if enemy army is big enough to hinder him from advencing or simply eliminate with overwhelming firepower of Astartes arsenal. "I understand, Captain. Have the men check their equipements and push forward when ready. This could be our chance to make our final destination before enemy manages to recover. Initiate White Scar''s tactic if we have to make it there." William gave his order and dismiss the Captain as he himself need to focus on dataing from the terminatormand screen. The massive information told William of Lord Creed''s situation while location of various Null Marines and Rana''s progress as all of them are advancing towards the center of the mountain. From hismand screen, William saw all of his forces approaching the center of the mountain where Dragon Cult is conducting summoning situal. ''This will be over soon. By the time everyone surround the mountain, the ritual will be done and before Tiamat realize what is happening, I will drop everything on top of that multi headed dragon into nothing.'' William said to himself and about to turn around when suddenly ground shook and sky turned to different color. A color of crimson red covered the sky as if it was the beginning of the apocalypse. With ground once again shaking violently and even spliting away, a new data flow through themand screen and it wasn''t looking good. The current situation wasn''t due from William''s Nove cannon but rather something much more supernatural and sinister. This was the final sign of summoning ritual and resurrection of the Dragon Queen, which was sooner than expected. "The ritual is done? How did the cult managed to elerate the ritual?" William said as he saw beam of red light dies in far distance. Recing the light, something massive in size can be seen from far and movement. Suddenly, the roar of massive magnitude can be heard as for the second time that day, the New World shook literally and figuratively. Tiamat, the Dragon Queen and Mother of all Evil Dragon once again walk the mortal realm as she made her entrance by stepping out from the hellish portal from the ground. With Timant unleashed to the world, her very presence made known even through the divine realm and nineyers of hell as demons and devils followed the Dragon Queen through the portal. The final boss of the William''s quest revealed sooner than expected as William is now faced to deal with Tiamat before his n can bepleted. As if she knew her opponent is watching, Tiamat stretch her wings and all five heads up high, roaring the very heaven itself as if she is ready to shatter it to pieces. "I have risen from the hell itself!" ------------- From defeating three different armies of the Dragon Cult: [Legiones Astartes Battlefleet: cksouls: A Legiones Astartes fleet made for long distance travel and war as it requires. Using lost STC techolongy, the Battlefleet cksouls are self sufficient to make any repairs, gathering natural resources and creating any equipements during long travel without making a stop to the Imperium if it requires. As name of the reward stated, the battlefleet is Legiones Astartes Battlefleet, not Adeptus Astartes standard as it was considered lost during the age of Great Crusade, its purpose long forgotten. Now serving the Chapter Master of the cksouls with new purpose, the battlefleet have new mission and destination to carry the hammer of Emperor''s Warth. The fleetes with their own crews and officers. As for the types of ships: Battleship: Emperor ss x3, Retribution ss x 2 (Not including the one William have already), and Apocalypse ss x2. Total: 8 (including William''s first reward) Space Marine Battle Barge x 5 Grand Cruiser: Avenger ss x5, Vengeance ss x5 and cksouls Strike Cruiser x5. Total: 15 Cruiser: Lunar ss x8, Dictator ss (Attack Craft Carrier) x6. Total: 14 Ark Mechanicus ss x1 (A Mechanicus ship with enough fire power to match other Battleship ss). Mechanicus Cruiser x2 Titan Barque x3: Starship design to transport and deploy a Titans. Knight Transport x2 Total number of the cksouls Fleet: 50 ships. Note: The fleet reward is updated just like the other units before. Certain ships including g ship of the cksouls are equipped with current STC technology as not all ships can have it. The battlefleet have enough room to amodate everyone including heavy vehicles from the Astra Militarum as well as supplies such as water, food and recement parts. The battlefleetes with their own code of identification to prove their legitimacy to the current Imperium in which no authority will challenge it unless higher authority such as Inquisition or Warmaster (Lord Sr) demands it. If needed, the authority from the Scroll of the Creation and Recognition of the Legion can be used to rece the current battlefleet code as it can overrule the authority. By using the scroll in question, the fleet itself will be recognized as part of the Space Marine Chapter and all final orders and chain ofmand will fall under to the Chapter Master. Chapter 145: The Second Shot Chapter 145: The Second Shot "Open your eyes. ''God'' is nothing more than a construct created by man to inspire fear and promote order. If you wish to see me struck down, for all these atrocities, use your own hands to do so, not ''God''s''." By Fuhrer King Bradley/Wrath the Furious from Fullmetal Alchemist: Brotherhood. --------- Tiamat roar high up towards the sky as all five heads open its mouths and some even stretch its jaw as if it wants to get used to the new environment. Around her, the ritual site was in silence as many of the cult wizards and warlocks killed their breaths to hear the answer of their divination. The main camp was wowed as their life work came to fruition. Some were member since their grandparents first joined while some followed the ancient religion through blood and sacrifice of innocent people''s lives and many joined not that long ago as their desire of material wealth and power attracted them. At first, the massive ritual was nothing but possible failure that could attract some unwanted attention. A ritual rted to summoning a goddess, a Dragon Queen is something no normal people will do out of curiosity. The only reason every member of the cult participated is because the final message of gathering was sent by the highest member of the cult. The message was clear. ''Come out from the shadows to block out the very sun itself.'' A message that indicate to everyone from the organization to emerge out from the underground and gather to make one for the history book. When legion of cultists gathered in the final ce on top of the mountain, the leader of the highest rank presented himself with the Mask of the Dragon Queen, fully assembled and ready to release Tiamat from her imprisonment in the Nine Hells. With new motivation, reason and mission of life time. Many of the cultists spread out all directions to gather key materials for the ritual, especially living mortal for their souls. Just like how Khrone doesn''t care where the bloodes from, the ritual demandsrge number of souls to weakened the barrier between two realms so that Tiamat can break it through. In text book, its a task that could be done with massive effort but time consuming. A time in which cultists realized that they don''t have as army of unkown forces against their mission wasing with unimaginable firepower and number of troops. The cultists of the Dragon Queen sent out army after army to stop the unkown force and continued to fail as their every attempt end up with destruction of the forces that was assmebled to help Dragon Queen enve the world. In the end, three armies was wiped out from the world as their masses werepletely destroyed by what mortals can describe as smite from the Heaven itself. This it turned out to be a blessing for the Dark Lady. Without knowing the source of the ritual and very thing that fuel the weakening of the barrier. William''s orbital bombardment resulted in massive number of death and their mortal souls sent to the ritual spell as at that point, the ritual was gainaing and spreading its range beyond the cultists'' main camp. "I can taste the air! I can sense the mortals and every living beings around me! I have truly returned!" The Dragon Queen said with disregard towards her followers and step forward. Around her, many of the chromatic dragons bow their heads to show respect to their goddess and mother of all dragons. Meanwhile, cultists simply kneel and bow down as their presence isn''t worthy enough for the goddess herself. Except for one who wore the Mask of the Dragon Queen. "Oh, the Dark Lady! You have blessed us with your very presence! The Cult of the Dragon is here to serve you and fullfill your wishes!" Ver the Ravenwing, now the high rank among the cultists and self imed High Lord Priest step forward to greet his goddess to the mortal world. "Who dare to talk to me without my permission?" The five headed dragons all shift their direction of the heads towards where the voice came from. The elemental presenceing from the five dragons immediately killed the closest cultists as their lives are no matter for the Dragon Queen. For her, their uses are no longer in need and lives of mortals can be reced easily. "It is I, the one who gathered your masks andpleted the ritual to free you from the grasp of hell itself." Val said with courage he could muster up from his spirit and soul. It was his time to shine and receive his reward for his devotion to the Dark Lady. All the killing, betrayal, and sacrifice he made led to this point where he is now facing the deity herself. "My name is Ver the Ravenwing. The High Lord Priest of your following and loyal servant of the Dragon Cult." "I have sensed your presence before thanks to the mask you are wearing. So, you are the one who started the ritual for my return." "Yes! I''m the one who brought you here. I''m the one whopleted the ritual and waits your order." "NO! You may have started the ritual but you didn''tpleted it to bring me here. I sense a different being with strange power. A power that is hidden right now but formidable if given enough time." Said Tiamat as she raise her heads high up towards the direction where William is. "But mydy, I have done everything you have asked us to do. Are we wee to your world? Will you give us the rewards you promised to our forefathers?" "You demand a reward for half a work? I should be giving my blessing to the one who finished the work instead of you, who show great ipetent." Tiamat raise her right front paw and crush the test Ver was standing near by. The crushing power of the Dragon Queen killed dozen followers but didn''t killed Ver as his Mask of Dragon Queen protected him. "I will decide who will get my blessing and who is deemed unworthy. You are allowed to live at this moment to gather every followers you can muster. I sense battlesing from all around us. But first, I must meet this one mortal who summoned me." With that said before Ver can inform the Dark Lady, the threat of William''s forces, she disappeared from where she stood using teleportation magic. "Gather everyone and be ready to move. I''m taking the half of the forces to take charge of the frontline. Other half of you will relocate our base to secondary area and wait for us." Ver said to everyone and mass the enough people to form a small army. With reward so close but still far from grasping it, Ver decided to make best out of things by bringing a victory to the Dark Lady. --------- William was facing a crater and finish giving orders to all his Battle Brothers. Aftermath of the Nove Cannon was destrctive and effective beyond his imagination. The item gave clear image of area that will be effected by the orbital bombardment but it didn''t give additional information such as beyond st radius of shockwave and impact debris. It took few minutes to have clear view after dust settled and able to mobilize everyone to push foward. The problem followed when light of crimson red bolted through the sky, turning it red and ck as if it signals something evil wasing. Evil indeed came as Tiamt came to mortal world as ritual elerated for some reason. This changed everything as William''s n wasn''t ready or close enough to face the final boss this soon. ''Damn it, how did the cultists managed to so fast. I have to make the first move and confront the bitch before others can be ready.'' William thought to himself and about to give orders to his honour guards when something big and massive suddenly appeared in front of him ten yards away (about nine meters) from him. The five headed dragon suddenly appeared in front of William and his honour guards without warning. The teleportation magic was possible as William and his men weren''t using their nk ability at that moment. There was no way someone would dare to make a move like teleportation to enemy''s territory until Dragon Queen made bold decision to do that. "Hello insect. So, you are the one who brought destruction and enough souls for my summoning. I sense something dark and empty within you. This doesn''t matter, you are being honored to be my first prey and meal in this mortal world." Said Dragon Queen. William didn''t expedited this kind of effensive moveing from the cultists but remained im as his biology kept him from making bad decision. First thing William did is activate his nk ability to fullest and bring out his arms out to fire all range weapons. It wasn''t just William as his honour guards also raise their bolters up high and some even bring out heavy bolters and ma rifle. "Oh. So that is the strange weapons my foolish offsprings fell to. Of course, my followers did as well but who is tracking their short lives as they are nothing but tools for me." Dragon Queen said as one of her head direct its gaze at the mountain where cultists base is. "Thank you for confirming their location, you shity dragon bitch." William immediately activate his secondary Nova Cannon and fired without any hesitation. No need for count down for the enemy as William simply press the ''Fire'' button from hismand console after confirming the location of the orbital bombarment. For the second time that day, New World saw lighting down from the heaven as Nova Cannon pierce the sky and hit the mountain top. Once again, sound disappeared and light blinded the world as everything around the mountain top disintegrated into atom. Half of the remaining cultists evaporated without any trace as one moment they existed and next they are no more. The shockwave finally reached William and Dragon Queen is none of them moved an inch. "What have you done, mortal? Are you avatar of the gods?" Said Dragon Queen as she witness seomthing only gods can avhieve. "No, I''m no avatar of the gods. I''m an instrument of his wrath and your doom." Said William as he open fire at the Dragon Queen with everything he got. Chapter 146: Teleportation Beacons Chapter 146: Teleportation Beacons "May this weapon strike true; may it be wielded with wisdom, may it be put down when its job is done." By Brok from God of War Ragnar?k. -------- The sky is covered in darkness and ground trimble uncontrobly as if gods themselves decided to end the world. All of these was happening because one man decided to kill a goddess so he and his people can return to their own world. A man who started alone in his journey to find out why he is here in the New World is now a leader of many men and women who follows him to fine a way back home. A home where war is never ending and ever changing world but still, their home. The road is near the end. The final obstacle is standing in front the man and it is onest road block that need to be removed. William Nullinanis, a Chapter Master of the cksouls and leader of the all men and women under hismand stood against the goddess of evil dragons, attempting to buy more time. -------- Rana''s group managed to make it to herst destination as she and her Sisters of Battle move through tough terrain. The second orbital bombardment was surprise and unexpected asst second before the Nova Cannon was dropped, they all took cover behind the massive mountain edge. Lucky for them, the st was focused on the main enemy base in which Rana and her forces was distance away. Now, with rough terrian mostly cleared out after the orbital bombardment, Rana order her forces to move once again to reach the final destination of her part of the mission. A former main base of the enemy to ce a location beacon. "Sisters, the path is clear and there is no signs of enemy forces but remember to be vignt no matter what. You may search and deliver Emperor''s punishment upon them as you wish." Rana said and watch her small army of Sisters move foward to now destroyed enemy''s main base. "Do you think there is any survivors there?" Zerth Graymore, the leader of the Divine Heralds asked with curiosity. After witnessing the two separate Nova Cannons made him certain nothing would have survived at all. "From my own experience, there is no such thing as absolute victory. Until I can see the bodies and confirm it, there is always a survivors." Said Rana as she remembers when she first met William and how conflict against the vampire turned into deamon infestation. "Lady Rana Beckett is correct, Zerth. No matter how much you think you won the battle, never turn you back against the enemy. One slight mistake can end everything you achieved." Said Golden Dragonborn as he approached the two leaders. His name is Durand the Golden One, a Dragonborn wizard of the Divine Heralds and advisor to the Zerth. "I understand. We will approach the caution and as a one unit. This is military operation, not an adventure of small matter." Zerth said and move with new certainly to make no mistake even though he is surrounded by most heavily armed female military force in the New World. "He have a lot of things to learn and I hope you can understand. He is still young but have potential." Said old Dragonborn while grooming his white beard. "He remind me of someone I know of. A cousin of mine who learned hard way through blood and pain. Not just Zerth but you all might have help my cousin when this is over." Rana than move and her elite bodyguards follow her to catch up with the rest of the forces as they advence to their final objection. Rana''s forces finally arrived after half an hourter. As path to the enemy base was cleared thanks to the Nova Cannon, the vehicles made smooth journey without any issues. The scene of the enemy base was smoking ruined site as any building with structures werepletely gone and deeper Sisters approached, less bodies were found. First thing Sisters did when they arrived to the location was to disembark from the vehicles and search the area as a small groups. Themunication was kept in quiet and only used if something interesting was discovered such as potential evil artifacts or trace of any survivors. Overall, no living could have survived the direct attack until something unexpected appeared from the center of the crater. A alone survivor barerly holding onto his life but managed to still hold dangers to others. A traitor to the Divine Heralds and former leader of the dragon cult, Ver Ravenwing. "How in the world did he survived?" Saro Earthwing, member of the Divine Heralds asked as she draw her dagger from her belt, about to cross the line she never though before. For the betrayal and death of fellow adventurer, Stand Cloudfist. "No idea but let us change that." A dwarf named Hand Duuhpin said with full of hate as he grab his ax and approach the traitor. Just as two members of the Divine Heralds approach the traitor, Elda stop them with concern on her face as she didn''t want to end it with blood. We can''t do this. We have to deliever him to the guild so he will face the justice." Said Elda. The traitor need to face the guild''s justice to show what will happen to the one who breaks the guild code. "He owe us for betrayal of trust and death of one of us." Zerth said as he also draw his sword, rage and vengeance engraved into his face. "But, we have a duty to bring him in. He need to face the justice for his crimes." Elda said but before anyone could say anything a sound of bolter range though the crater. Silencing everyone with shock. Rana was standing next to now dead Ver who is no missing his head and mask of the dragon queen next to him in the ground. Holding golden bolter pistol which is still smoking, Rana put two more rounds onto dead body, ripping it to pieces. "There, it is done. By my authority as Living Saint and noble rted to the royal family. The traitor is dead and his name will be forever remind the future adventurers what will happen to the one who backstab their fellow adventurers. This matter is done. Sisters, collect the masks and keep them separately. William will decides its fate after this is over." Rana put away her bolter pistol and walked towards the shocked adventurers who couldn''t decide whether to be angry or sad. "What have you done?" Said Elda as her emotion was turning from shock to anger. "I have done you all favor. If any of you killed him with your own hands, this party would have broken apart in the end. By utlizing my authority, I executed the traitor and judgement will be notice to everyone including all guilds." Rana said as if this was nothing and moved on. In some sense, Rana''s logic is right as she is noble and close rtive to the royal family give her absolute power to deliver punishment and judgement to any criminal. "This may feel wrong but she is right. The Living Saint did us a great favor by executing Ver for us. We may have the grudge but she doesn''t and only did her duty as noble woman." Durand said to everyone and approach Ver''s dead body to search for something. After a quick search, Golden One found a guild tag, covered in blood but still intact to be legible. "This will be enough for us to report back to the Guild Master. Our task is done." Durand gave the tag to Zerth and moved on as others did. Zerth open the pouch from his belt and ce the guild tag. Before he turn around to follow his party, Zerth look at the dead traitor once more before two Sisters of Battle ignite the heavy mers to burn the body. There wasn''t much survivors after, the Nove Cannon did killed most and few survivors who managed to not die for unkown reason was elimited without hesitation. With everything secured and no more enemy are alive, Rana''s ground ce the essential item for their mission. A big location beacon is ce in the center of the crater and activated, this made their missionplete and one more beacon is need before Wiliam''s ne to fruition. ''Hope William holds the ground before others makes in time.'' Rana thought to herself and gave next order to move her army to a secondary location. -------- "Brothers! The victory is near." Captain of the secondpany said through his helmet speaker after he smash the Xeno''s head with active thunderhammer. The battle continue without any signs of stopping as many of the monster humanoid and four dragons with damaged wings quickly push foward. Their actions to push didn''tst as line after line of Null Marines took aim and open fire their bolters. The bolter rounds hit the enemy and explodes, turning the bodies into exploding bone shrapnels. For the dragons, the heavy bolters did the work as armor piercing rounds and urate aims of the helmets stop therge beasts where they stood. The greatest monster in the New World was defeated by the unkown weapons the dragons have never seen and before they realized what just happened, the Null Marines put them down like rabid dogs. The battle finally came to an end and no Battle Brothers are lost as their superior armors, weapons and physical bodies helped bring the victory. Not wanting to leave any potential enemy alive, the order was given by the thirdpany captain to burn everything. As for the dead dragon corpses, their bodies were taken using Null Marine''s inventory ability since their bodies can''t be destroyed in standard method. After cleansing thend with holy fire, rest of thepanies move foward, finally reaching the destination. To the Null Marines'' dissapointment, there was no enemy to eliminate as many either ran or was with previous fight which led to their death. "Bring the location beacon and ce it here. Secure the area and make for the secondary location. We don''t want to be here when this thing activates." Thirdpany captain said and met with the other captains to make the next move. In a matter of few minutes, the mission is aplished and everyone is ready to move. "We are done here. Kill anything if you see but priority is clearing from this area. Once that device activates, no one will survive the wrap teleportation of the Titan." "Do you think it will work? Teleporting such a big thing from one battlefield into another?" One of the lieutenant said as he reload his bolter magazine with new type of bolter rounds. "ording to the Chapter Master, this will work. This monster can only be killed with blessed weaponry and Emperor ss Titan is fully blessed by the Omnissiah." "In that case, I pray that Chapter Master survive long enough for the Titan to intervene while he is buying us all a time. I can''t believe he insisted to fight head on against the so called ''goddess'' while we all are here." Said lieutenant. "This is the fight he must face. That is the burden as the Chapter Master and its his own trial. May the Emperor guide his bolter and de." The Null Priest join the conversation to strength the belief of the Chapter Master. With that, entirepanies of the Null Marines left as beacon activates as ites to life. The final battle is about to start but as more than 40 minutes passed since William fired the second Nova Cannon after Dragon Queen magically teleported. The question is, did William survive the battle against Tiamt before his men managed to ce the location beacons in time. Chapter 147: Hold the Ground Chapter 147: Hold the Ground "Death Can Have Me When It Earns Me" By Kratos from God of War Ragnar?k -------- 40 minutes ago, William open fire with everything he got. Beside him, his honor guards did same as their weapons from bolter to heavy weapon were fired but no damage were done to the dragon queen. The massive barrage from the weapons wasn''t effective but rocks around her turned to dust and transform the ground into a crater. Eventually, the dust covered the entire area around the dragon queen and still, William and his men continue firing until Tiamat decided to take counter action against mortals with silver armors. "Take cover!" One of the honor guards said as bright five colors begin to shine within dust cloud. Not hesitating a second, William activate his terminator armor''s shield and expand it to cover most of his men. Those who are beyond William''s reach took cover behind the boulders and secondster, a st of acid, frost, lighting, poisonous gas and fire engulf the entire are where William''s forces are. The poisonous gas block the entire view of the sceen while acid melted and sizzled the ground and rocks as if they are ice cream in hot summer day. The acid quickly covered by the frost from the breath attack as everything solidified just before they were melting away. The lighting on the other hand struck the ground shatter everything it struck. This cause few of the honor guards who took cover behind the boulders to repealed and even thrown back but remain undamaged thanks to the STC armor. Lastly, the fire attack reverse everything into hell on Earth as ice melted and acid evaproated into gas in which mixed with the poisonous gas, causing a chain reaction to ignite and cause explosion. William''s armor endure to the end as st from the explosion passed by and thanks to the air tight sealed armor, all of his men are safe from the toxic gas produced by the explosion. The problem continued as for the second time, Tiamat unleash another breath attack but this time to William''s suprise, all five heads breath a fire with more ferocity than before. "What is this? I though each heads represent element of their own?" William said to himself as his helmet disy how much shield can hold as it was already pass the half of it reserves. If Tiamat attach for the second time, William is certain his armor will go on cool down period in whichst four minutes. Just as shield meter begin to reach the 80%, the wave of fire finally stopped and William found his answer why dragon queen was able to unleash all fire from all five of her heads. Tiamat''s five heads are now all red as crimson with same heads as if she is one element type instead of five. As realisation finally hits William, the dragon queen exhale a dark smoke from her all ten noses and took deep breath of her own. Likeing out from the deep dive, the dragon queen enjoy the air but in short moment as there was killing to be done. At this moment, William''s shield finally died and requires moment of cooling in which he didn''t waste a moment to give next order to his men. "Move and spread out. Don''t stop firing! Take the weak spots between scales and joints." William''s voice made his honor guards move in lighting speed in all directions. Some even changed from bolter into something heavy such as sma cannon and even vulcanscannon with three barrel. The heavy weapons didn''t slow them down as their armor helped with the weigh and with extra power pack from the thates with the weapons made sure honor guards have enough power to attack and move at the same time. Meanwhile, William changed his heavy bolter and sma cannon for something more direct. With extra weights gone from his arms, William pull out his melee weapons. The golden thunder hammer and halberd that can do some damage against opponent with armor. With change of strategy and enemies spreading far away, Tiamat decided to do same and cast spells to whip out the armored insects once an for all. Changing back her four heads back into its original colors, dragon queen cast a spell called ''Wish'' which caster can wish to be happen in real life and it will be granted. A spell that so powerful that if caster is strong enough, a entire nation could end up in ruins within night. [I wish all of these insects to die where they stands.] Dragon queen spoke after wish spell waspleted. With anticipation of hundred insects to drop dead, Tiamat looked around but to her suprise, they continue to move and hitting her with strange corssbows that starting to hurt her. [What? What is this? You all should be dead from my omnipotent spell.] Tiamat said with shock in her voice. This powerful spell was one of her favoriate as it allowed her to toy with her victims and even change the battle into one side victory. Just before dragon queen could think of an answer, a voice reply back and it came from above her. "That''s because no spells work on me or my battle brothers." William said loud through his helmet speaker as he was falling directly above the dragon queen''s head. Holding only his golden thunder hammer with fully charged to the point it was emitting its own blue lighting, William teleported himself above the dragon queen just before she cast the wish spell. With element of surprise and thanks to the ck ablity, William interrupted the deadly spell and gave himself an opportunity to strike back at the dragon queen. [You dare to¡­] Dragon queen didn''t finish her sentence as William''s golden hammer strike true to one of Tiamat''s head. The green dragon head of the Tiamat was crushed by the thunderous strike from the golden thunder hammer. The top skull of the green dragon''s caved and the impact of the hammer cause shock wave which made other heads to pushed back away, giving William more time to either retreat or continue to attack. The damaged head was finsihed as Tiamat felt that head is no longer responsive and not to mention she felt massive pain physically and magically as William''s nk ability was infused with the hammer strike. With opportunity to make secondary action of his own, William slide down from the green head''s back to the long neck. At the same time, William switch his hammer to halberd and use it to slide down slowly by stabbing dragon queen''s hide. The powered de of the halberd draw the blood of the goddess, causing more pain to the dragon queen as she attempt to fight back as rest of her heads turns around to bite William as he was descending slowly. Just as one of the dragon head, the white one was about to bite William, the massive barrage ofscannon and sma cannon struck now dead green head as it was exposed. This caused more disruption to the dragon queen as dead head is now a weakness to be exploited. With all these happening, Tiamat expand her wings and create a massive st of wind to halt any attackers from continue their barrage. Afterwards, Tiamat spid around to lose the William but it was failed attempt as William held with all his might as his halberd de dig deep into dragon queen''s flesh. Sensing that there is no way to lose the armored knight, dragon queen decided to take up to the sky, hoping that if she flew high enough, theck of air will make the knight fall due to los of consciousness or even death. As Tiamat p her wings and attempt to fly off from the ground, to her surprise nothing happened. As in she just stood where she was standing with her expanded but nothing happened such as flying off or even hovering from ground itself. [What is happening? Why can''t I fly?] Said Tiamat as she was clueless to what is happening or what is causing her to unable to fly. "Let me guess. You use magic to fly don''t you?" William said as he gain footing in the back of the dragon queen and unleash st of pulse st that was stored in his armor. The pulse st from the armor hit the back section of the dragon queen where all five heads meet. Standing above of dragon''s equivalent of Craniocervical Junction, William attempt to paralyze the dragon queen. The dragon queen roar in pain as her back was struck with force powerful enough to destroy st door. At the same time, honor guards made frontal attack in full might, surrounding the dragon queen with limited option and no way to escape from the all out attack from the mortals. ''Little more. With her spine and necks damaged to the point she can''t more, the victory is certain.'' William though to himself and unleash second pulse to expose the scale and flesh. Just as victory look nearly certain, the table once again turn as reinforcement came. Tiamat''s reinforcement came to her rescue as dozen ancient dragons of all five colors flew down with breath weapons of their own. [My children are here to kill you and your men. Soon your life will be mine to decide.] Said Tiamat as her heads smirks and attack William to remove him from her exposed back. William once again teleported away and reappeared next to his honor guard captain with halberd in his hand and de drenched with blood of the god. "This fight isn''t over and it will be your life I will decide, not you." William said as his helmet a disy of clock in countdown. Minues twenty minutes until William can teleport his Emperor ss Titan into his location. Twenty minutes he have tost against dozen ancient dragons and Tiamat herself before his n can be achieved. With roar that could shatter any mortal army''s morale, William struck the ground with his halberd and gavemand through his voxmunicator. "Stand and hold the ground. We have tost twenty minutes! Give everything you got until than and you will see the end of the road. For the Emperor!" With the shout of William''s voice, the honor guards gather in small groups and hold their position with weapons in all direction. The true battle beings as dragons swoop down to kill their prey as Tiamat step back to slowly regenerate from the injury and rece the dead head by ripping it off. Chapter 148: Honor and Disgrace Chapter 148: Honor and Disgrace "...what matters in life is not whether we receive a round of apuse; what matters is whether we have the courage to venture forth despite the uncertainty of acim." By Amor Towles, A Gentleman in Moscow --------------- The next twenty minutes wasn''t a battle but rather a carnage of free-for-all. The gathering of the dozen Ancient Dragons became a semi-boss fight of its own as William''s Honor Guards separated themselves fromrge groups to small, intending to fight as a team. For the Honor guards, this wasn''t a battle of a legendary story in making or a glorious battle that it will be written in the hall of heroes. The groups of four to five Honor Guards stood in front of one of a dozen Ancient Dragons and blocked them from approaching William. [You will face us, monster. The darkest moment of your life is upon you.] All of the Honor Guards spoke in unison as they approached their respected opponent in front of them. Some face up against the Ancient ck Dragon from the lost Empire that went against sending sacrifice. Some Honor Guards went up against Ancient Red Dragon believed to be so violent and vicious that only Gods themselves would dare to face up against. One group stood their ground as the Ancient Blue Dragon covered itself with lighting and cracked the air as it struck down randomly. All as one, the Honor Guards attack, embarking on a fight that will ce them on the pedestal of how one''s duty is not to his own gain but to serve and stand against the enemy of greater power. --------------- William stands alone as his Honor Guards advance to fight against the dragons of massive size. Without any hesitation or sign of fear, William saw his men fighting against mighty monsters while he took a moment of rest to regain his strength and reorganize his weapons for the second round. Opposite where William is, Tiamat does the same, biding her time to regenerate her injuries and rethink of strategy after learning of a knight who can''t be killed with magical spells. The only solution for the Tiamat is the use of brute strength and hope it will be enough to crush the knight. With no magic spells avable, Tiamat''s only advantages are strength, size mass, and breath weapons. Unforntaly, this means that she can''t fly as Tiamat uses magic spells to fly as well as the ability to cast levitation to stay clear of danger. With a few minutes of recuperation and nning, William and Tiamat both made their move by rushing each other head first. As each of the two leaders advances, around them, both Honor Guards and Ancient Dragons fight among each other, shooting, biting, shing, and unleashing elements into the battlefield. Tiamat was the first to make the first attack by raising her right front leg, intending to bring down her massive w onto William. Seeing this, William once again uses his teleportation to jump and appear left side of the Tiamat but to his surprise, the Dragon Queen anticipates by swiping her tail. Tiamat has the usual tail, unlike her children. She does have a dragon tail but at the end, she has a stinger simr to a scorpion and just like it, it has deadly venom. This is a very strange character of the dragon kind as this kind of tail is usually shown among the wyvern kind which is considered not a true dragon race. The swipe of the giant tail hit William in the chest and threw him back even though his terminator armor is heavy even for the standard armor. William eventually mmed into the boulder, resulting in cracking the boulder like a spider web. William didn''t receive any damage from the Tiamat''s counter attack but as he is not facing the monster with multiple ways to attack him in various directions, he decided to bring something unexpected. Opening up his inventory, William summons the terminator armor attachment. A missile pod appeared and attached to William''s shoulder, giving him the ability to attack both air andnd if the situation demands it. Also, it''s a heat-seeking missile. Seeing something new that could be dangerous, Tiamat opened all her four mouths and was ready to unleash a breath attack. It was at this moment that William opened fire on all his missiles, sending them right at the Tiamat''s red dragon mouth. The missiles found their target as massive heat generated from the red dragon head became a perfect target. Attacked at a vulnerable position made things much easier for William as Tiamat''s red head exploded, interrupting the breath attack. It was at this moment when William once again teleported to the location where he knew he would be most destructive. Appearing once again in the back of the Tiamat, William brings out his golden halberd and strikes down where it hurts, the precise location where the wing and body meet. Activating the halberd, the de of the weapon glows golden, and using his mighty strength, William strikes down directly below him and carves the goddess''s flesh like a hockey yer going for the goal. The blood gushed out from the wound but that was short as the wound got cauterized which means Tiamat can''t regenerate the lost limb naturally without the use of healing magic. Just as William was about to strike the second wing, one of the Tiamat''s heads (The ck Dragon Head) appeared from the smoke from the missile and bit him, removing William from the Dragon Queen''s back. The sudden attack from the dragon''s massive mouth blinds William from being able to move his weapon in his hand. Just as William was about to open fire his heavy bolter into the dragon''s throat, the mouth opened and once again tossed William like a ragdoll. Unknown to Tiamat, William left a small gift before he got thrown from the dragon''s mouth. A second before William was let go, he dropped a crate of explosives with a 10-second timer. The moment Tiamat realized something was wrong, it was toote as the ck dragon''s neck exploded, decapitating it from its bodypletely. After hitting the ground and managing to get up, William wasn''t happy as he was done with being a dog toy. It was at this moment when one of the Ancient Dragons dropped on top of William as a group of Honor Guards managed to push back using heavy weapons. Receiving imminent danger, William slid aside from the dragon''s massive body in time and saw the fall of the dragon as its life drained from the heavy wounds. Making sure the dragon isn''t ying possum (ying dead), William sts the dragon''s eye with heavy bolter rounds,pletely obliterating half of its head. [Chapter Master, we didn''t see you behind the monster. Our apologies.] Said one of the Honor Guards whose rank shows the rank of veteran sergeant. [Don''t worry Battle Brother, I was merely blocking your way from doing your duty. Join the others and help them. I will do my service as Emperor intended.] William ensures his men and turn around to where Tiamat is. ''Yea, to kill that damn oversize dragon god.'' William thought and hoped that the previous explosive did its job. Two down, three more to go. --------------- Tiamat wasn''t having a great day as two of her five heads werepletely gone and unable to regenerate without her advanced magical spells. Her natural body was able to stop any critical issues such as going to shock or failure of any major organ failure as her three heads worked overtime. The problem also lies in some kind of anomalying from the strange knights and their leader. Tiamat was already aware of the unique abilitiesing out from certain knights as they managed to counter her and her children from casting magic in general. As if they are anti-magic knight. The idea that their ability to stop magical beasts from casting spells is ludicrous enough but their weapons and strange crossbows are dangerous as well. By now half of her oldest have been in and soon rest will join for they are struggling against the strange knights. ''Did my brother send them? They are not wearing any emblem of the tinum dragon but their power is formidable. Oh, how I wish they could serve instead of fighting against me.'' Tiamat thought to herself as she wondered if her method of ruling the faithful was not logical in the long run. To have her servants run around for her amusement and killing without actually identifying their potential reminds her that she could be wrong but unable to pinpoint exactly where. Just as Tiamat was about to reach the point of her wrong as a leader, a small group of knights approached her with weapons high. With no hesitation, Dragon Queen unleashes her breath attack. Combined with fire and acid, the cone of two elements mixed and consumed the knights entirely. Stopping them but still intact for some reason. "Interesting. That is quite tough armor they have. I should test their limits and see if I can duplicate the toughness." Said Tiamat as she reached for one of the knights, their leader once again appeared to block her from obtaining the armor. "You will not touch my Battle Brothers!" Said the silver knight as he opened fire on everything he had, causing Tiamat to step back. The firepower of the range weapons increased as William changed his ammunition from standard to Kraken Prator Rounds. An ammunition design to fight against the toughest Xeno hides, the Kraken Bolts are used for fighting creatures with heavy armor such as Tyranids units and light armored vehicles. William finally decided to fight the Dragon Queen with intention of killing her before his n of bringing the Titan onto his battlefield. This is no longer a fight to buy time but to see if he can y a deity before William''s nes to fruition. "Fuck the n. I''m going to kill this overgrown lizard before twenty minutes is up." William shouted with his all might and activated his support item from his inventory disy. A squad of Thunderbolts came from the sky and rained down powerfulscannons and missiles onto Tiamat''s back. A few momentster, aser beam came down from the sky and with precision, the beam hit the Dragon Queen''s tailbone. In a matter of few seconds, the tailpletely burned off and the massive dragon cried in pain as she continued to receive punishment after punishment. "You will face the death and the one who delivers your doom is ME!" William said with rage attached to every word. With powerful attack after powerful attacking down from the sky, Tiamat is pushed to the edge. In desperation and fear of deathing down upon her, she did something unexpected. Tiamat calls the power of the Nine Hells and names of the Nine Lords, asking for help, to be saved from the mortals which she is willing to be disgraced and shamed. Out of Nine Lords of Hells, one listened and answered. The Lod of the Sixth, the daughter of Asmodeus and known as Dark Prodigy answered the call. The Princess of Hell, sya appeared from the ground through the burning fire portal, standing between Tiamat and William who was about to bring out a big and powerful range weapon from his inventory. "Lady of the Sixth. Please answer my call. Assist me in killing these mortals once and for all. Show them the power of the Sixth!" Tiamat wee help from one of the Lords of Nine Hells and dly epts any help she can get. With injury beyond her imagination, Dragon Queen is willing to throw her dignity and pride. sya, standing 9 feet tall (2.7m) and simr to subus, is a noble bloodline of the archdevil and daughter of the Asmodeus. With bat-like wings stretching and a forked tail waving left and right, the Princess of Hell simply looked at Tiamat, once mighty Dragon goodness, now a beggar, willing topromise just to save her own skin. After a long wait, sya finally reply Tiamat''s request as everyone including William stops fighting and quietly listens for her to answer. "No." Said Lord of the Sixth. "No? Why?" Tiamat asked as she was in shock and unfathomed from the answer she got. "Because I was bored. Also, I hate you and want to see something entertaining like your demise." The cruel reasoning paused Tiamat''s heartbeat and made everyone unable to process the information as one of the most Devil in the Nine Hells came just to taunt the Dragon Queen. "You are jesting. How can you answer my call and give such a reason to withdraw help?" "That''s because I can and I did. What more do you want to know? I''m bored and you might give me enough entertainment." The archdevil flew high above and took a sit on the edge of the high mountain cliff to have a better view. With a flick of her finger, the entire battlefield is surrounded by the fire, forming a massive arena. "Don''t let my presence stop you from killing each other. Give me amusement." With that, the battle once again began as everyone broke free from the presence of the Archdevil and resumed fighting. William turns his head back to Tiamat and brings out his weapon from the inventory. A massive size heavyscannon with an independent generator is ced next to him with the main weapon aimed at the Dragon Queen''s center mass. "Time to die, bitch." William pulled the trigger and fired the weapon. After two seconds of charging, the heavyscannon fired and a devastating beam shot out. ''Oh fuck.'' Thought Tiamat as she attempted to dodge theser hot enough to match the temperature of the sun. Chapter 149: You are Nothing Chapter 149: You are Nothing The Emperor: "It is my dream. An Imperium of Man that exist without recourse to gods and the supernatural. A united gxy with Terra at its heart. These warriors shall be my generals and they will lead my great crusade to the furthest corners of the gxy." Uriah: "Didn''t you just tell me of the bloody ughters perpetrated by crusaders? Doesn''t that make you no better than the holy men you were telling me about?" The Emperor: "The difference is that I am right." Uriah: "Spoken like a true autocrat." By: The Last Church ----------- The beam of the concentratedscannon fires as William''s aim is true. Instead of aiming for one of the remaining heads, the beam hit the front right leg of the Dragon Queen. The massive heat equivalent of the temperature of the sun cut through the scales even though Tiamat should be immune to the burning damage. The damage didn''t stop at the scale as the beam pierced through the meat and bone of the Dragon Queen. The damage is so grievous that it nearly cut the right front leg in half and hit the rear leg by inches. This kind of damage doesn''t happen even if the weapon is highly efficient. It is as if the weapon itself was a blessed weapon, making William''sscannon a holy weapon. The Dragon Queen screams in pain and is unable to process what just happened. A major damage was done to her and for the first time in many years, the was part is that the damage was done by the mortal. "I will spill your bloodline until the end of the ages!" Tiamat screamed in pain and cursed out but it was toote as William proceeded to teleport himself in front of the other front leg and slice it off clean with his ck Teamr''s cksword. Combined with the Terminator armor''s strength and legendary cksword of the ck Temr made up for the devastating cut through the dragon''s front leg. The moment the realization hit, the sound ofscannon hitting the ground can be heard and immediately, the huge sound of a massive leg falling off from the Tiamat can be heard. "No, you will not." Said William and proceed to disappear from where he stood as he simply vanished like a wind. "I''m a GOD! Show yourself and face your judgment like a mortal you are!" Tiamat cried with mixed emotions of pain and rage but it was a hopeless action. Her magic spells are useless and her breath weapons are now mostly expended due to overuse in a short time. Just as Tiamat repositioned herself to bnce herself using her tail, the pain once again came and this time, the entire right side of the wing section was severed. One of Tiamat''s head turns around to see William once again, his sword dripping with blood and standing where her main body and wing used to connect. "If you are a god, what does that make me? A yer of the Gods?" The mechanical vox voiceing out from William''s terminator armor gave off a cold emotionless and chilling presence towards the Dragon Queen. Standing on top of her back, the mortal knight was no more. This thing, facing the Tiamat isn''t some mortal seeking glory or a path of justice like her brother''s champions before. This thing is a predator and it is staring at its prey. "You are NOTHING!" Tiamat with all her will and might fight back the urge to flee. She has her pride and reputation, even if it''s close to nothing but she is still a goddess and there is nothing more humiliating than losing a reputation for the deity. Tiamat mmed her body into one side of the mountain, attempting to crush the mortal knight but it was pointless gesture as William simply disappeared once again. With nothing to support her weight in the front, the Tiamat lost her bnce after mming the mountainside. Injured front legs didn''t help as their blood-soaked stomps gave unimaginable pain and eventually, she dropped to the ground forward. It was at this moment William reappeared in front of her with ck sword held with two hands. "I''m indeed nothing but I''m also William Nullinanis, Lord Imperator Fratrum (Commander of the Brother) and Chapter Master of the Legion of cksouls. You will die by my hands." Hearing William''s deration, Tiamat attacks him with the remaining heads in ast resort to fight back. In one instance, William moves forward to cut down the first head by deflecting the mouth up using a ck sword and swinging downward to cut the neck horizontally. The first head went down clean as it was looking up towards the sky as if someone was watching over the entire event. The second head, went down right after the first one as thest remaining head came down with mouth open, and to Tiamat''s surprise, William pushed on inside of her mouth. William didn''t stop as he continued to push on and as his massive terminator armor maintained its weight, something else began to break everything inside of the mouth. Teeth begin to shatter and any flesh that is attached to Tiamat starts to shred like a meat blender. Equipped with new war gear, William pushed towards the back of the mouth using assault drills attached to his terminator armor. Originally designed to breach the walls and any natural obstacles, the assault drills are meant for Centurions but with William''s massive size, his terminator armor fits perfectly with new siege equipment. Soon, William breached the back of the head as its weight held the Dragon Queen from lifting its head. With all heads destroyed or near death, William switches his right-hand war gear back to his ck sword and approaches his objective. The chest of the Dragon Queen where her main heart is located. [No, please. You are the victor. You have shown that you are powerful beyond any mortals. Isn''t that enough?] The voice of the Tiamat echoes through the minds of all on the battlefield and there is no question of who has spoken. "No," William''s left hand struck the chest of the massive dragon deity. The drill soon breached the scale and was fresh. No mercy was given as William broke the bones protecting the main heart and soon, in front of him the massive heart was exposed. With no hesitation or even the victor''s remark, William activates his cksword''s power generator, covering it with an energy field and stabs the massive heart. Blood gushes everywhere like a tide and covers William from top to bottom. If William was servant of the Khorn, William would be the new champion of the Blood God as Khorn''s swimming pool will be filled with the blood of the god. After the flood of blood calmed down, William pulled out his sword and took a step aside. Pulling out a small box the size of his two hands together from his inventory, William pulled the pin and ced a box inside of the heart. After stepping out from the chest of the Dragon Queen, a box full of sma grenades detonate and the power of the miniature sun engulfs the main body of the Tiamat. Soon, everything from the attached tattered head to tail turned into ashes as nothing even the hardened bones couldn''t survive the sma explosion. "It is done! You hear me gods of this world? I have aplished the task you assigned to me in exchange for getting off this!" William deres his victory and demands acknowledgment that his task is done. With the death of Tiamat, William''s forces can now leave the New World as they should be able to leave the freely. "I''m sure they know, mortal. After all, they are gods." The Lord of the Sixth, Archdevil sya said as she floated in the air where the mountain used to be before Tiamat mmed her back during the fight. Princess of Hell continues. "It''s been somewhat entertaining but why leave so soon? Gods may have promised to let you go but I find you and your followers interesting. How about you stay here and serve me as my champion? I''m sure you will find it beneficial for both parties." "Your offer has been heard and I refuse. This is not the first time I heard a situation where position of power was offered by the so-called devil." Said William. Knowing full well what happened to those who made contact with the power of evil and chaos. "You don''t seem to understand what I''m offering here. I''m giving you a power that could match the gods!" The Lord of the Sixth said as if she was insulted by the insect. "Are you blind? I just killed the god and you are offering what I already possess? You are not good with job offers aren''t you?" William ces his drill and sword back into his inventory, recing them with a fully loaded bolter. "The show is done. Leave now and no grudge will be made." William gave an ultimatum to the Lord of the Sixth as he switched his bolter from safe to semi. sya remains silent for a few moments before showing an emotion of distaste as if she has bitten a sour fruit. The Lord of Sixth finally spoke after her facial expression returned to normal. "You know I could force you to serve me. I''m being generous at this moment as you entertained me with a bitch''s death." "You could try but I will not go as easy as you think." The conversation stopped as two powerful beings of their right stared at each other from a short distance. Soon, sya flinched her right eye as if this became a troublesome and unnecessary iteration. "Fine, you will have your day for now. You can tell your dogs to stand down." Lord of the Sixth said and immediately William''s honor guards appeared from the shadows with their weapons pointing at the floating daemon. "Wise decision." William signals his men to stand down and maize the bolter into his hip. In the blink of an eye, The Archdevil of the Sixth Hells vanished as if she was never there. With all adversaries gone or defeated, William officiallypletes his task. William''s job isn''t over as injured ones have to be taken care of and the dead must be ced on an eternal path to Golden Throne where heroes will be weed. ''Time to organize and make preparations. It is time to go to the world of Warhammer.'' -------------- sya flew a few miles away at high speed as she needed to escape the presence of nothingness. Twice she attempts to cast a spell to demonstrate her power and twice it failed. Thankfully, her wings were out and only thing that maintain her levitation in the air but that was the only thing she could do as after she appeared in the mortal world, she couldn''t do shit. ''That was a close one. Who knew a mere mortal could block ess to mana and magic spells? No wonder that dragon slut couldn''t do anything at all.'' Princess of Hell thought to herself as she experienced a powerless first time in her life. To be weak and defenseless is something she can''t tolerate as power is everything in Nine Hells. After getting far enough from the strange mortal knights, sya once again feels her power returning to her. With no hesitation, she cast one of the powerful spells she originally was going to use against a knight called William. In the blink of an eye, arge section of the forest burned with ck fire. A secondter, arge circle is formed with nothing but ashes in the middle of the forest. "That''s more like it." Satisfied of her power return to her, she cast a return spell. Returning to her realm and where her toys of damned mortals await. Chapter 150: Recall Chapter 150: Recall "Childish? The people of your world named you Great One. The people of mine called me ve. Which one of usnded on a paradise of civilisation to be raised by a foster father, Roboute? Which one was given armies to lead after training in the halls of the Macraggian high-riders? Which one of us inherited a strong, cultured kingdom? And which one of us had to rise up against a kingdom with nothing but a horde of starving ves? Which one of us was a child enved on a world of monsters, with his brain cut up by carving knives? Listen to your blue-d wretches yelling of courage and honour, courage and honour, courage and honour. Do you even know the meaning of those words? Courage is fighting the kingdom that enves you, no matter that their armies overshadow yours by ten thousand to one. You know nothing of courage. Honour is resisting a tyrant when all others suckle and grow fat on the hypocrisy he feeds them. You know nothing of honour." By Angron Thal''kyr ----------- Three Months Later, The night wind from the distant ocean carried a chilled wind into the port city with a massive poption of over ten thousand. The name of the port city isn''t important but its critical role in the city''s economy and trade contributes massively. In some rare cases, the royal family or even the king himself would visit the city to partake in the city''s rich resources from food to luxury stay with a golden sunset view. The port city is the crown jewel and its pride to its residents as well as sailors who regrly stop by to rest and set out to find riches beyond the ocean. Still, with a massive city and its poption, the problems tend to rise asionally. Recently, a new problem rose from the shadows and became a major issue. From the shadows of the deep sewage tunnels to the dark alley in the port, people begin to go missing. It started with a few unwanted individuals such as cripples, homeless, and end-of-the-world radicals but eventually, it became noticeable as more and more started to go missing. The cityw enforcers took steps to patrol the night but it was a fruitless effort as even a few of them went missing or were found dead with limbs gone as if it was torn off. Afterwards, the city outsources the job to the adventurers through the quests. With years of experience from veterans to uing rookies, the port city might be saved by them. It was pointless in the end as more dead bodies were found and no one had an answer to who or what is doing this to the citizens of the famous port city. The city was in a blink of copsing as business started to close and merchants avoided trading due to fear and negative signs that could only be an omen. It was during this dark time when a small group of women armed with ck armour and weapons entered the city with stern looks as if they were on a mission of great deal. At first, the four women made their first appearance through the city gate where they identified their identity with an official government seal. Decorated with gold, each identity tag was engraved with a golden two headed eagle and emblem of lioness with holy halo on its head. At first the gate guards were hesitant at first but after finding out that it was previously epted by the other cities before them, the warrior women were able to enter the city with no problem. The first ce the warrior women visited was local bars and inns. From an outsider''s view, it seems they are picky with establishment and local food. Truth ispletely different as they were asking questions rted to recent disappearances and integrating local gangs for additional intelligence that can be only found from criminalworks. It is an effective intelligence gathering but at the same time it was foolish as it attracted the wrong type of people including an underground crime lord and even corrupt government officials. For a regr folks, this would have been unwanted encounters but for the fourdies with ck armour, it was exactly what they were searching for. One quiet night where no one would venture out into darkness, the streets are soaked with blood as warrior women massacre the leader of the city underworld and its goons. In a matter of a few minutes, no criminal survived their overdue punishment and from their death, a new lead was discovered. That same night, government officials who are in charge of port security died in the hands of the unknown group and next night, the port master who was taking bribes and forging the trade documents was killed with a simr weapon. Soon, news of this event spread like a fire as more and more people decided to leave the city once they called home. It was at this time when the truth of mysterious disappearance and death from earlier came to light, literally as main street exploded in the middle of an afternoon with everyone witnessing the event that is about to fold. With chaos and destruction, many of the locals panicked and hid behind anything they could find while looking towards the source of the explosion. The source of the explosion came from the sewage tunnel and right away,ing out from the copsed sewage tunnel, four women in ck armour came out while firing a loud crossbow-like weapon at the tunnel below them. The identity of their enemy immediately showed itself as a swarm of human size rats emerged from the tunnel. Armed with rusty swords and bucklers, a massive number of Ratmen begin to surface from the city underground. Many of the Ratmen died from the bolter rounds as Sisters of Battle continue to fire without any mercy. Using tactical weapon cycling, pairs of the Sisters reload their bolters while other pairs continue to fire their newly loaded weapons. At first it seems they seem to hold back the swarm of Ratmen but eventually Sisters had to change their weapons as they ran out of ammunition and grenades. Switching to a power sword and chainswords, four Sisters form two separate groups to kill as many as they can. Meanwhile, Ratmen begin to charge the moment they find a chance to make their counter attack. With no hesitation, Ratmen and four Sisters shed with blood and guts everywhere. Meanwhile, citizens of the port city ran in all directions as quiet day activities turned into battlefields. Unfortunately some didn''t make it far as they could due to a few Ratmen who decided to attack civilians instead of Sisters. As battle continued, Ratmen in the rear thought their turn would nevere as their massive number might have overwhelmed the enemy who were small in number. It turns out they were wrong as suddenly a bright light shines in the middle of the battlefield and the current of battle suddenly changes. A wave of heat can be felt before a secondter a massive fire swoops the entire swarm of Ratmen without a warning. To everyone''s surprise, a pair of Sisters switch their melee weapons for a new reward they received and decide to utilise it to end the conflict. Equipped with mers, two Sisters of Battle step forward and take control of the battlefield at once. Meanwhile, the other two Sisters changed their melee weapon into something new and unexpected. Wielding a massive chained sword beyond standard one, two Sisters began ughtering any remaining Ratmen with Eviscerator chain weapons. In a matter of seconds, the tide of battle changed and Ratmen began to retreat while those who were busy with killing civilians soon faced death of their own as city guards arrived in full force to kill them. With no sign of winning this fight, Ratmen in the rear decided to make a full retreat back into the tunnel but after turning around it was a pointless gesture as they all burned into ashes. Soon the battlefield turned into a zing burn pit as smoke of dead bodies covered the port city above and choked the air with the smell of burning corpses. Even with a gruesome scene and death, the victory went to Sisters of Battle and soon their heroic act of eliminating the Ratmen and source of the missing citizens came to light to everyone in the city. It turns out, Sisters'' investigation of crime underworld and corrupt government officials led them to an underground nest of Ratmen who were doing dirty work of killing a lot of people in exchange for stolen goods from the port trade. In short, it was a corruption of power hungry which led to inviting a horde of Ratmen seeking a new source of food and burrow for their number to grow. In light of this news, the city mayor and his men made sure their officials were clean from possible corruption and reced anyone who waspromised. Soon, the port city found its new peace as city guards and adventurers eliminate any surviving Ratmen in the tunnels and burn any new nests that could threaten the city in the future. As for the Sisters, they left the city after ensuring that threat to the city is no more. Their mission to cleanse the evil came to an end when their fieldmander and senior Sister received a message from their vox box. Only used for the dire situation and most important report, the voxmunicator box stays in sleep mode but one night it came to life with message directlye from Living Saint and Lord William. The message was simple but clear to understand. [To all servants of the Golden Throne. Return at once. It is time to go home.] ----------- Cain is currently enjoying his private time with his newborn daughter as he sings a song that he learned from Sch Progenium. The song he knew is more of a military song for the new cadets but it was all he knew and his baby daughter didn''t want to go to sleep for the whole three hours. ''By the Emperor''s grace, please go to bed. I have a town meeting this evening.'' Cain, the hero of the Imperium and recently retired (For the second time) thought to himself and looked at the clock in his bed. It was four in the afternoon. ''Nevermind, I have a town meeting in five hours. There goes my sleep once again.'' Lord Commissar Ciaphas Cain fell into military mode once again as his years of military service helped him build certain endurance againstck of sleep. Just as he was about to sing the same song once again for the hundred times, the baby''s cry died down and soon went to sleep. ''Oh thank you Emperor, you actually answered my prayer for once.'' Cain ced his daughter into her crib and was about to step back towards his bed when his voxmunicator next to his bed came to life and delivered the message with a vox speaker. Cain attempted to shut the vox but it was toote as the baby''s cry could be heard. Defeated by his own daughter, Cain picks up the baby to calm her down while listening to the repeating message from the voxmunicator. After listening to the message, Cain presses the button next to the vox which minutester summons his trusted aide Jurgen. Jurgen, who is considered most reliable but somewhat literal on orders given by Cain, entered the room with a cup and tea tray in his hand. "Do you need a Tanna tea, sir?" "No thank you, Jurgen. Please notify the town counsel that I have to visit Lord William this evening. Please give them my sincere apologies. This is an urgent matter." "Yes sir." Just as Jurgen was about to leave the room, Cain stopped him as he just thought of something new. "Oh, one more thing, Jurgen." "Sir?" "After you notify the council, please find me a suitable babysitter who can handle my daughter. This will be the most important order I have ever given you." Cain said with a half serious look on his face. Just as he said, finding the babysitter for his daughter is important but Cain is certain that Jurgen can find a suitable one quickly as the baby is Cain''s daughter. "You can trust me sir. I will find the babysitter." Jurgen replies back to Cain but with the impression that this will be the most critical mission he has ever received in his career. It took no less than twenty minutes when Jurgen came back to Cain''s room with a woman behind him. When Cain saw the one behind Jurgen he knew he messed up as Jurgen once again took his order seriously. Behind Jurgen, a aged woman enters the room armed with aspistol and a uniform with a rank of general in her cor. Cain knew immediately who she was as he had an uncanny level of recognizing faces and recalling the name. In front of him, an oldrade in arms appeared and to his surprise, much older than he could remember. The woman''s identity is known among Cain''s Valhan Ice Warriors as he is the one who made the regiment. General Regina Kasteen salutes Cain with more energy than he has right now. A formermander of the Valhan 597th greets Cain as she is here to save Cain from his own baby daughter. Chapter 151: His name is… Chapter 151: His name is¡­ Question: What''s the Emperor ever done for me? Answer: What have you ever done for the Emperor? By Training questions from Administratum Cant and Dogma ---------- "... Regina? What and how are you here? Didn''t Lord William tell us thathe will not bring anymore troops?" Lord Commissar Cain said with tons of questions as his old friend and formermander of the 597th Valhan Regiment suddenly showed up to babysit his daughter. "Well, Lord William didn''t summon me. He summoned the ships and I happened to be part of the fleet that was summoned." General Regina Kasteen answers Cain by opening the window and pointing towards the sky. Cain, who is still holding his baby daughter, approaches the window and looks upon the sky while Jurgen steps out from the room to fetch the Tanna tea and a pair of cups. Up in the sky, Lord Commissar Cain saw something very familiar and a very representation of the Imperium itself. Orbiting up in the high sky close to the vacuum of space, a dozen ships of unknown Battle Fleet and few Battle Barges can be seen. Because the ships are so massive and close to each other in formation, the ships can be seen as small figures but Cain knew exactly what they were. "By the Emperor''s light. Lord William finally did it. He recalls everyone because he finally made the decision to leave the New World." Cain said and realised that he is no longer retired anymore. Himself, Jurgen and everyone will return to Imperium as they should, except for one person.His daughter, his blood and flesh will not follow him as he already made a decision and made an arrangement. Even Lord William himself gave a helping hand by connecting Cain with Crown Prince Benton to be godfather to Cain''s daughter until she reached adulthood. Most likely, Cain has a few days to spend with his daughter before leaving her forever. "Regina, I''m sorry but I wouldn''t need a babysitter for my daughter, but I like to havepany until I''m summoned by Lord William." "Of course, my friend. Let us catch up like old times." General Regina Kasteen gave her answer to Cain as Jurgen entered the room with a set of Tanna tea for the Commissar and his guest. --------- Three Hours Ago, After the recall signal was sent, William brought out his summon items from his inventory. In a matter of a few minutes, the Command Center where William was in received massive multiple signals andmunication officers went into panic mode. Receiving vox signals from the near orbit, William''s forces are no longer alone as they made contact with other major forces of the Imperium. Momentster, William and others can hear a voiceing from the voxmunicator. "This is Admiral Thane Von Sharpe. Commanding Battle Fleet Obsidian Star hailing from Sector Crucis. I''m receiving an Imperium signal, please respond." There was a silence as no one dared to answer back or talk to each other as everyone turned their heads towards William. Without a doubt, this was the moment everyone was waiting for and it is finally here. It makes sense that William should be the one who answers the call from the Imperial Navy who have no idea what''s going on. After a moment of hesitation, William spoke. "Signal officer, please connect me with Admiral Sharpe." William spoke while pointing at a random vox officer. "Yes, my lord." The signal officer who is fortunate or unfortunate enough to be selected by William quickly answers and presses a few buttons, connecting themunication to the new forces above the sky. "You are now connected, my lord." After a few seconds of salient moment, William spoke with full authority as his right given by the Emperor of Mankind and as Chapter Master of the cksouls. "This is Chapter Master William Nullinanis of the Legions of cksouls and Imperator Fratrum (Commander of the Brother)." "I do not recognize your name and authority of the unknown ''Legion''. Send me your authorization code or be prepared to be marked as a renegade faction." The voice of the vox box said, which made the entiremand center in silence and room temperature down to cold chill. ''What in the world? They usually follow the order without any question. Could it be that another authority inmand of major forces can challenge my authority?'' William thought to himself but decided to follow the request as he pulled out an old scroll with full power given by the right hand of the Emperor himself. "Give the authority code ording to what''s written in the scroll." William ced the scroll of the Creation and Recognition of the cksouls Legion on the table in which one of the vox senior officers approached and read the code as he broadcast the signal to the ship orbiting above. After the code was given the vox box remained silent until someone new spoke through the vox and this time it wasn''t Admiral Sharpe. "This is Captain Maxaf Issonus of the Luna Wolves andmander of the 15th patrol fleet. The code verifies but I don''t recognize your name. I humbly request a face to face to resolve this misunderstanding." The entire room went into shock as a man who identified himself as a member of the Archtraitor legion andmanded the Astartes Battle Barge. "Strange, a mix of the Imperial Fleet from our time and a few Battle Barges belonging to the Primarch Horus. What is going on?" The one who spoke wasn''t William but a Lord Creed who was watching this entire event in silence until now. "Yes, that is strange but let us ept the request and see for ourselves. Lord Creed, please contact all captains to meet our new guests. Fully armed." William gave instruction and left themand center with his honour guards following him. In a matter of half an hour two ships entered the fortress air field andnded next to each other. The first ship belongs to the Imperial Fleet, an officer''s shuttle armed withs cannons and few missiles. The second ship belongs to the Luna Wolves and they came with thunderhawk. Meanwhile, William was standing in front of the air field with two dozen honour guards and every captain behind him with their own two Space Marines from eachpany. "This will either go bad or worse." Said one of the Astartes captains. "How bad can it go? It''s not like Horus himself would step out from that ship and dere himself a new master of mankind?" Another Astartes Captain spoke but before anyone could reply the first captain silenced everyone as he wanted everyone to remain focused instead of giving a side whisper. The doors of the two ships opened and two groups exist with each of theming out with elite soldiers of their own protection. The Imperial Fleet side escorted with ten Tempestus Scions and small group of officers while Luna Wolves side came out with only three Astartes with one in the middle fully armoured with honours of services to the Imperium. When two groups reached a few feets away, they both stopped, facing William and his men. The Astartes from the Luna Wolves spoke first. "I''m Captain Maxaf Issonus of the Luna Wolves, the 16th legion and loyal sons of the Imperium." After Captain Maxaf said, the man from Imperium Fleet spoke next. "I''m Admiral Thane Von Sharpe of the Battle Fleet Obsidian Star. In the name of the Emperor and his Imperium we hope you know where we are." Thest statement from Admiral Sharpe puzzles William as his mind went into quick calction on the current situation. William then shows the hand sign of Aqu as he wees two leaders into his home. "I wee you both. My name is William Nullinanis, Chapter Master of the Legion of cksoul. Let us properly talk inside of my fortress and share information." --------- The conversationsted for two hours in which William learned the details of the two different factions and their stories. It turned out that Admiral Thane Von Sharpe and his Battle Fleet Obsidian Star got lost in the warp storm during their travel in which they exited the world where Imperium was about to enter the 9 years of civil war called Horus Heresy. During the process of trying to contact the Imperium, the Battle Fleet end up meeting a small fleet of Astartes belonging to Captain Maxaf Issonus of the Luna Wolves. At first Admiral Sharpe fully intended to fight the sons of the Archtraitor but thanks to Captain Maxaf''s diplomacy both parties decided to figure things out on how to return the Battle Fleet Obsidian Star. It was at this moment when another warp storm came out of nowhere and engulfed both fleets into warp, resulting in them lost in the Immaterium for five months. "So that is how both of you met. I''m surprised that none of you decided to annihte each other at first nce. Still, Captain Maxaf, you now know what has happened to your gene father and his hersey. Are you still loyal to Imperium?" William questioned the captain of the Luna Wolves as he himself made it clear he was loyal to the Emperor. "Me and my brothers are loyal no matter what my legion has done. We were on our way to Isstvan III where our gene-father dered a major campaign against traitors. I never expected that traitor to be my own until Admiral Sharpe told me during our warp travel." Captain Maxaf said as an expression of disappointment and sadness but within a rage. William still isn''t certain if these Luna Wolves are truly loyal to the Imperium but he knew that Horus himself recalled all the Astartes who are still loyal to the Emperor so that he can virus-bomb the whole to cleanse the loyalist within his ranks. Still, few of the traitors could be within Captain Maxaf''s rank and William has to make sure they are rooted out before it grows into a bigger problem. "You and your men will be subject to thural investigation and evaluation. Afterward, it will be up to you and your brothers to decide what to do next. You are more than wee to join my ranks if you wish but time is limited as we are nning to leave this world and return to Imperium." William gives his deration to Luna Wolves Captain and turns to Admiral Sharpe. "Admiral, as of now you and your fleet are part of my legion and under mymand. By the right given to me by the Emperor of Mankind, your fleet will assist on our return to the Imperium space. Is that understood?" Hearing the order from the Chapter Master, Admiral Sharpe got up from his chair and gave the sign of Aqu and bowed his head, epting themand of the Chapter Master. "Under the order of the highest within Holy Terra, I, Admiral Thane Von Sharpe of the Battle Fleet Obsidian Star of Sector Crucis will obey the Chapter Master." Afterward, the discussion of loading the entirend force into space fleet and restructure of themand began. In total, it would take one whole month to load heavy machines such as manufacturing and other essential heavy units such as heavy vehicles, knights, and titans. That process itself will take three weeks and after, two weeks to load entire military and other logistical staff members into the ship. This is after all, a process of departing an entire legion worth of men and women capable of upying the star system. With all the discussion and nning, William also allowed Admiral Sharpe to lower the ships one by one to resupply air and other essential things such as water and food. It came to clear that Imperium ships use recycled processing for water and air which ends up bing deluded into foul things. As for the food¡­ William had Catachans lead the hunts around during the loading period to resupply fresh supply of food from the wild. This includes monsters that can be edible and fruits and vegetables that can be harvested. After all, William is certain that his people, including the crew of the ship wouldn''t mind eating a monster meat instead of processed canned food such as corpse starch. As for the Luna Wolves, they will go through a one on one process of investigation and ''interview'' conducted by arge group of Null Marines. Turns out that even though William is certain that he didn''t summon them, apany worth of Null Marines turned out to be former Dark Angels. These former Dark Angels assure William that they will make sure no traitor will escape their interview process and make sure loyal ones safely integrate into cksouls. With that said number of Luna Wolves from the Battle Barge turned out to be a total of 400 Astartes and 230 Legion Serfs. The ones who are proven to be loyal to the Imperium will be undertaking the process of turning into Null Marines while loyal Legion Serfs will be ced in new Astartes training, giving them a second chance to bing the Angel of Death. As for the potential traitors, they will be executed and harvested for any potential gene seeds that can be useful for the future Astartes. Of course, harvested gene seed will be carefully converted to be suited for the Null Marines thanks to the STC processor. Long logistical short, William and his forces will be busy making a departure in a short period of time. ----------- Four Weeks Later, William remains silent in the waiting room while the scream of a woman can be heard in the other room. He wasn''t alone as Lord Commissar Cain, Lord Creed, and honour guard Captain were waiting as well. For the first time in William''s life (Since he came to this world) he felt powerless as his only option was to wait and see the result of the battle his wife is fighting. Rana Bassilo Beckett who is in bed with a few of the Sisters from the Medical team and Archmagos Vdus Callias helping her with the process of giving birth to William''s child. The bloodline of the Chapter Master William continue to next generation as newborn baby also possess the same blood that previously flew when Emperor himself walked the Holy Terra itself before Great Crusade. When the baby was born, the baby''s cry out loud made Archmagos reset his audio receiver as the baby was supernaturally unusual. William and others rush to the room after hearing the sound of the baby. William rejoiced with a bright smile on his face while Rana hugged the baby gently as she carefully calmed the baby. After thural medical checks, Archmagos gave a full report to the new parents with surprising news. [The baby is in fine health. He is a boy and most likely possesses both traits of the parents but I can''t confirm that theory until he grows up to a certain age. By the way, what will you name your son?] Rana and William looked at each other for a second. Before William could say anything Rana spoke first and clearly so that the name of the baby was given to the Archmagos for the medical record. "His name is Henry Bassilo Nullinanis, Son of William Nullinanis and Rana Bassilo Beckett. Emperor''s chosen grandson and future hero of the Imperium." Chapter 152: Beast of Caerbannog "One unbreakable shield against theing darkness, onest de forged in defiance of fate, let them be my legacy to the gxy I conquered, and my final gift to the species I failed." By Emperor of Mankind -------- The Day Before Departure, Ciaphas Cain held his daughter while his aide Ferik Jurgen finished packing all of Cain''s personal belongings. Cain saw this momenting and a century of experience as Commissar would help ease the departure but this was different. This is because Cain has to leave his daughter, Eleanor Rose Cain in this New World. Thanks to Lord William''s help and connection, Eleanor will be in care of the Crown Prince Benton after tomorrow and when timees, Rose will receive Cain''s gifts including his business. The only thing Rose will ever interact with Cain will be the golden ne that contains Cain''s recorded videos and messages. Tonight will be thest night Cain will spend his time with his daughter. "Sir, everything is ready. Do you require a Tanna?" Jurgen asks Cain as he doesn''t know what to do next. "No, Jurgen. Thank you but I would like to spend tonight with my daughter." Cain dismissed Jurgen afterward and sat down on his favourite chair. Signing his favourite tunes, Cain imagines what his daughter will be. Will she follow in her father''s footsteps and be a military woman or will she be a leader of Cain''smunity? Whatever she will be in the future, Cain would ept as long as she lives a long peaceful life, away from the never ending conflict of the Imperium and forces of evil. "Tomorrow, let us have a proper vox image photo. It will be my final gift to you, my dear Eleanor." Cain kisses his baby daughter''s forehead and continues his song as the sun starts to set. --------For the past month, the entire fortress and city went into departure readiness the moment William gave his order. With massive starships in orbit and now able to ess the high orbit, Archmagos and members of the Cult Mechanicus tech-priests made their preparation with help from the Imperial Guard. Lord Casten Ursarkar E. Creed and his officers are well experienced withary departure. First, everything heavier than Chimera is the first one to be lifted from the and sent to transportation ships. More precisely, onto Battleships such as Emperor ss and Retribution ss ships. Lord William hasplete control of the 50 ships (Reference to Ch 144). Titans and Knights will be sent to their respective transport ships while regiments and their equipment will be sent to each Battleships. As for the Astartes, half of the Atrates will board the five Battle Barges while other half will board the Lord William''s g ship. Thest part is still in question even for Lord Creed. Lord William still hasn''t revealed which one of the eight Battleships will be his g ship. When Lord Creed asked Lord William, he simply said he will reveal everything when timees. ''Just what is he nning? Tomorrow is the day.'' Lord Creed thought to himself when suddenly his vox earpiece activates with several people making reports at the sametime. "One at a time. By the Golden Throne, I just need one person to give a proper report for once." Lord Creed said in anger as he thought that his officers knew better. That is unless a massive fleet of Chaos or Xenos entered the New World''s space without 50 Imperial ships knowing. "My Lord Commander, this is Major Celnto from themand center. A massive ship just entered the''s far space and our fleet can''t tell if it''s friendly or not." The officer in charge of the Command Center said in a panicking voice. Moment Lord Creed was about to take control of the situation, a new voice entered the vox channel. "This is Chapter Master William. All forces stand down, I will say again all forces stand down. The single ship in question is under mymand and wouldn''t move from its position until our departure day. We will rendezvous with the ship after we leave the''s surface." William''s voice wasn''t justing from the Lord Creed Vox earpiece, it was broadcast to the entire channel including other factions including the rest of the Astartes. "All senior officers of all groups report to the council chamber within one hour." William''s vox ended and Lord Creed poured himself a drink and finished it in one shot. Usually, William will let his officers know beforehand but for some reason this one was different and it was so sudden. " A day before departure, he called a single ship far from the''s orbit. What is he thinking?" Lord Creed poured himself one more and called his attendants to help him get ready for the surprise meeting. -------- One Hour Later, Council Meeting Room, "Do you know why the Chapter Master didn''t have a new ship join the fleet?" One of the Astartes Captain asks openly to others the moment thest member of the council joins the table. The question of what kind of ship appeared at the edge of the radar was the first one while the second one is rted to what kind of reveal Chapter Master will give when the meeting starts. It was at this moment when William entered the council room with his terminator armor and a group of his honour guards followed him as usual. William''s facial expression is the face of an exhausted man. The management of the pulling of the military forces are done through Lord Creed but everything else such as logistics of food supplies, raw materials for the future campaigns and lists after lists of nightmare have to be done through the highest of the order. This meant that William was up for a whole week to approve and disapprove things that only Lord Guilliman would enjoy in his free time. "Good day to you all, I''m sorry I came a littlete as I lost track of time at the moment. I have some good news to share with you all. As you could have guessed, we have a single ship on the edge of the system waiting for us. Once we depart from the New World''s orbit, we will rendezvous with the ship and embark on the massive warp portal behind one of the moons." Said William. He gave a small smile to ensure everything was fine and clear but this wasn''t enough for others as many raised their hands to ask questions they have. "Yes, Lord Creed asks away." "My Lord, what is the name of the ship and what will be the role of the fleet?" Lord Creed asked and immediately half of the group put down their hands. "I see that is the question of the day. I was hoping to surprise you all when we reach the rendezvous point. Oh well, allow me to exin." William provides the information regarding the mysterious ship he summoned at the edge of the star system. "The name of the ship is Beast of Caerbannog and she will be my gship for our journey back home." -------- Mythical Summoning Item Name: Beast of Caerbannog The gship of the Legions of cksouls and headquarter of the cksouls. Once lost in time and found, the ancient ship dates back all the way into humanity''s Dark Age of Technology. The ship''s origin date and production is unknown but based on its design and armament, it was made to take part in a long period of war as long as personnel is avable. Length of 54 Km/33.55 Miles, the ship is massive and bigger than Gloriana ss Battleship. d with ck tings with reflectors and deflectors of unknown technology from humanity''s golden age, the ship itself is nearly indestructible and capable of self repairs if needed. It was recorded that at one point in the ancient engagement in the battle, the ship went into its first engagement starting with ramming first before anything else after. This massive ship is armed to its teeth and big enough to conquer the entire star system by itself as the ship''s arsenals are vast and too many to count. From standard anti-air guns to killer triplesers on the front of the ship, Beast of Caerbannog is the mighty spear head and shield at the same time. As the ship is from the Dark Age of Technology, it is equipped with the most technologically advanced machinery and data avable back in the days of the Dark Age. The ship possesses full memory of the STC and backup memory banks with known numbers. The ship is also capable of producing vast andrge numbers of items and equipment without need of supervision. With multiple production levels and factories built-in the ship, the only issue the ship will face is the continuation of raw material it can feed it to the production. The ship itself is a fleet of its own. The ship is big enough to hold multiple ships capable of matching against an enemy fleet as its weaponry are powerful and possess thousands of drones equipped with missilessers. The ships are divided into two groups. First one is known as a ''Sword'' and is used for offensive operations. The swords'' role is hybrid of carrier and cruiser as it can be used for various ways such as search and destroy or partols. The second group is known as ''Shield.'' Like the name, the Shield operates to protect the gship while Sword is away. Hybrid of carrier and destroyer roles, the Shield is fast and can endure punishment from the enemy attack. The Shield also possesses formidable firepower and energy shield but its signature abilityes from the drones as swarms of remote drones in size of cars can retrieve, harvest and repair ships inmand. In the worst case scenario, drones from both groups can form up like a massive swarm and strike the enemy forces in a kamikaze-like attack. By doing so, the drones could deliver heavy damage to the key enemy target and attach itself to rip and tear the shipponents. The Beast of Caerbannog is capable of three modes when the situation demands it. First, is standard/default form in which a ship can travel in the void and even embark on long distance travel through the warp without need of navigators'' help (it is advisable that a ship should have navigators avable all times if needed for appearance). The standard form is also used for space battles but can''t produce anything big as other ships. On the other side, the ship can assist the repair of other battle damaged ships while inbat as long as ships in repairs don''t receive any more damages. The second form is production mode. The ship can be stationary simr to an orbital station and able to go into production or factory mode to produce various things such as war gears to ships. During production mode, the ship isn''t defenceless as multipleyers of void shields and weapons will protect itself from any harm. The production form can also be used as a battle stationmand centre while legion forces invade or protect a and are able to supply or repair other ships. This also means that the ship can drop its products from orbit, providing immediate supplies or even base buildings for the military campaign. The third andst form is harvest form. This form is usually used after the battle to gather any useful materials from the enemy ships,s and even raw materials from the asteroids. While in the harvest form, the ship can travel around the battle zone and gather its resources for future uses as there is no telling when the fleet can resupply from the friendly forces. If the situation demands it, the ship can fly close enough to harvest the sun''s energy and matter to produce war materials. During all three forms, the ship is capable of sending out drones and salvage crews to retrieve damaged ships or raw materials. The second and third forms are much more productive when ites to salvagingpared to the first form. Lastly, the Beast of Caerbannog is fully crewed and supplied for the departure. Still, the ship has enough rooms and space to house a full legion and multiple regiments if needed. The ship also possesses an advanced AI named Arthur who is in charge of the ship itself. Due to the ship''s size and multiple functions, Arthur has a dozen sub AIs to help his work loads and supervise the condition of the ship and Legion''s needs. *Note that AI Arthur is aware of the Imperium and updated with its opinion towards AI. For this reason, Arthur and his sub AIs manage deep within the ship''s database and disguise themselves as William''s personal servitors if physical interaction is needed. The ship''s system is protected physically through multiple defence weapon systems and fortress-like energy shieldyers that will require multiple armies to breach the outer walls. As for the digital protection from the hackers, the ship''s cryptographic protocols use polyphasic entangled waveforms (An advanced encryption technology for the operation system) for the starters and other advanced protection programs to prevent any intruders from infiltrating the ship''s brain and stealing the knowledge. As the gship of the cksouls Legion, Chapter Master William is the sole master of the Beast of Caerbannog. No one is above his authority and AI Arthur will make sure William''smand is met with perfection without mistakes. -------- Meanwhile, Old man sat in front of his house smoking a long pipe while a cup of warm tea was ced next to his chair. Enjoying the ray of sunlight and peace, the old man wonders what kind of day awaits him. Just as he was about to take the first sip of the tea from the cup, an rm began to sound from unknown sources. Arthur, the AI of the Beast of Caerbannog takes a deep breath and ces the tea on the table without drinking it. [Yes, what is it?] Arthur used both of his hands to generate a digital monitor and expand it wide, in front of him, dozens of faces of knights appeared in each monitor with various expressions ready to answer. [I''m dictating multiple approaching ships from the 5th sector. It is not friendly as it is not signalling assigned code or radio contact. Advise battle ready and activate 5th sector defence turrets and remote ships.] Said one of the knights as many others agreed to the knight''s rmendation. [Merlin, what do you think?] Arthur summoned another screen and this time a young man in a wizard hat and big sses appeared. This was Merlin, Arthur''s advisor and in charge of humanity''s knowledge, aka STC database. [Based on the ship''s long range sensors and intel from the scout ships, approaching ships are a fleet of aliens known as Tau. If I have to guess, they are Tau''s merchant fleet but unlike their name sake, they are well armed and numerous to be one. Seems to me they are a lost expansion naval fleet.] Said Merlin after he went over the entire date file rted to Tau empire and its battle capability. [Well, in that case there is nothing to worry about. Sir Lamorak, you may take the first sword to intercept the intruders. Leave no one alive. Sir Percival, you may take the first shield for the salvage operation after the battle. Any questions?] Said Arthur and with no one asking any questions to his order, all 13 screens disappeared, leaving Arthur alone again. [We will maintain the order until my masteres home.] Chapter 153: Unknown and the Last Visit The Custodian had no answer. Thunder peeled above them, shaking the cavern and jarring loose a rattling hail of falling pebble dust. ''My king, what now? Whates next?'' The Emperor turned away, walking into the darkness of the cavern while the storm hammered the dead city so far above. He spoke three words that no Custodian had ever heard Him speak before. ''I don''t know.'' From: Master of Mankind, conversation between Emperor and Custode ---------- "So, this is going to be ourst meeting." Numen (Star Child) said to William as he sat in his floating canoe. William finally realizes that he is not in his bed as his consciousness left his body and is now in the realm of the divine. Thest thing William remembered was him going to bed and attempting to go to sleep as he was nervous for the next day''s departure to space. "What do you mean this will be ourst meeting? I''m sure, I''ll see you when I make it to Imperium space." William said as he adjusted his chair. Unlike previous times, William was much bigger than before and the chair wasn''t much of afortable as it looks. The golden chair that could be used as a royal family back on Earth, the thin-legged and normal-sized chair didn''t give much room for a man like William who has the body of the Astartes."That was the original n until something unexpected happened after ourst meeting. Now, I''m not really sure if we''re ever going to meet again. Most likely, this will be ourst time seeing each other." Said the Star Child and with a flick of his hand, he reced William''s golden chair with the Adamantium throne big enough for Astartes such as William. Made from the strongest metal known to the Imperium, the gold-covered throne had a symbol of the Imperium eagle on top while the bottom of the throne was one solid block that could support the weight of the Astartes. "Thanks, that is much better. Can I keep this?" William said but before he could get the answer Numen flicked his hand once again and a table full of coffee cups and tea appeared in front of William. With everything set and done, Star Child descends from midair to face his ''Not a biological descendant.'' "Make yourself a drink. This will be a long conversation." After two cups of coffee were made, the conversation continued. "So, what happened after ourst conversation? If I remember correctly, you wanted me and Rana to have a child, a boy." "Yes, that was the n, your son, Henry, right? Great name by the way. He was supposed to be my new vessel as he fits the requirement." "Ok, I mean I know he is special since he is a natural born between Astartes and Living Saint. Still, he can''t be that special like Primarch," said William as he drank his cup or rather a mug of coffee. Star Child remained silent for a few seconds which made William finally realise something he missed until now and it was about his baby son. "Oh, you gotta be fucking kidding me. Don''t tell me you nted something in your DNA within the Grey Knight gene seed." William put down his mug and shouted with shock in his face. "Of course I did. Why do you think I allow my genes to be used to make superior Astartes? Just in case I made sure that I could unlock my own DNA code beside my own body to create the next generation of Astartes or even a Primarch. You and Rana happened to meet my time of need to create a new host." Said Star Child as he drank his own cup of coffee. "Did you just say Primarch?" William was bbergasted as he didn''t expect this level of revtion toe from the Star Child. His son, blood, and flesh could be a Primarch. William continued. "That is not possible. The Primarchs were made from gic engineering, not from natural birth." "Not exactly. You are right, my sons were born from my Primarch project through theb but I did learn a few new things afterwards. Before my ultimate entombment to the Golden Throne, I imnt everything I learned from the previous Primarch project and new into my very own DNA. Think about it, you have my gic information and with your coption to Rana who possesses traces of my psychic power meet all requirements to bring a worthy vessel in the end." Star Child exins everything to William. Small apportion of the Emperor''s n for the Imperium in case something goes wrong. Star Child summons a baby monitor-like screen with Henry on it. William knew this wasn''t a screenshot or record event but live footage of his son who is sleeping in his baby crib right now. "I want you to use an appraise skill on Henry. You will understand." Said Star Child. Hearing this, William activates his appraisal skill to see his son''s status. William did the appraisal of Henry before. At that time William saw nothing but a standard description of his son''s name and who his parents are. There was nothing special nor skills of a typical protagonist such as William''s, until now. [Henry Bassilo Nullinanis: Son of William Nullinanis and Rana Bassilo Beckett. The next generation and natural born Primarch. Former vessel of the Emperor of Mankind as Emperor made a decree to take another host, recing the vessel of his choice. Born from the bond of Chapter Master of the cksouls who have a direct heritage to the Emperor of Mankind and Living Saint of the Imperium, Henry was born to be a new vessel of the Emperor but due to a change of destiny, the host is no longer selected to be a vessel for the Emperor''s soul. Ability: Appraisal, Inventory, Master of All Tools, Redacted, Redacted, Redacted, etc.] ''The next generation of Primarch. A freaking Primarch.'' William read his son''s status three times before his eyes left the screen. He couldn''t believe that his son became the next Primarch and he didn''t know it. No, he was denied seeing the truth until now. "You hid this from me until now. Why?" "Because I wanted to give you a time of peace when your son was born. One thing I learned from my previous mistake was that I took it for granted when I made my 20 sons and tools to achieve my ultimate goal. You needed time to see your son as who he is, not as another weapon to eliminate your enemy." The Star Child exins his reasoning to William in which he shows the peaceful moment where William spends time with his family. For a moment, William smiled and engraved all the images into his mind but eventually, everything muste to an end as William returns to the present time with the reality of the situationing down on him. "You are right. But now that you are showing my son''s true status means that something ising." William said to Star Child and ced his hands together to get serious. "Yes, you are right. With Henry no longer my vessel and free from his original destiny, it means even I don''t know what will be of him in the future. It is up to you to make sure your son bes a man you would be proud of." William heard the truth and went into deep thoughts but before he could make any decision, Star Child added. "You can''t leave Henry and Rana here in the New World. The agreement with the other gods was to take all of my followers back home. Except for Cain''s daughter since her mother isn''t my follower." With the situation locked into no other option, William finally opened his mouth to speak about his next decision in his mind. "In that case, I will ce my son into a warp-protected pod while traveling through the warp. I don''t know what will be on the other side of the warp portal but I will do everything I can to protect Henry and I''m sure Rana will do the same. Numen, I know you said this will be ourst meeting but I hope I will see you once again on the other side." Said William as he stood up and extended his right hand out. Numen paused for a second before taking William''s right hand and shook it before taking it back. Before William is about to return back to his real body, Star Child speaks as if he remembers something. "My son, remember to hold on to that piece of my light close to you." "What do you mean by that?" ---------------- William woke from his bed as his golden eyes saw the ceiling. It was still nighttime and dark but with small lights spread around the sky, blinking as if it was alive. Next to William, Ranay on the bed with her chest rising and falling slowly with each breath she took. With silky skin and nightgown, Rana didn''t look like a warrior saint princess but rather William''s love of life and someone he would love to spend the rest of his life with. Not far away from the bed, William''s son, Henry sleeps in his baby crib in peace as if no evil will ever approach him or harm him. The room was at peace and no amount of battle adrenaline or glorious moments in the war could rece this moment from William. ''I have work to do in a short amount of time.'' William thought to himself and quietly got up from his side of the bed. After getting his clothes on and double-checking his wife and baby are in sleep, he opened the door and left in silence. William''s destination wasn''t that far from his bedchamber as he entered the room a few minutester. With special locks and ess only avable to the Chapter Master, the room itself was fully sealed but could be transported if permission was given. Inside, the room was made out of white tiles with no sign of any gaps but was able to generate visible light for William to navigate. There is no table or anything except for one thing in the center of the room. An advanced machine is beyond anyone''s imagination as it can produce anything as long as the user wishes for it. A machine that can solve any problem given and is able to bring it to the physical world after going through countless calctions. In front of William is an STC (Standard Temte Construct) and its main core, the brain of the machine itself. The machine came to life after a quick scan of William, identifying the person in front of it, and began to expand itself like a flower in the morning dawn. [Hello my master William, how can I assist you today?] The machine spoke with the human emotion of greeting as the avatar of the Mother appeared in the room standing next to the machine itself. "I want to make a few things before we leave today. Let us start with a transportation pod for a baby." [What are the operation purposes and utilization?] The Mother asked. At the same time sense something within William that only she recognized but didn''t bring it up as it didn''t meet the current need. "To protect my son and ready him for everything that can be thrown at him." Chapter 154: Grand Exodus and To Known "Look at me. Look at me! This is home now, Trooper! This is the zone! It doesn''t like you, but by the Throne, it''s where you are! The Emperor wants you, boy! Did no one ever tell you that? The Emperor wants you to make his glory for him! And if you''re scared, I''m terrified. The archenemy is no ymate. You''re going to see things, and be expected to do things your poor mother would have a fit at. But the Emperor expects, and the Emperor protects, all of us, even you. Especially you - I promise you that." - Colonel-Commissar Ibram Gaunt ---------- The peaceful morning is filled with the busy noise of mass gatherings and operations of enormous proportions. Men and women of the Imperial Guards made theirst check before readying themselves for space travel. The Sisters of Battle gathered into onerge group to conduct one massive service with prayers and cries that could be heard beyond the wall. The tech-priests of the Adeptus Mechanicus went around each holy machine to bless with holy oil while blessed incense smoke cleansed the impurity of the weak flesh that touched it previously. The Knights and Titans previously shipped to the loading ship with their pilots while their representatives and a small army of support teams made their way to the airfield with the remaining cargo. The Astartes of the cksouls went through a thorough inspection of every piece of equipment including their armour and weapons. No mistakes are left unattended as every possible gear are checked and ready for shipping. Afterward, the Emperor''s finest warriors made their grand entrance to the departure airfield while the rest of the factions stood ready with full attention. Finally, the suprememanders of the Imperial guards and Captains of the Astartes made their entrance as a grand ceremony of departure took ce in the temporarynding area. With a massive number of exodus of unstoppable forces in the New World, many of the natives came to witness the event including the Crown Prince Benton from Alderim and the main family of the Becketts. Meeting each head of the state took only a few moments as there was a schedule to keep so farewells weren''t that long. Except with the Becketts as they are witnessing the departure of their daughter, Rana Bassilo Beckett. While Rana and her family say farewell and wish, William discusses with Crown Prince Benton what will happen to the fortress-pce."The pce and everything around will be used as Alderim''s secondary capital and secondary army''s post." Crown Prince Benton said to William as he epted the keys to the pce and a thin book that contained all the secrets of the pce such as hidden tunnels and hidden vaults. "Good thing I emptied all the arms rooms and vaults for potential dangers it poses. The only things you will find are a few of my gifts my men made such as swords and armor." William spoke in a neutral tone but changed to concern as he remembered something very important. "Please watch over Cain''s daughter until she is ready. I''m not asking you to raise her as your daughter but she is something of importance to Cain and that means to me as well. I hope she will find peace here rather than out there." "I understand. She is wee into my kingdom and under my protection. I assure you, when she is ready to learn the truth of her lineage, she will also receive her birthright including this letter." The Crown Prince ensures William as he ces his right hand into his chest where the sealed letter is. The letter contains Cain''s final words to his daughter and deed to his property including a bank ount with enough fortune to live in luxury for ten lifetimes. "Very well. Thank you, my friend. You are forever my brother in arms and will be remembered by my legion eternally. Stay in good health and may the Emperor protect your kingdom." With that William left to unite with Rana. Rana, who was wiping her tears from her face, turned to William and gave a small smile but her red eyes couldn''t hide her sadness. This was the same for her family members as both her father and mother couldn''t stop their tears. With great sadness, William extended his right hand to Rana, in exchange Rana epted William''s hand with her own, and before she joined William, she gavest farewell to her family. "Don''t forget to eat daily nutrition with green vegetables. Also, watch your health since fall ising soon." Rana said with an overly concerned voice and expression as if she is the parents. "We know dear. Don''t worry about us. You make sure you take care of yourself and the little one." Rana''s mother spoke with the same tone as Rana but couldn''t hold her tears as she embraced her husband''s shoulder in the end. In the end, Rana broke the farewell as she joined William''s side and took a step towards the transport ship where honor guards and the rest of the officers of the Imperial Guards waited in silence. Shortly after, William and Rana embark on their transport ship and the main door closes as thest natural light of the New World slowly disappears. The ships make their departure and lift from the ground. With amazed faces shown by the natives of the New World, the ships flew towards the sky and soon all of the ships left the orbit. -------- The first phase of the departure was rocky as the ship shook intensely as it is leaving the atmosphere of the New World. Eventually, as the shippletely left the atmosphere, shakiness died down and from the outer window, the blue sky turned into a ck void. Inside, the light turns from red to regr light, indicating normalcy as well as smooth sailing towards William''s new gship, the Beast of Caerbannog which she and the rest of the fleet will meet very soon. While William and his men are in the transport ships, the sensitive equipment isn''t in the cargo as William personally took them into his inventory. From his personal war gears to STC itself, William made sure no item of importance will be missing, especially STC with secondary Mother AI within. To utilize the STC, William needs help navigating the vast library of the knowledge deposit and its uses. This means that STCes with a primary AI system and a copy version of that AI originates from the Ark Ship known as Mother of Salvation. The STC AI isn''t Mother herself but a copy of the ship but rather a lower version since secondary Mother doesn''t need ship navigation or capability to operate the most advanced ship such as Ark. The great example is Belisarius Cawl''s AI known as Cawl Inferior. The original Cawl''s inferior copy that possesses Cawl''s thinking knowledge but is still a lesser version of the Archmagos himself. When William arrives on his gship, he ns to integrate the STC with his mothership''s AI making sure that the two AIsmunicate to perfection. With Mother Inferior''s production and the ship''s AI navigation in the void, William''s ship will be powerful enough to conquer the star system and mass enough weaponry without the need for Imperium''s support. ----------- William''s transport fleet made its destination. The two fleets join together after an exchange of identity codes and a short timeter, William''s ship enters the Beast of Caerbannog''s hanger with two more ships transporting the honor guards behind it. The ship is massive beyond William''s imagination. With ting clear as ck silver metal but still possessing the ssic gothic symbolism, the ship itself is a massive city, no, a country. From the outside, the ship has enough weapons to level the''s surface and if she wants to, split the continent out of curiosity. Inside, the ship has enough men tounch an invasion of its own and possesses enough ships to transport from army to heavy machines such as Titan legions. In conclusion, whoever possesses the Beast of Caerbannog in any fight wille as victor, that is if the ship herself allows it to be. When William took his first step onto his gship, the ship itself scanned William and gave the green light. Just as William realized that he had been scanned and passed some kind of identification process, multiple defense weapons attached to the walls and floors retracted to their hiddenpartments as if they were never there before. "Holy shit, even though the ship already confirmed my arrival beforending it leaves no spot for any potential attack from a possible enemy.'' William thought to himself and continued his walk as others joined him behind him. In front of him, Lord Admiral Raphael Montaal weed William and his group by forming an Imperial eagle with both of his hands. Signify the loyalty to the Imperium and to the Chapter Master. "Wee to your gship, Beast of Caerbannog, Chapter Master. All your troops have safely boarded the ships ordingly and the fleet is ready to leave the system at yourmand." Said Lord Admiral Raphael Montaal as he gestured his hand towards the exit to the massive hangar while seven hundred ship security forces weed Emperor''s Angels with salutes of arms. William steps forward but stops himself to make sure he can be heard. As if the ship knew what William was thinking, it opened all vox channels to broadcast William''s every word to all ships and its crews. "Prepare all fleets to embark on warp travel. We are going home." The entire hanger cries in cheers and at the same time, every ship in the fleet joins as ships of all kinds and slowly join the formation to be one massive fleet. The Imperium''s finest make their directional changes as all ships'' engines glow in blue and red as they start moving toward the warp portal. -------- While ships are on their way to the massive warp portal, William and Rana take their time in their chamber as William ns to deposit all his wargears to his personal heavy duty reliquary and Mother AI STC into a lower level where it was designed to hold the secondary STC. The ship already has an STC of its own and ships'' main AI have its secondary inferior AI to manage its operation. William''s STC and Mother AI will integrate itself into Arthur, the ship''s AI, making it into one full system. At first William was worried how two main AI from different ships would react but to his surprise, Mother Inferior easily epted into the ship''s main system as if it was a perfect piece of the puzzle. It turns out that the Ark ship and Beast of Caerbannog came from the same mega corporation back in the Dark Age of Technology. ''Wow, I guess ship engineers made sure their products are universal.'' Williampared this to a certain carpany he knew back home where parts are easily obtainable andpatible to all models. With important matters taken care of, William rejoins Rana in his main chamber where Rana ced their son into a brand new pod where he is safe inside. The newly made pod for the Henry was designed to protect him from potential danger with a built-in distress call to track the location if needed. When William entered the room, he was weed with familiarity and a new atmosphere he hadn''t experienced in a while, a feeling of home. William embraced Rana as she jumped onto him and with a smile, she kissed him. Finally, the hardship is over and now the only thing that''s left is travelling through the warp, into a world of 40k and to reunite the forces with Imperium. Even though both William and Rana aren''t from Imperium originally, the task and responsibility given to them are directly from the Emperor himself. By indirectly, both of them are important figures to the Imperium, making them significant to the Golden Throne more than individuals who originated 40k itself. Just as William was about to signal his vox channel to Lord Admiral Raphael Montaal. The message came to his terminator armor. The message indicates that the fleet will enter the warp portal in one hour and all ships will activate their warp drive as well as Ger Field. William ready Rana and his son for the warp travel but unsure what to do as he himself never travelled through warp before. Still, William made sure Henry is sleeping and his pod is secured as he doesn''t know what will happen during warp travel. As one hour finally passed and the ship began to activate its Ger Field and shield itself to protect itself from foreign entities, the ship went into the warp portal. William received all green light from all ships as well as all personnel counted for. As thest ship from William''s fleet entered the massive portal, the warp closed itself as if powerful and divine nature knew what to do. With the warp portal closed permanently and cutting the connection between the New World and the 40k universe, no trace of Chaos or residue of theughing gods can be found as Overlord of native gods, Ao made sure nothing is left behind. Completing the promise with foreign human god known as Star Child, Ao kept the warp portal open until William went through the portal while preventing more troublesing out from it. In the end, the moment the metal fleet left, the Star Child also disappeared, returning to his own realm as well as taking all of his power with him. "The deed is done and the world will heal itself." A sentence from Ao isn''t simple words as reality reshapes itself ording to Ao''s will. With that New World returned to how it was before William''s arrival and once again, adventure began for those who seek a new. The End... Chapter 155: Epilogue One: Last Laugh The warp is a vital tool to us, a means ofmunication and transport. Without it, there would be no Imperium of Man, for there would be no quick bridges between the stars. We use it, and we harness it, but we have no absolute control over it. It is a wild thing that tolerates our presence, but brooks no mastery. There is power in the warp, fundamental power, not good, nor evil, but elemental and anathema to us. It is a tool we use at our own risk. By Warmaster Horus before his fall into Chaos. ------------ Nine Weeks Later, William''s fleet continued their travel through the warp for nine weeks. At first, the sensation of the warp travel made William''s back chill as ice and vast souls within Warp made him paranoid. But as time moved forward, William adjusted to some normalcy to the point he didn''t feel any issues afterwards. Due to the continuous need of navigator''s psychic sight, William forbade his librarians from using nk abilities as it would interfere with navigation itself. The ship and fleet in general is big enough to house everyone to havefortable living spaces as well as enough food from ration packs to monster meat from the New World to feed the whole poption for a dozen years (If rationed extensively.) William''s typical day is spent on managing fleet meetings and dailymunication with the rest of thepanies to make sure they are battle ready while preparing strategy when they reunite with Imperium. Meanwhile, Rana spends her time with the fleet officers for daily operations for the fleet civilians such as food, medical and other essential things to make sure travelling through warp is livable. Sisters of Battle and Space Marines on every ship do their best to make their presence known as much as possible which makes potential security breaches as low as possible. After all, ship shielding, blessing of the holy oil, and water couldn''t one hundred percent hold back the warp from making small breaches, leading to minot daemon attacking ship crews and personnel. Overall, William''s fleet is making somewhat safe travelpared to horror stories where Imperium has to go through the warp. ------------William and Rana''s personal chamber. "I swear, the daily meeting is bing tiresome and repetitive. I start to think we barely have time for ourselves." William ces his datasheet on the table while he turns around to see his wife, who just put down their son, Henry, into STC Pod. Even though Henry didn''t show any signs of his nk or Primarch ability, William was certain that Henry is more powerful than himself, who is gically engineered with Emperor''s tissues. "We have to be understandable, not just us but everyone is working hard to make sure we make the journey. Just yesterday, one of the Battleships went into lockdown due to rioting in the lower level. It seems the influence of the warp made people turn into a Chaos cult. Thankfully, Ship security forces and a few of my Sisters managed to cleanse them before they went out of control." Rana said as she fixed Henry''s ne pendant back into its original position and closed the pod. The pendant is made out of pure gold adamantium just like his outeryer of the pod is made out of. "I just got updated on that. I was surprised that it was Sisters who handled the situation before Lord Creed or Cain did. Will the Sisters conduct the service for the loss of causality and blessing to reinforce the lower level of the ship?" William said as he poured two cups of wine and passed one to Rana. With grace, Rana epted the cup and was about to speak when something unexpected happened. Behind William, a tear in space ripped in force and before William, who was still in his power armor (Not terminator) could notice Rana''s surprise expression, a massive boney hand with an eye attached grabbed the Chapter Master. Before the mysterious hand could yank William through the ripped warp portal, Rana cast a holy protection onto William, protecting him from madness which is the realm of warp. In William''s point of view, his view went from Rana to darkness in a second as the only light source was the protection that Rana managed to cast before he got pulled into somewhere else. ''I know this sensation¡­'' William thought to himself but it was pointless as the culprit revealed himself in front of Wiliam. Darkness slowly dispenses into dark and light blue as the massive hand that held William twists itself to face the owner of the godly hand. "How? We are protected by a ger field. How did you manage to break through the field?" William said to the owner of the hand. The beings who possess multiple hands and eyes spoke in multiple voices that followed one after another. "You think minuscule things such as a ger field would protect you? You are travelling within the warp itself and I''m the Warp! This is nothing but a small portion of what I can do." Tzeentch sneers mockingly and proceeds to shout in rage. "You piece of shit. You cost me everything and for your action, I will teach you a lesson you will never forget." Tzeentch said in anger and irritation. For some reason after the closing look, Chaos God of Change looked worn out and exhausted as his body showed multiple cuts and was covered in feathers mostly likely belonging to birds. Tzeentchcontinues to speak. "Because of your action, all of my bird collections got destroyed by fucking Skarbrand! When you sent Skarbrand into the Crystal Labyrinth and not only he destroyed all my bird cages but he managed to eat half of them. Not to mention he shattered the majority of crystals when he attempted to find his way out from the Impossible Fortress." Tzeentch said in pure anger, half close to what Khorne goes through on morning traffic without his Recaf. "When did I send Skarbrand to your¡­ Oh, that''s right." William quickly realised what Tzeentch was talking about. The three way battle between Khorne, anesh and his own legion at the capital city. The mysterious warp signature that William ordered his Krieg to bomb the area after the knight body mmed the Skarbrand into the building. At least one mystery was solved for William''s mind but this didn''t help him as Tzeentch is now more furious. "You are telling me you didn''t know. You didn''t know that you sent brute into my thoroughly organised realm this entire time? That''s it, I''m going to make you pay not with blood but with daith itself." Tzeentch brought out his second hand to hold William. Just as Chaos God of Magic attempted to do something, a golden light shone behind William and Rana''s spear pierced one of the Tzeentch''s eyes. "You will not harm my husband even if he is wrong. Only I''m permitted to do that." Rana, the Emperor''s Living Saint ripped through the closing warp space in force and made her appearance into Tzeentch''s realm. Fully armed from top to bottom, Rana brightens the Tzeentch''s blue realm with golden light, which disturbs the Chaos God from acting his punishment unto William. "Damn that Anathema''s light. I can''t see shit." Tzeentch cursed as the light of the Living Saint blind him. This onlysted a few seconds as Rana''s initial light eventually died down and once again blue light of the Chaos surrounded everything including Rana and William. ''The light? It actually did something to him.'' William thought to himself and quickly went into his inventory to find a certain item. Meanwhile, Rana recalled her weapon and went into an attacking position with her shield front while her golden wings expanded from her back. "You are not from my reality or Anathema''s so I don''t know what you will do next but I can make a guess with this." Tzeentch summons another warp portal next to him and pulls out something metallic using one of his free hands. The moment Rana and William saw what was in Tzeentch''s hand, they both panicked as Henry''s pod could be seen. "You son of a bitch!" William shouted in pure rage and pulled out his item he was looking for. The one thing that holds the light of the Emperor of Mankind, the Spark of Astronomican can be seen from William''s right hand and with all his might, William throws it at Tzeentch''s face. The moment the sphere of the Emperor''s light hit Tzeentch''s face, it exploded with gold and white light that blinded even Rana''s vision temporarily. For the second time, Tzeentch experienced pain and blindness. For the Chaos God of magic and change, the blindness blocked him from seeing all possible futures and paths he wanted to take. "Screw all of these for once. You will suffer first just as I intended." Tzeentch spoke with madness in his voice and proceeded to grab William''s left and right arm with both hands. Without any hesitation, Tzeentch ripped William in half and to everyone''s horror, it wasn''t a physical muttion but rather separation of body and soul. William''s Astartes body begins to separate from each other but instead of two Astartes bodies, the second body appears to be different in physical size. The whole process only took less than nine seconds but due to massive bacsh from Tzeentch''s magic and abuse of force separation, William lost his consciousness while William saw his own body faint while he was in another body. A body of a mortal man and his original from the Earth before he was sent to the New World. "What did you do to me? Did you, did you just Alpharius Omegon me?" William (Mortal) spoke in a panicking voice but this didn''t help at all as Tzeentch smiled in the most sinister way possible to what he just did. "Why, of course. I know of your origin and I decided to give you back what makes you a you. Just like Alpharius and Omegon who went from one body and mind into two, I simply separated your soul into two. One for Astartes and one for a puny mortal. In a sense, both of you are William, same memory and soul. Hahahaha" Tzeentch began tough but didn''tst as Rana appeared and sh Tzeentch''s hand that was holding Henry''s pod with a fury. "You will release my son and my husband! What in the Emperor''s golden throne?" Rana demanded with rage and wrath of the Living Saint but she paused for a second as she saw unconscious William and a mortal man in hands of Tzeentch. "You are still here? If you want this then you can have it!" With irritation, Tzeentch threw the baby pod directly at Rana, who quickly recovered and withdrew her weapon and shield to grab the pod. Rana extended her golden wing of energy to stop the pod from going further but it was pointless as Tzeentch opened his third hand to open a warp portal right behind Rana and Henry''s pod. "Hahaha. Be lost in the warp forever with your son!" Tzeentchughed and with that Rana and baby pod went into the mysterious warp portal. Meanwhile, William, who is in mortal body, quickly grabs one thing that could distract the Tzeentch while he figures things out. He needs to find Rana and his son, Henry. He also needs to merge with this other half if he wants to survive, that is if he can figure that out. "Hey, bird nerd with optical issues." William shouted to get Tzeentch''s attention which he did as one of the Tzeentch''s eyes focused on William. William couldn''t tell if he could make the throw as distance seems to be changing as if space itself was folding and expanding. But with no options avable, William decided to make his gamble once and for all. "Eat space bugs!" With that said, William once again threw an object towards Tzeentch but since he is now a mortal man, the throw wasn''t that impressive as it was before. Still, the object William threw managed to open and from within a massive number of Leviathan hive fleets appeared from the Tesseract cube. All heading directly at Tzeentch''s head. "What the fuck is this?!" Tzeentch said in surprise as he didn''t expect this kind of actioning from William. The hive fleet appeared between Williams and Tzeentch and due to warp space folding and expanding, Tyranid fleet managed to fully appear from Trazyn''s Tesseract cube and ready to devour anything that was in front of them. "Get them off of me! My magic, why can''t I feel magic around me?" Tzeentch panicked for a second as he didn''t realise that Shadow in the Warp from the Splinter Fleet of the Leviathan is preventing the very warp within Tzeentch''s realm. With Shadow in the Warp suddenly making its presence within the warp, Tzeentch''s domain and warp itself began to degrade as Tzeentch''s hand began to disappear into real space. Thankfully, Astartes William who is still unconscious reappeared into his personal chamber where he was pulled out from before. But for mortal William who doesn''t have the original destination where he was pulled out from ends up travelling through the warp time and space. Fortunately, mortal William still had Rana''s holy protection to protect him from the warp itself but his luck was all out as he had no way of navigating through the Sea of Souls. In the end Tzeentch got his revenge as he managed to separate William into two individuals and separate his family through space and time, permanently. As William travels through the warp as a mortal man, a mysterious being in the shadow smiles andughs in chuckles. Using ability beyond ck void, the being redirect mortal humans into different times within the warp. Withughter of his own joke in the making, the mysterious being just gave himself a new toy to y around and another opportunity to mess with four Chaos Gods. [What makes a great story? A tragedy! Hahaha! Bazinga.] Chapter 156: Epilogue Two: Mother and Son Erda smiled mirthlessly. ''So like all your kind ¨C desires frustrated, and then quickly to the threats.'' She ced her hands together, raising them up as if in prayer. The golden glow within the room intensified, and a strange harmonic began to thrum across the earth floor. ''But you should not havee here alone, monster.'' By Erda, Mother of Primarchs confronting Erebus --------- A golden meteor flew through above the old world. At first, the mysterious light was just a dim light mixed among the stars but as time passed, the light gradually grew everynight to the point everyone native to the in question began to panic. Many of the natives began to believe that it is the sign of the uing apocalypse, some believe it is the sign of hope as meteor emits golden light as well as meteor only have one string of tail, not two. On the other hand, few individuals who possess a great power and sight beyondmon fear saw what the meteor truly was. A new contender for the position of ultimate power. ----------- Altdorf, Capital City of the Empire. College of Magic "By the Sigmar. The golden meteor could be the sign of the great omen but I can''t determine if it is good or evil." An ancient wizard spoke in great concern as if he was talking to himself but in truth, he was surrounded by a dozen wizards of different orders of magic. The gathering of the wisest and most experienced wizards frowned as they couldn''t determine the identity of the golden meteor or meaning behind the light."So we are still undecided as to what that light means. Without our answer, the people of the Empire are panicking and resorting to mass gathering to the cult of Sigmar. No one is working and there is chaos in the cities everywhere." One of the wizards in green robe reminds everyone what was on a stake at this moment. The Jade Wizard spoke true asmoners are panicking in fear which results in massive disruption of daily life and crime rate rises to new levels. On the other hand, nobles of all levels did what they are good at, petty revenge against each other to which wizards start to believe if nobles possess a certain book of grudge of their own. "I believe that golden light isn''t a menace to us but rather a hope of the Empire. I''m more concerned about the trajectory of the meteor as it is stilling towards our way and will be here around one month." Wizard in blue robe said as his deep understanding of the Lore of the Heavens calcted the heading of the meteor. After multiple consideration and calction, the Astromancers under the leadership of the Celestial Order came to the conclusion that the Golden Meteor will hit the Known World, somewhere near the western border of the Empire. "I will report this matter to the Emperor and have him decide. At this moment I will provide all the evidence that meteor is a good omen and advise the Emperor to organise an army to retrieve the meteor when it arrives. Let us all hope that the Cult of Sigmar doesn''t cause another uproar¡­" The headmaster of the College of Magic couldn''t finish his sentence as the wizard messenger burst through the office door with great urgency. "I''m sorry for interrupting, but I have an urgent message from the royal pce. The Osnd is currently fighting the raiders of the North and because of this news the Cult of Sigmar assembled the army of believers ofmon background to go on crusade towards the northern legion." The messenger said in a panting voice and handed over the scroll with more detailed news. If this was true, then the Empire would have to step in by assembling the army of their own to provide support to the Cult of Sigmar. The reason isn''t because the religion of Sigmar is the main religion of the Empire or duty to assist the cult members during the need but to make sure those damn peasants following the cult doesn''t end up all dying. "Those damn zealots and simple minded fools." The headmaster of the College of Magic shouted in anger as he knew the turmoil that coulde after the action made by the cultists. Meanwhile, Church of the Sigmar and their priests gather the new recruits in themoner district while praising the words of the Sigmar and how the Golden Light in heaven will guide their way to the northern legion. "Praise the Sigmar! For we are the righteous and justice of his warhammer!" The priest shouted as he raised his own warhammer up towards the golden meteor. The men and women of all ages prey on their knees as if their words will reach the golden light shining ever bright. --------------- Ulthuan, Ten Kingdoms of the High Elves Lothern, the Greatest City of the Ulthuan, The twin High Elves met in a private room to discuss the dire news happening around the world. The Old World is in chaos as usual as the presence of the golden light in the night sky begins to shift the order of powers in every faction. ording to the spies andwork of intelligence gathered all around the world provided thetest information rted to the effect from the golden meteor that is heading to the Known World. And the news isn''t good at all. The northern tribes of savage men began to move in massive scale towards the south to raid inrge scale never seen before. The Empire and Bretonnia are doing their best to counter the raiders but barely holding their defence against the pawns of Chaos. While Empire and Bretonnia are fighting back the raiders, the Kislev are fidgeting their own war against Chaos as few of the Chaos Warbands make their move. Apparently, the sight of the golden light in the night sky gave them a signal of sorts to push their armies down south, towards the Ostermark as if they received some kind of message from their dark master. It is unknown whether or not one or all gods of Chaos decided to act but one thing was clear, the Chaos armies are doing everything they can to reach an unknown destination even if it leads them to death. As for the dwarfs, they are as simple as theye. Fortifying their underground fortress and fighting their own battle against Greenskins and Chaos remnants after losing the battle. With a stone like mindset and willing to fight alone in the battle, the dwarfs of the Old World will do their own things until it is toote to save everyone. "Typical dwarfs. Holding a grudge that no one cares or will remember when all that is good dies at the end." One of the twins, the older and strong built High Elf said to himself with a sour tone after hearing the news of the once ancient ally of the High Elf. Just because one of his predecessors decided to shave off the beard of the dwarf emissary as a joke led to overreaction from the Dwarfs which resulted in a broken alliance and hostile rtionship that can''t be repaired ever since. "Well, that''s a sail ship and I doubt dwarfs will see their end that easily. You know as I, they don''t stay down even if a mountain copses on top of them." The other twin High Elf spoke with a gentle tone as he is used to being more mature in the room due to his weak physique since he was little. Due to this, the younger brother of the twin decided to pursue the wisdom of the magic and expand his point of view more than his older brother. The report continues through the night as twin brothers of great influence in the Ulthuan share the news and n for the future of their race. Tyrion the Heir of Aenarion and the greatest warrior of the High Elf and Teclis the High Loremaster of Hoeth and Warden of the White Tower gather their intelligence from both Old and New World as golden light shines above the night sky. -------------- Somewhere in the Known World, Under Empire, Underground City of Skavenblight, The Council of Thirteen gather to discuss the impact and influence of the strange light above the night sky. This ruins the n they''ve been making for years as strange light begins to interrupt certain flow of warp stone magic and machines of Ratmen. Many of their talented engineers reported strange malfunctions of warp-warmachines and weapons that led to many of their warriors in their untimely death. These events led to many of the Skaven ns to sh against each other. ming others for an ''ident'' to happen and even fight among ns due to feud of old. In the end, the Council was called and warlords of all twelve ns gathered resolve this issues including this mysterious light in the dark sky. "I say, we must kill all troublemakers and feed their meat to our ves. Yes, yes." One of the Skaven warlords said with a vicious smirk on his face. His reasoning is simple, his n lost major food storage due to warp fire a few days ago by warp ammunition storage explosion. Usually, the ammunition and food storage should be separated as amon sense but Skaven tend to work things as simply as they can and having food next to weapons somehow make sense to them (Assuming that having these things together will provide easy ess when needed are the reason why). "I agree. Yes, yes. We should use this opportunity to purge the weak and fortify our number with strong n warriors." Another warlord agrees with his counterpart as he also has a reason of his own. This warlord wishes to reduce the poption so that he can breed more of his bloodline as he sees himself as strongest among his n. Not considering the fact that certain weak Ratmen have useful skills such as engineering and smiting. "That decision can be done through your own n leadership. We are here to discuss the issues of that hideous light in the sky." The Seerlord of the Skaven religion spoke with anger as council was going off the subject once again. It was hard to assemble the council first of all but now each of the members are going on their own as they start to shout problems of their ns. In short, there is no unity among Skaven ns and goals of the Horned Rat are yet to achieve. "Yes, yes. The light in the sky is making things much more difficult for all of us. We must do something now. I say, we shouldunch our biggest rocket towards the light so we can break it." The n leader of the n Skyre said with pride in his face. Everyone knew Skyre was working on some kind of secret weapon involving warp rocket fuel but they didn''t know about actual rockets that could go above the clouds. There was one problem. "Did you just say moments ago that warp rted machines are unstable and explode without any warnings?" The Warlord of the n Mors said with an insulting tone as this revtion came to light to all council members. "Well, yes but we are working on stabilising the warp fuel and reconfiguring the rocket injection. My engineers just need more time and¡­ more warp stones, that''s all." The true goal of the n Skyre made everyone furious as this meant that n Skyre wanted to possess all remaining precious warp stones from the rest of the Skaven ns. "Typical. You n Skyre doesn''t discipline you to use the warp stone properly at all. Nothing but a waste of resources for the ''rocket to the sky'' scheme." Warlord of the n Moulder said with most insulting musking out from his fur. The masters of mutation and surgical alteration saw n Skyre''s scheme miles away the moment the rocket was mentioned. "I''ll say, we should seek our answer from the Horned Rat. We should go out and gather all the meat we can get and make the sacrifice to our Under-Father. He will tell us what to do." The Great Seer, the member of the Council of Thirteen said with a musk of excitementing out from his fur. This idea was agreed upon by other leaders as it was something they all can do. "Yes, Yes! We should praise the Great Horned One for our salvation. If he approves of our hard work, he would solve our light problem once and for all. Go! Assemble our forces and gather all the meat you can get from the surface." The council unanimously agreed to the new n without a second thought and dismissed the meeting. As each warlord of twelve ns went their own ways, their ambition started to emerge as the council''s n turned into an individual''s n and ultimately sabotaged against other ns. Skaven''s true nature once again steps out from the shadow as their ambition to be top against each other will ruin whatever the ns they have. In the end, Skaven will be Skaven even if the worldes to end. --------------- Monthter, Over the month, natives in the Known World saw the golden light in the sky turned into one of the small moons as it was approaching closer and closer. During the cold night sky, the meteor provided a small light that shines even the darkest forest that not even moonlight couldn''t reach. During birght daytime, the golden meteor didn''t really help the natives of the Known World as golden light represents different meanings to every faction and more. The wind of magic changed dramatically as magic became more wild as if the meteor itself is causing the changes that not even Lord of Change can predict. The Cult of the Sigmar made their presence known when they reached the northern legion. Their effort, supported by the two armies of the Empire brought sessful victory against the Northern Raiders known as Norsca but that was short victory as Norsca reinforcement arrived in post-battle with a full force of war mammoths and chaos frost dragons. The Empire only managed to secure their second victory thanks to the arrival of three Bretonnian armies. The battle of the northern legion took close to a month and countless dead but in the end the humans of the Empire and Bretonnia came through as victor. With this victory, the forces of Chaos pawns return to the wastnd of the north to lick their wounds while humans of the Old World secure theirnds from raiders. Kislev also came through their battle against forces of Chaos. By securing the only northern border that led to the wilderness of Chaos wastnd, the Kislev army conducted hit and run tactics and cut the Chaos armies one at a time. In the end, the remaining Chaos forces couldn''t withstand the full might of the Kislev armies as Ice Queen herself marched her forces to wipe out the invaders once and for all. Dwarfs on the other hand endured inside of their fortress while two different factions attempted to siege the dwarf holds. By themand of the High King himself, the kings of the mountains held their holds and countered the Greenskins and wandering Chaos soldiers. Using the advanced technology of gunpowder and forged steels, the dwarfs'' armies made their move when enemies were about to make their retreat. To fulfil the book of grudges, in the end, dwarfs made their check mark on their books as mountains are soaked with the blood of their enemies. ----------- The golden meteor finally arrived in the Known World. Making the entrance with booming noise, the golden light burned brighter than the sun itself as night sky turned day for a few seconds before once again turning to dark night. The radiant light of the meteor and sudden change of day and night disrupt the creatures of the night while certain beings died due to day like light burning their skins. After the sound and light, the meteor is visible to the naked eyes. The golden light passes thend of Sylvania and Moond. Shortly after, the meteor made itsnding at the territory of Karak Angazhar. A small dwarf kingdom in ck Mountain located west of ck Fire Pass in the Border Princes, a known human faction not affiliated with the Empire or Bretonnia. The first to arrive at the impact zone was the dwarf scouts who happened to be patrolling the area for potential enemies such as goblins. The dwarf scouts were expecting a small chunk of metal ball on the crater but to their surprise something else was discovered. A human female who is in golden full te armour and holding a small metal rock as if it was the most important thing in the world. Rana, the Living Saint of the Emperor arrived in the Known World with her son inside of the pod she held for more than a month. Nothing but sheer willpower of motherly instinct to prevent loss of her own son, Rana endured the unimaginable pain and struggle by casting a protective shield surrounding herself and her son while travelling through the warp. The stress of void travel andnding finally break Rana''s endurance as she lost her consciousness and the pod of her son was lost from her grip. When the pod rolled away, the sensor of the pod recognized the breathable atmosphere and activated the emergency release in which opened the hatch itself. Henry Bassilo Nullinanis, the son of William Nullinanis and Rana Bassilo Beckett, took a deep breath of the Known World and opened his eyes to see the clear night sky. The natural born and next generation Primarch begin his journey at this moment as dwarf scouts holdingnterns approach them with curiosity. Chapter 157: Epilogue Three: We are William Part One "Those who cling to death; live. Those who cling to life; die." From John Wick 4 -------------- William Nullinanis, The Chapter Master of the cksouls Beast of Caerbannog, Ship time 0923. Five minutes after William was sent back to his own ship. ''What happened?'' William woke up from his slumber as he couldn''t remember why he was sleeping on the floor. Last thing he could recall was him passing a ss of wine to Rana and afterwards the memory was hazy. "Rana, why am I on the floor? Did I really pass out from drinking too much?" William jokingly spoke and got himself up from the floor but to his surprise, the room was silent. No one replied back. He was alone in his chamber. "Rana?" This time William said with more volume but it was pointless as there was no one else in the room. Starting to have a bad feeling, William began to check other rooms but in the end he confirmed that he was all by himself."Arthur, locate Living Saint Rana Becket and Henry, right now." William gave hismand and immediately a hologram of Arthur appeared in the middle of the room. [Scanning and tracking locator of Living Saint and Henry¡­ unable to locate.] "What? What do you mean you can''t locate them? What happened while I was passed out?" [Retrieving the record of the ship''s status. The ship experienced an unusual warp signature and missed at least thirty minutes of atomic scale. Chapter Master, not only are we missing two members of cksouls but we are also missing half an hour of time for an unknown reason. I advise we conduct a full system scan and check before moving forward.] William couldn''t reply back as his entire world just turned upside down. While he was sleeping, his wife and only son disappeared entirely. Not only that but his ship lost thirty minutes of actual time due to warp. Everything was fine until something went horribly wrong and William couldn''t do anything to fix it. ------------------ The ship went into massive search for three months. Entire ship, from top to bottom, everyone who could move their feet went into searching for the missing Living Saint. As for the baby Henry, only a select few of the senior advisors of William are aware of the baby''s existence. In the end, after three months of searching, it was concluded that Living Saint is not in the ship and lost to the warp. To prevent the mass panic and despair, the cover story began to spread as how Living Saint Rana left the ship to help the loyal servants of the Golden Throne and to confront the Ruinous Powers. This gave certain hope and pride to the mass poption as it fits the role of the Living Saints before and how they turn the tide of the war when it''s dire. To honour Rana''s sacrifice and her loyalty to the servants of the Emperor, the Sister of Battle reorganised into an official sub branch and renamed themselves ''Order of the Lionheart'' branch off from Order Militant and Order of Our Martyred Lady. All active Sisters changed the red clothes into gold and symbol Order into a golden lion face with one single red heart in the lion''s mouth. The true symbol of the heart symbolising the child who is lost to the Sisters and Imperium. The loss and hope of the Living Saint out there somewhere, the entire ship went into one year of mourning period where the crew of the entire fleet went into praying for the return of the Living Saint. Meanwhile, cksouls and Astra Militarum senior officers are in great turmoil as William, the Chapter Master andmander of the entire forces went into self confinement into his own chamber with no way ofmunicating with him. The only way they knew William is still alive is thanks to a one way message that was sent before loss ofmunication. ''I will find them.'' This was the only message William sent before locking himself in his chamber and cutting allmunication with his army. Until the fleet exits from the warp travel, William dedicates himself to the investigation of lost thirty minutes with help of Arthur and research of warp itself as much as he can. Utilising the vast knowledge of the Merlin and his STC database, William input much of his own knowledge into the AI, creating AI''s own archive of 40k lores and Warp rted information. All of William''s effort into research and investigation eventually came to an end when Arthur reported to William that the fleet was exiting the warp and entering the real space. ---------- World of 40k. Somewhere in Real Space, Five years, five long years of warp travel came to an end and at the same time, William''s chamber door opened once again. Chapter Master of the cksouls donned on his terminator armour with pure fury in his face as he exited his personal chamber. William didn''t speak to others of what his search came to or what he discovered but one thing for sure, he did find out who was responsible for his wife and son''s disappearance. ''Tzeentch, damn you bastard.'' ------------ Ship Throne Chamber, Awaiting him, every representative of William''s forces stood and ready to receive a new order. Taking the front seat, every captain of eachpany took their seats while senior officers of Astra Militarum took the second row in the back. After them, Sisters and other representatives waited in silence as William took his seat in the throne made out of stone and gold. "Ladies and gentlemen, after five long years, we have finally arrived back to real space. Imperial space. What is our fleet status?" William spoke with authority and power as he took his full authority once again after five long years. "All ships are reporting green light. The g ship is thest one to arrive due to missing thirty minutes five years ago." Lord Admiral Raphael Montaal gave his report as he presented a full list of ships using holograms. "Good. Now, where are we and most importantly, when are we in the Imperium calendar?" William said as he ced down his data te on the table. The data te, which is a 40k version of the tablet, contains other information such as personal, ship supplies, water, air and other essential things assembled for this meeting. "ording to the ship navigator, we are somewhere located within Segmentum Pacificus. Our astropaths are still working on finding out what standard year it is." One of the Imperial Navy senior officers said to William and presented a live gxy chart with a blue dot, indicating the location of the fleet at this moment. After a short period of looking into the map, everyone came to realise what the map was showing. "You gotta be joking." "No way, is this urate?" "By the Emperor in Holy Terra." The throne room went into full roar of chats as people began to learn where they are and what was going on currently in the gxy. "SILENCE!" William''s voice kills all sound in the throne room as everyone immediately stops side conversation with fear going down their spine. "Lord Admiral Raphael Montaal! Ready the fleet and set the course to this." William''s cold voice of amand set the room temperature down a few degrees as his demeanour and way he acts changed entirely. "Yes, Chapter Master. At yourmand. What will be our fleet status?" Lord Admiral Raphael Montaal asked as he now had officialmand from the Chapter Master. William gave a smile of evil as he needed something to fight and he just found something to fight to his fullest. "Code Red and full alert. We are joining a crusade." ------------- Segmentum: Segmentum Pacificus Sector: Sabbat Worlds Sector System: Tanith System Current Status: Active Imperial Crusade, Sabbat Worlds Year: 764.M41 "I don''t understand." One of the senior Departmento Munitorum staff said as he couldn''t believe what he was seeing. He continued. "The nearest war zone is 80 days from here. How can this be?" One of the men in the war room in official Commissar uniform paced back and forth while going over the date te furiously. His name is Ibram Gaunt, a veteranmissar who holds the position of a Colonel, making him one of the rare individuals who possess the authority of the Imperial Officer and Commissar at the same time. "We broke them at Balhaut, but they splintered. Deep intelligence scouts suggested that they were running scared but it was always possible that some of thergerponents would scatter inwards. Looping towards us rather than running for the backwards worlds in Sabbat Worlds in a way." Said Colonel-Commissar Gaunt as he was furious due to pure bad judgement that new Warmaster Macaroth made. Previous Warmaster ydo, in his deathbed, told his sessor what to watch out for after victory in Balhaut. But due to the sheer mindset of pushing the victory further, Warmaster Macaroth decided to change tactics and have the entire fleet advance into the liberation front, leaving the rear side vulnerable. This resulted in opening for the remnant traitors fleet to attack the defencelesss wide open. Right now, Tanith is going through the first founding of three Tanith Imperial Guard Regiment (In total of six thousand men. Light infantry, artillery and light armour tank units). This meant that these new guards weren''t tested andpletely vulnerable for ughter as there was no reinforcement to counter the enemy warfleet and its forces. At this moment, Tanith only has a little more than an hour of life as the enemy warfleet is heading from the edge of the Tanith system. ''It will be a massacre in the end.'' Gaunt thought to himself as he knew the oue of the battle if he decided to stay. Not to mention half of the men are already in troop carriers while the other half are in the space port, waiting for the pick up. The decision has to be made and the battle decision solely weighs on Gaunt. Stay and die or salvage what he can to fight for the another day, even if this means death of an entire. "Our Astropaths must send a message to the main crusade force so that Macaroth knows of this insurgency. If nothing else, they have to turn around and guard the back. The rest of you¡­" Before Colonel-Commissar finished his sentence, one of the men in the war room interrupted him as he received new data of most importance. "My lords, a moment ago, our fourth scouts detected another warfleet on the other side of the system." The voxmunicator officer''s words silences the room. A second enemy warfleet? The pure despair falls down on to the war room as all hope is lost if this second fleet arrives. "By Him in Terra. We are doomed." One of the nobles in the war room spoke without realising while others around him began to pray. "Colonel-Commissar, what must we do now? We are surrounded and the nearest ally fleet is three days away." The governor of the Tanith asked Gaunt as he and others didn''t know what to do. The has bare minimum defence and a small number ofary Defence Force (PDF) and they are no match for the enemy''s orbital bombardment and troops at the same time. "Have the troop carriers bring back troops. We must reinforce the capital defence and hold until the ally fleet arrives. Do it NOW!" Gaunt shouted thest words as time is in short supply and there are many things to do before facing the first warfleet within an hour. This will be his end and his new regiments''. If he had to face the Holy Emperor at the end of his life, he would proudly face him as he carried on his duty till the end. ---------- One hourter, Tanith Ultima. "Feth! The captain is dead." Elim Rawne cursed and returned fire while his captainy down in the city street with a massive bullet hole in his head. The Tanith regiment was going through baptism in fire as enemy forces werending on the city while a warfleet in orbit continued to barrage the city itself. It was hell on Tanith and everyone knew it. The was dying as Nalwood forests and cities were burning to ashes. Still, people of Tanith refused to die without fighting back as every able man and woman raised up to fight against the servants of the Chaos. "Don''t stop firing! We are fighting for the very heart of the home. We fall here, we lose everything." A roughly aged man with a beard took charge of the unit after themand officer fell. This man is Colm Corbec, former furniture maker and lumber before the Imperium called for his service. His action encouraged men around him as the rate of fire increased and started to push back the enemy troops. It was at this moment enemy troop morale began to fall and this gave an opportunity to push the battle ground. Tanith''s biggest men in the regiment got up from his cover, holding an autocannon with ease and open fire. The heavy ballistic weapon, which is supposed to be attached to a tripod, unleashes a wave of bullets as a trooper named Bragg doesn''t stop firing until his weapon is empty. "Feth Bragg. You suck at aiming. Better try again next time." Rawne said to Bragg as he handed him a sparesgun. Even though Bragg missed half of his shots, the heavy machine gun did its job as many of the retreating enemy troops died. "Enough, we have to regroup with themand unit. Group up and head towards themand center." Corbec orders his men and remaining civilians as they need to find other units scattered in the city. "You think there are survivors? Look around you, Corbec. The city is literally burning and that''s including the stones." Rawne said as he reloaded hissgun with ast powerpack. "What are you saying, Rawne? Are you saying we should surrender?" Corbec turned his face towards Rawne with rage that could match the fire itself. "Feth no, I was going to rmend getting more ammo so we can kill more heretics." Rawne smiled at Corbec which made the new officer in charge chuckle as he liked that idea. "Rawne, that is the single best idea you have said all day." Corbec said and turned around to take the men to the nearest military post, hoping to salvage a spare powerpack. That is if it didn''t burn to the ground. It was at this moment one of the enemy warshipsnded a critical hit on themand center, copsing a sphere tower and creating a small dust wind. "By the Golden Throne, that was near themand center." Bragg spoke after the dust cleared as the city continued to burn. -------------- Command bunker, War Room. [Currently missing roof and most of the walls] Sym, the Colonel-Commissar''s adjutant fell next to Gaunt as a round of enemy''s autogun hit him in the chest, killing him instantly. The defensive fortification of the war room turned into chaos as enemy troops pushed without concern to their own lives. Next to Gaunt, a young boy named Brin Milo turns his autocannon and kills the enemy who was responsible for Sym''s death. "Sym! Damn it." Gaunt could only cry for his adjutant''s death for a second before he fired his bolter pistol towards the iing enemy. As an experienced soldier in the battlefield, all he could do is to live and survive the battle while praying to the Emperor for Sym''s soul in Holy Terra. "Hold the line, men of Tanit! He is watching over us as we fight!" Gaunt gave a voice of encouragement to defenders but it was futile as one by one defenders fell in the battle. When the battle began, the Major was the first to die as his shuttle from orbit got shut down by the enemy attack fighter. With regiment XO dead, Colonel of the Tanith, the second inmand to Gaunt''s rank tookmand of the first regiment, second and fourthpany but he met his doom as one of the enemy warships locked on the location and bombed the entirepanies outer defense line. As many of the senior officers of the Tanith regiment died, Gaunt had to multitask the order and fight back the enemy as hism-bead was flooded with requests and situations. "Colonel-Commissar, the second warfleet just arrived. They are not the enemy." The different vox operator spoke as he transferred themunication link directly into Gaunt''s vox earpiece. "This is Colonel-Commissar Gaunt of the Tanith First regiment. By Him on the Golden Throne, we need help." Gaunt called for help towards the unknown warfleet that just entered the orbit of the. A secondter, he got his answer. [You called and we heard. Witness our arrival.] As a voice from the vox spoke, arge explosion can be heard above the sky as everyone on the battle ground stops fighting to see what causes the massive explosion. Above the sky, looking through the naked eyes, a single massive starship of the Imperium rammed through the heart of the enemy fleet. The beast of a ship cut not just its target but went through the entire enemy ship, cutting it in half and still moving forward with fearsome speed. It didn''t end with the raming as the ship began to open fire from both broadsides. The ship fired its Macrocannons in rapid session. The enemy warfleet is being decimated by the unknown ally ship and by doing so, it stopped the orbital bombardment entirely. The sound can''t be heard from space, but pictures can tell as ships are blowing up left and right whilerge pieces fell towards the''s atmosphere, creating meteor showers as they burn during entry. As lone ships are massacring the enemy ships, more ships entered and now are visible. When themand said there is a second fleet, it didn''t do justice as the alley fleet wasposed of capital ships, grand cruisers and even battle barges. Making the fleet roughly around 50 and that is not including the troop transport ships. "By the Emperor''s mercy. It''s a crusade fleet." Gaunt spoke in a quiet voice as he only saw this kind of level only once when the previous Warmaster himself embarked on Balhaut where his victory made a turning point in theSabbat Worlds Sector. The moment of hesitation ends as soldiers from both sides recover from the shock and once again engage in firefight. Just as Gaunt and his defending men continue their fight, a spark of lightning begins to emerge from the center of the battlefield. Following the transmission from the Gaunt''s voxmunicator signal, the main warship of the newly arrived alley sent their finest warrior thought teleporter. d on ceramite tes from top to bottom, eight terminators in most decorated armour appeared with weapons ready. Commanding these eight Angels of Death is a much taller Astartes with armour that can be only described as masterful art of its own. The terminator armour is heavily armed to teeth but shows graceful craftsmanship and aplishment of many deeds. One thing stood up most for Gaunt, the leader of these Astartes was holding a massive thunder hammer that could tten Leman Russ Tank in one shot. "Brothers! Deliver true death upon them." The leader of the Astartes ignites his thunder hammer and crushes the nearest enemy soldier right in the chest. Gaunt didn''t know if that man experienced the pain or impact of the hammer when itnded on him but one thing he knew was that he was the lucky one as all of his friends andrades were getting killed left and right by the bolter rounds or even sma rounds. The terminators did their job as if this was a long timeing. They were quick to speed and unstoppable as if they were the tank themselves. In a matter of minutes, the fight ended with thest enemy''s head crushed to paste by the hand of the Astartes. "Who are they sir?" Milo asks Gaunt with fear and admiration in his eyes as he never saw the Emperor''s chosen before. The boy only heard of Astartes through books and vox radio but never in person. This made sense as many of the poption in the Imperium will never see the Astartes in their lifetime. "They are the Emperor''s angel. Hurry, copy what I do." Gaunt spoke and realised that the giant Astartes and two of his men wereing his way. Immediately Gaunt got on one knee and ced his two hands in the shape of an eagle on his chest. Showing the sign of the aqu of Imperium. Milo did the same right behind Gaunt, two steps away. "Are you Colonel Commissar Ibram Gaunt?" The Astartes inmand asks with authority andmand in his voice. The sound of the voice was deep but there was a sign of kindness within. "Yes, my lord. I''m Ibram Gaunt,mander of the Tanith regiment." Gaunt didn''t know how Astartes knew of his name or rank as he didn''t broadcast this importation but at this point it wasn''t important. The lead Astartes remove his helmet to show his face and Gaunt lower his head as if he wasn''t worthy to see the face of the Angel of Death. "Rise, man of the Imperium. My name is Brother Captain Tyrus of the First Company. Gather these names on the datete ande with me. You are being summoned." A dark skinned Space Marine with crimson red eyes said to Gaunt as he handed him therge datate. When received the te, Gaunt was hesitant as there was battle to be won and men to lead. "My lord, what about the battle? We have the entire to secure." Said Gaunt as he pointed out the obvious thing as there was an enemy to kill. "Do not be sorry. As we speak right now, my Chapter Master is leading both Astartes and Imperium forces to take back the. The Tanith will be ours again within an hour." --------------- Brother Captain Tyrus spoke the truth as Tanith was once again Imperium. Enemy warfleet waspletely annihted and with no ships to run away, the enemy troops were given no mercy for their crimes and heresy theymitted. Even though Tanith was saved from the destruction, the damage was done. The''s famous forest was gone about 70 percent and about half a dozen cities were ruined as orbital bombardment was heavily concentrated on the poptions. This meant that the poption of the Tanith was reduced from few millions to less than one million and much of the infrastructure was gone including hospitals and food supply warehouses. As for the governing bodies of the Tanith, they didn''t survive in the end. From orbital attack to brutal execution from the enemy soldiers, Tainth lost leaders and is now leaderless even if they managed to live on after today. At least few of the minor and maybe mid-level Administratum clerks managed to survive but it was speckpared to the army of office clerks before the attack. Simply, Tanith will experience decades or even centuries of recovery before returning to its glory day. This was a problem for Gaunt as he was certain his regiment men would want to stay and help with the''s recovery. Asmanding officer, Gaunt can''t allow this to happen, since he will receive his orders from themand and need to ship his troops to a new war front. His decision will destroy the Tanith regiment''sbat readiness and morale. "You don''t look good sir." Corbec said to Gaunt as he handed him a water canteen. Gaunt, Corbec, Rawne and Milo arrived at the mysterious Astartes'' capital ship half an hour ago and are currently waiting in the waiting room to be summoned by the Chapter Master. "I''m ok. Corbec is it? I heard good things about you. You did a remarkable job with leading the troops." Gaunt epted the water canteen and took a swing of fresh water. The water was good and clean, unlike the filtered water from the Guards troop ship. "He is the most experienced man in the regiment after the senior officers. Well, I guess he is the only one now." Man named Rawne said as he picked up a fruit from the bowl on the table and took a bite. "Hey, this is actually pretty good." Rawne said to himself and took another bite but before he could take another one, a young looking man in Commissar uniform opened the door with four elite troops and one old looking guardsman behind him. "Sorry for the wait, gentleman. I''m Lord Commissar and Chapter Master is ready for you all." The Lord Commissar gestured to the guests to follow him and left the room. With little bit of hesitation, Gaunt and his men follow the mysterious Lord Commissar as he didn''t introduce himself even to fellowmissar. "I''m sorry Lord Commissar. We don''t know what is going on and no one told us why we are meeting the Chapter Master." Gaunt said to Lord Commissar and tried to get some answer but before he can get reply, Lord Commissar stopped and turn around to face the Colonel Commissar. "Everything will be revealed to you all through this door, Colonel Commissar Gaunt. I have to say, you are indeed what I expected." Mysterious Lord Commissar said to Gaunt with admiration. "And what were you expecting?" Gaunt asks with curiosity. "You have great traits of a leader and disy of virtue but above all you havepassion for your men''s wellbeing." The Lord Commissar smiled and signalled his men. Immediately, one of the elite men push the button and the golden doors open with lightsing out from the other side. "Don''t be afraid. The Chapter Master is a great man as well. Just don''t mention the Ruinous Powers. That is a bit of a sensitive topic for him." With that Lord Commissar Cain and his men left the hall while Gaunt and his men slowly stepped forward to enter the audience/throne room of the Legion of cksouls. The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone! Chapter 158: Epilogue Three: We are William Part Two Note: These are two chaptersbined into one. ------ "Men of Tanith, do you want to live forever?" From Colonel Commissar Ibram Gaunt, Gaunt''s Ghosts Series. ------- The audience room was massive and glorious that could match the Imperial Pce on Terra. Passing through the long hallway to the throne, men of the Tanith and Colonel Commissar Ibram Gaunt only look straight forward but are able to see majestic decorations of gold and other rare metals built in the entire room. The pirs that support the ceiling are big as houses while walls are covered with pictures of battle scenes and murals of various events including history of the Imperium. As men were walking forwards, Gaunt saw one particr picture that got his attention. A small oil painting of a which is about to break in half. The picture describes a red in critical state which is about to break due to massive impact that can be seen in the middle of the. ''What could this one be? It can''t be an Exterminatus or''s natural end.'' Gaunt thought to himself and about to whisper but it was toote as they were about to reach the end of the line. Gaunt reset his mindset to current state as he is about to have an audience with Chapter Master of unknown Astartes. Even in the crusade, authority of the Chapter Master can hold great power and even ability to simply ignore the order from the War Master of the Imperium. Front of the men sat a giant armoured man d in ck grey and ck blue. Besides the main and secondary colors of the armor, it was also decorated with various purity seals and other insignias that hold a story of their own. After long hesitation, Gaunt took his eyes off for a second and realised that Chapter Master wasn''t alone.Standing in front of stone pirs stood armors of Astartes equipped with shields and spears. Gaunt quickly realised that all those armoured Astartes aren''t statues but rather guards as there are about thirty in total and their heads are following him. The guards have been following him and his men this entire time and none of them realised they are surrounded. Gaunt is a seasoned veteran and with experiencees battle intuition but for him topletely miss being observed from the start made him panic from inside as he realised that these guards aren''t normal Astartes. ''Just who are these Astartes?'' Gaunt quickly saw the face of his men and it seems they also realised as their face showed an expression of shock but able to recover quickly. When the men reached the end, all took one knee and waited and bowed their heads as if they weren''t worthy to see the one in the throne. With grace and hubris as servants of the God Emperor, they stay silent to be recognized by the Chapter Master. After a few seconds of dead silence, a booming voice spoke and voice held authority within. "Rise, men of Tanith. You have held the while facing death''s door. I''m Chapter Master William Nullinanis of cksouls. You may rise." The Gaunt and his men rose from their knees and raised their heads to see the man in the throne chair. They saw a man, a man whomands an Angel of Death authority given to him by the Emperor himself. But his eyes told a different story. William''s eyes possessed a wrath and fire that couldn''t be tamed by a mortal man. It was the face of a stern loyal servant of the Emperor who will do anything to achieve his goal. Throughout Gaunt''s experience he saw few men in military campaigns who possessed that kind of face and they ended up bing heroes of their own story and achieving great deeds in Imperium history. But with great cost. The moment Chapter Master met Gaunt''s eyes, his face expression changed to tired soldier and worn out veteran who suffers from tired campaign. Unknown to everyone, William decided to use First Warmaster Horus''s diplomatic tactic. Horus was famous for his well rounded method of talking to people based on their personality and history. It was said that Horus can talk to thousands of people individually and make them willingly follow his will by simply approaching them as someone who can rte to them. Also having a max charisma helps a lot. "I have summoned you all to discuss the future of the Tanith regiment and their homeworld." Chapter Master spoke in a sympathetic and sadden tone as he waved his hand in which arge hologram appeared, showing the current state of the Tanith. The is covered in scars of orbital bombardment as vast forests and many of the cities are still on fire. The hologram also shows the movement of the various ships around the orbit of the as many of the troops are deploying to the surface or returning to the ship for supplies. "By the Emperor''s light, Tanith is burning." Corbec said in disbelief as his home is in jeopardy beyond recognition. If this continues, Tanith will be no longer habitable and no infrastructure to rebuild. In short, the will be a dead world. "That may be true but this tragedy will be a new opportunity for the Tanith." William spoke and activated another button which showed arger view beyond the''s orbit. More ships are entering the Tanith system and based upon its number, it''s a fleet of Imperium ships. "More ships? I thought this was the entire fleet, is there more?" Rawne asked in confusion as he thought ships in orbit were the main fleet of the Astartes. "You thought this was the main fleet? Hahaha. Man of Tanith, this is only a single ship and its supplement. What you saw a moment ago are troop ships and supplies from my g ship. Due to urgency, I ordered my ship to speed ahead before rest could." Chapter Master exins and shows his ship from hologram as a massive ship is continually deploying troops, supplies and now evacuating the civilians from the. "A single ship. This whole space battle was done by a single ship? Not even Warmaster ydo had a ship as big as this or even close to it. What kind of Astartes possess this kind of fire power?" Gaunt spoke without realising that he was standing in front of Chapter Master in questions. The sheer amount of resources and technology it contains could start a major political conflict with priests of Mars and even High Lords of Terra. No chapter of Astartes could possess this kind of warship without reasonable exnation. Chapter Master ignores the shocking news he reveals to his guests and continues his exnation of the iing fleet. "These ships are the main force of my Chapter and Imperial Guardsmen attach to my authority. They will be the muscle that rebuild the Tanith and make sure the rear sector of the Sabbat Worlds remains clear from the forces of Chaos." These words and its meaning shook the men in front of William as he just announced to them that he will pour entire resources on the dying and expand it beyond the local system. "Do you mean to im the Tanith and its system as your own, my lord?" Milo asked as his voice was a mix of excitement and fear of asking questions to the Emperor''s Angel of Death. "Why yes, I''m. Under full authority given to me by the Emperor himself, I have the full right to calm the of my choosing and rule as it fits." "What? Is that even a thing?" Rawne spoke out loud with surprise that everyone next to him panicked in fear of showing disrespect to the Chapter Master. "Of course, it is rare for the Chapter Master to use full authority to take the in question but if the situation demands it, it can be done. I will be using Tanith as my temporary homeworld for the next hundred years and in exchange, I devote myself into healing and full recovery of the people of Tanith. This also means that Tanith wouldn''t be giving an Imperial Tithe for next hundred years except for supplying my chapter with one hundred youth every year as Aspirant. I will make sure the High Lords of Terra get that memo." Chapter Master William spoke with ease as if this was some kind of casual business deal. To Gaunt and his men, this was a big deal. An unknown loyal Chapter of Space Marine took control of the andmand of the rear guards while the crusade continued in the frontline. Gaunt is not a psyker but he can predict that Inquisition is going to have a field day when they find out about this event. "My lord, what about us? What will we be doing as you help with the recovery of Tanith?" Gaunt questions Chapter Master''s intent as he doesn''t know what his instruction is now. His originalmand from the Imperial forces was to ship to the next battlefield but now that Chapter Master holds themand of the and its people, Gaunt needs clear guidance on what his regiment must do. "Why Colonel Commissar, you will follow your original order for deployment as well as future one as Imperial regiment. I understand that your men lost several key equipment and supplies from the earlier Chaos attack. I will provide thetest wargears and ships for your next mission." Chapter Master''s words shook Gaunt as he literally just said Space Marine is providing much needed supplies directly. "Thank you my lord, we will deliver the Emperor''s wrath to his enemy knowing that Tanith is in safe hands." Gaunt epts the gift given to him but more questions appear in his mind. He is uncertain about this Chapter of the Space Marine but at this point, Gaunt doesn''t have power to investigate or even overrule the authority of the Chapter Master. "From now on, your regiment will be known as Tanith First and Only. As Tanith is no longer providing the Imperial Tithe now, you must replenish your number from the other." The dire words from the Chapter Master made men of Tanith upset as their number is now limited but this is something they must endure as Imperial Guardsmen. Chapter Master William continued. "Onest thing, Colonel Commissar. When you meet a man named Cuu, please kill him without question." Three dayster, Colonel Commissar Gaunt and his men of Ghosts left the Tanith system for the first war zone. Tanith First and Only are now equipped withtest hell gun scoutsguns with universal power packs and various other supplies, making them in full strength and ready for anything. As for the Tanith, William''s legion made full use of their resources to help with the''s recovery and its people. In honour of Tanith and the temporary homeworld of the cksouls, William''s Astartes took the tradition of the Tanith blue tattoos as their own. The Imperium would not see the changes William and his legion will make in the short term as Imperium tend to busy themselves with other conflicts and in fighting within. The gxy is vast and unimaginablyrge but William''s action will make a huge difference in the 41st millennium. That is until William got an update of an Imperium history data and discovered some anomaly he wasn''t aware of. "The Emperor only discovered seventeen out of twenty Primarchs?" For the first time since his arrival to the Imperium worlds, William was speechless as something was off about the world of 40k. Unknown to William, his duplicate, a mortal version of him, traveled through the warp and made small changes which created arge ripple effect in the lore rich universe of Warhammer 40k. ---------- "Argel Tal often said that Fate had a vicious sense of humour. Kharn never doubted it for a second." From Aaron Dembski-Bowden, Betrayer ---------------- Subject: Mortal William Time: Unknown Location: Inside of the Warp Current Current Status: Lost at time and space. William is currently traveling through the warp without knowing where his destination is. For all William knew, he is lost in the Sea of Souls and the only reason his mind is intact and remains sane was because of Rana''s divine protection she previously cast before being thrown out to random warp. ''Damn you stupid Tzeentch! You just had to be a sore loser.'' William cursed the Chaos God of Magic and Change but this was temporary as something big and many began to appear around warp. Ripping through thinyers between space, minor daemons began to appear but stayed distant from William. Due to the light generated from the divine shield surrounding William, daemons kept their distance but it wouldn''t stop them from testing the limit of the protection. "Shit!" William begins to panic as a number of daemons begin to appear one by one and starts to build up. Out of panic, William attempts to grab his bolter from his hip but it was pointless as he realises that he is no longer in the body of an Astartes. Just as William began to panic, one of the daemon made its move. A small and frail daemon with multiple eyes and mouths slowly approaches William with a hesitation as light of the Emperor slowly hurts it. ''Fuck! Damn it!'' William couldn''t think straight or even do anything to stop the small daemon from getting close. All he could do was swing his arms to see if he could ''swim'' away. Eventually, the daemon got close enough to touch William but before it could do anything, one of William''s wild swings pped the daemon in the face. William''s p which is imbued with Emperor''s light hit the daemon''s face and gave burning damage of unimaginable pain as daemon couldn''t recover from the injury it received. The realization hit everyone including William as the situation just turned 180 degrees and it wasn''t looking good for the daemons of the warp. "Who wants to get punched in the face?" William turns around to show who is the boss but to his surprise, his courage and bluff fall apart real fast as a mosh pit of daemons jump towards William as if they have nothing to lose. "FUCK!" William closed his arms together, making a defensive form to brace for the impact of daemons but before turning into a pancake, something pulled him into the portal, sending William into a different path within the warp itself. "Now what?" William turns around to see where he is now. What William saw made him speechless as thousands of warp portals are at the end of the line and the current of the warp is preventing him from escaping. "It is possible that those portals could lead me to anywhere in the 40k universe but to where?" Just as William figured out what was going on, several objects flew past him. Twenty pods of the same type, it was simr to what William made for his sons but much older design and they all are heading towards warp portals of their own destination. "Twenty pods¡­ THE LOST PRIMARCHS! Am I in the moment where they are scattered?" William began to panic as he found out where he is now. A critical moment where all twenty sons of the Emperor are lost to the warp and heading towards their own which they will call it home until foundter by their father, the Emperor. "This is an opportunity. I can use this to get out of here." William dives towards the pods, hoping to grab one to get out of his current situation. Soon, William managed to reach one of the twenty pods and grab onto its side handle to stab his flow within the Sea of Souls. Just as William expected, the Primarch pod was an old design but capable of sustaining its passenger''s life for a long period of time. After a closer look, William found something that could help him identify the pod''s passenger. At the front of the pod was Roman Numeral of VIII, number 8. ''Number 8, who the heck is number 8?'' William couldn''t remember which Primarch this was at the moment but it didn''t take that long as William''s ability came to help him out. William''s appraisal ability activated and disyed the detail information of which Primarch this was. [Konrad Curze aka The Night Haunter. Primarch of the Night Lords and Gene Father to 8th Legion.] ''Fuck, this is baby Konrad Curze!'' William let go of his grip for a second but quickly recovered as his reflex grabbed the pod before drifting away. Just as William reorganises his thoughts, an idea pops up from his head. What if he could change the trajectory of the pod''s destination. William could change everything and give the perfect opportunity to give the middle finger to the Tzeentch and his three siblings. ''Screw him and screw them all. If I''m going to suck into the worst universe in all scifi, I''m going to do something about it.'' William, with new determination positioned himself to somewhat stand above the pod and gave a big push. Pushing himself away from the pod but also changing the entire direction where the pod was heading. Konrad Curze''s pod is now heading towards a different warp portal and no one knows where he willnd since Knorad Curze will no longernd or crash into the Nostramo. The destination is altered and destiny forever changed as pod of the 8th eventually disappears to a different warp portal. ''One down, eight more traitors to go.'' William dash towards the nearest pod to find more future baby traitors. Few minutester¡­ William found one of the loyalist Primarch belonging to Roboute Guilliman. Not what he wanted, William moved to the nearest one without disturbing the Guilliman''s baby pod. This time, William found a pod belonging to the traitor and it was a good one as this pod belonged to Child of the Mountain. [Angronius aka Angron Thal''kyr the Red Angel. Primarch of the World Eaters and Gene Father of the 12th Legion. Currently not angry.] William smiled at the screen as he knew exactly what to do. Supposedly, Angron''s home, Nuceria was located near the border of Ultramar. If Angronnded somewhere much closer, his future would have been better than being subject to the Butcher''s nail. ''This one I have to change no matter what. You would have been better brothers if you didn''t lose your ability to feel other than rage.'' William unhook his belt and looped around the Angron''s pod handle and pushed himself and the pod towards Guilliman''s. With a little bit of adjusting and pushing, William locked the two pods together using his belt. Now, Angron and Guilliman will head towards the capital of the Ultramar, Macragge where two brothers will be discovered by the Nobleman of the Macragge and havepletely different pathspared to the original one. ''Now, where is that damn Lorgar Aurelian?. I need to make sure he doesn''t meet Erebus.'' Just as William searches for the next traitor baby, he gets interrupted by another traitor''s pod as a pod belonging to the Perturaboes out of nowhere and hits him in the back, sending William to a random warp portal. William slowly loses consciousness and thest thing he remembers was the rest of the pods entering their portals before he himself entered one as darkness engulfed his mind. -------- Real Space Time and location: Unknown A bright light exits out from the warp portal and heads towards the habitable in incredible speed. Meanwhile, two major factions on the were at war and able to detect the mysterious light entering the atmosphere. One faction identified the bright object as a religious symbol of the God Emperor while another faction saw it as an unidentifiable object, possibly a meteor that went off course due to unknown reason. When the light finally made it to the''s surface, nothing could stop it from crashing to the ground as one of the big ships known as Manta got hit in the middle, destroying it mid-air as it exploded to pieces, killing everyone inside. As for the light itself, it crashed into the''s earth, creating a crater and massive dust cloud which engulfed the active battlefield. William regains his consciousness as soon as he crashesnd to the unknown. He was feeling pain all over his body as he is now a mortal and it felt like he just got hit by a truck. Thankfully William didn''t have broken bones or internal bleeding as Holy Shield from Rana protected him from physical harm (not the impact unfortunately). "Where the hell am I now?" William got up and picked his head above from the crater as the familiar noises of battle can be heard. Keeping himself as low as possible, William sawsers and projectiles flying above while two major factions'' armies were crashing against each other. ''Oh shit, that''s Tau mechs.'' William saw familiar battle mechs flying low while firing missiles andsers towards enemies opposite from them. By the look, William saw human vehicles and soldiers being destroyed by the Tau forces. He was locked between Tau and Imperium conflict. ''Ok, ok. At least I''m in the Imperium world. A human world. It could have been worse. I just need to find the nearest human troops and find a refuge as a ''citizen'' of this whatever this is.'' William thought to himself and timed himself to get out from the crater as he crawled out like an ant. Hugging the ground close to his heart, William moves very slowly towards the human side as bullets andsers fly above him while dust clouds cover him from both sides visually. "Just a little more." William said to himself after but just as he was able to see human shaped soldiers at distance. Someone''s voice can be heard inside of William''s head. [Stop! Don''t go there.] ''What the hell?'' William heard a voice of a woman and hesitated for a moment. Just as William halted from approaching further, dust cleared and human shaped soldiers can be seen clearly. Ten men were standing from their foxhold with their weapons up, ready to fire. William remained prone to the ground and got himself covered but able to see the men of the Imperial forces. That was until he saw who they really are. Many of the men''s military uniforms weren''t matching at all. Actually, most of their clothes were more of a construction or industry workers uniform as it was dirty and patched up with other materials. As for their weapons, it was rustysguns and autoguns made out of salvaged parts. In short, they aren''t Militarum standard weapons. As for the soldiers, they have purple skin tone unlike normal humans and this itself gave rm to William as he expected a worse from this. And to his expectation from a second ago, a man who looks like a leader has a third arm, equipped with a pistol that has seen better days. "Shit! SHIT! They are a Genestealer Cult. I''m locked between Tau and Genestealer Cult." William cursed in quiet swiper as he realised how screwed he was. [Didn''t I tell you not to go there?] A woman''s voice spoke to William''s mind. William thought to himself for a second as it was a familiar voice. "Mother? How are you here?" William said but before he got his answer, six Tau battlesuitsnded from the sky as they suddenly appeared in the blink of an eye. The Tau Stealth unit made their first move and opened fire at the Genestealer Cult while ignoring Williampletely. [I''m here with you because I was injected into your body the moment you gave the main ship your blood sample (Please see Chapter 67 where Mother injects unknown nanobots into William''s body while getting a sample of his blood). I''m a personal AI unit inhabiting the inside to observe but to no one''s surprise you are in danger and I had to jump in to save you. Why do you think Tau battlesuits are here? I called them to save your butt.] As mother exins, Tau forces continue to wipe the Genestealer Cult members as each side exchanges weapons fire. To everyone''s surprise, one of the Genestealer Cult members pulls out a rocketuncher from the bottom trench and fires upon one of the Tau Battlesuits. With each side sting with heavy weapons now, William remained where he was as he was lying on the ground stealthy as possible. Eventually, the fight ends and both sides, Tau and Genestealer Cult end up killing each other except for one Tau Battlesuit who is still standing with minor damages. [This is your chance. Take the suit for yourself.] Just as Mother said to William, the Tau XV8 Crisis Battlesuit opened up, exposing the pilot from his seat. William saw the whole thing as the battlesuit itself grabbed the pilot from his cockpit and tossed him to the ground. Both William and Tau pilot were shocked and puzzled at first as something such as a battlesuit simply tookmand of its own as if it was alive. While these two were paused, Mother who temporarily tookmand of the XV8 Crisis Battlesuit waves its right arm, pointing William to take the cockpit. "Oh shit," William is the first to recover from his shock and gets up from the ground quickly moving to take the battlesuit''s cockpit. Just as William was about to touch the battlesuit outer armor, the tau pilot also recovered from his own shock and attempted to stop a human from taking his suit. "Get your stinking paws off me, you damn dirty Xenos." William yelled and kicked the Tau pilot''s face, sending the Fire Warrior back to the ground hard and possibly with a bruised face. With Tau pilot down, William quickly got inside and shut the Crisis Battlesuit cockpit door, securing himself a chance to survive in the middle of the warzone. "Mother, now what do we do? If Genestealer Cult are active that means Tyranids must be on their way here." William asked Mother as the battlesuit activate its stealth module and took its flight, away from the ground battle. [That is why we must find the escape route soon as possible. I''m detecting remnants of Imperium high nobles voxmunication as they are attempting to escape using a hidden warp capable ship. We will survive as long as we make our escape and find your other half.] "My other half? You mean other me who is Astartes?" [Yes. If you are here that means he must be here somewhere in this universe. He will be your only solution as your other half possesses a major fleet and military power to fight back. But first, we must make our way to the escape ship.] William didn''t reply as he knew what he must do to survive. The full horror and nightmarish things of 40k is upon him and he no longer possesses a body of Astartes. His only chance to survive is his knowledge of the universe lore, personal AI imnt from Dark Age of Technology and his skills¡­ ? While the battlesuit is being piloted by Mother, William opens his inventory skill to see if he still got it. To his relief, his entire inventory from weapons to treasures are still there as well as a list of his abilities and more. Ding! You have a new message. [Wee to the world of 40k. A universe where nightmare is just another Tuesday and eldritch horror of Chaos is as real as it can get. You receive a new skills due to interaction you had with Primarchs. Gained passive ability Incorruptible: Due to your action to save Primarchs from their worst faith, you gain the ability to stay who you are from corruption of Chaos and other foreign influences. Stay true to God Emperor and you will never fall from grace.] "Well, I''ll be damned. I might have a chance after all" William said to himself as battlesuit flew towards the hidden facility where high nobles of this n to escape using the ancient ship of the first colony who settled millennia ago. The end of an epilogue ------ This ends William''s adventure "In the World of Sword and Magic as a Space Marine." Thank you for reading this part of the fanfic and I hope you enjoyed it as I had fun writing this story. I hope one day I return to write more story of William or new story that could make youugh and entertain. Thank you and stay safe. From: ElJonson The Novel will be updated first on this website. Come back and continue reading tomorrow, everyone!