Warhammer: Don't Call Me the God of All Machines

Chapter 879 Dark Angel, Unwavering Loyalty
The temperature inside the main hall of the Caliban Monastery is gradually decreasing.

The homeworld of any Astartes Legion is a sacred and inviolable entity.

If someone else had expressed the same meaning, even a representative from another Astartes Legion, they would probably have been hacked to pieces by these Caliban inner circle supermen by now.

The Dark Angels may be low-key, but that doesn't mean they don't have a temper.

Of all the legions, the oldest, the First Legion, is the most proud.

The superficial "pride" of the former Third Army Corps is as laughable as a nouveau riche compared to an ancient nobleman in the face of the "pride" of the First Army Corps.

The Dark Angels have served the Emperor since the War of Unification. Their achievements are immeasurable, yet they remain hidden in the darkness, unknown to the world.

Despite the fact that Dark Angels, including Ryan Al Johnson, have stated that loyalty itself is the best reward.

But no one knows whether these warriors, clad in black armor and with incredibly complex internal systems, truly lack a desire for glory.

In Rosie's view, it would be a lie to say that the Dark Angels did not have this desire.

Among the dark angels he knew, whether it was Archon Luther, Astram, or Redros who was killed by Horus during the Great Rebellion, they all harbored a strong desire for glory deep within their hearts.

However, discipline and creed bind the Dark Angels like a lid on a pressure cooker that's being heated up; no one knows if this will backfire one day.

The glory they crave has yet to arrive, and the Emperor is about to destroy Caliban, the homeworld that is so important to the Dark Angels...

The last group to receive this treatment was the Word Bearers, who, under the Emperor's orders, could only watch helplessly as their perfect city was destroyed by Ultramarines' orbital bombardment.

Luo Xi couldn't help but feel a little worried about the Emperor's direct actions.

If the groundwork had been laid more subtly, the current situation wouldn't have become so bizarre.

What surprised Rosie even more was that Ryan did not respond to the Emperor's order immediately.

If it were the same Lion King of old, he might have immediately ordered his fleet to bomb Caliban the moment he received the Emperor's command.

But after going through so much, Ryan has still made a lot of progress.

The lion king who once didn't understand human nature has now incorporated it into his thinking.

If Llane were to disregard the feelings of the Dark Angels present and impose the Emperor's orders, a significant portion of the Astartes in the Legion might feel dissatisfied with the Primarch's commands and stance.

As the Primarch, he cannot immediately express his opinion.

As soon as he makes a statement, those Astartes who harbor discontent will immediately suppress their grievances. This will undoubtedly cause the problems on the surface to turn into problems on the sidelines, which is not conducive to resolving the conflicts.

Under Loshi's observation, a group of dark angels, led by Astran, had already focused their attention on Ryan.

Their eyes revealed a longing; they hoped that Ryan would stand up and say a few words for the Legion.

Even if Llane ultimately chooses to destroy the homeworld, at least the progeny should see the Primarch's attitude.

Although attitude is something that cannot be seen or touched, it plays an extremely important role.

Ryan stood beside the Emperor, like a silent lion statue.

Beneath his calm exterior, intense emotional turmoil was also churning.

Caliban, every blade of grass and every tree here is etched with his earliest memories. He survived for more than a decade in the dangerous jungles of Caliban until he met Luther and returned to the human world.

It can be said that Ryan's personality was shaped by his experiences in the Caliban jungle and his experiences after returning to the human civilized world.

The pain of even contemplating destroying Caliban is no less than that of any physical injury.

He understood his father's decision and the importance of the tunnel boring machine to the future of the empire and humanity, but this understanding could not alleviate the pain that came from his heart.

Luther took a deep breath, the air carrying the smell of rust and dust.

When Caliban first returned to the Empire, it was a dead world filled with forests.

Later, with the arrival of the Mechanics, numerous factories sprang up in Kaliban, and steel forests replaced the primeval forests. The growing pains caused the people of Kaliban immense suffering.

Even Luther was extremely dissatisfied with this, and the suffering he endured from being effectively exiled by Ryan once pushed the Legion's governor to the brink of danger.

However, before everything was beyond repair, Ryan briefly returned to the Legion and told Luther his apologies and the truth, which prevented the Dark Angels from going down the path of division.

Luther led the entire Caliban through a transformation, personally turning the world into what it is today.

If Caliban ultimately cannot escape destruction, then wouldn't all his efforts and sacrifices have been meaningless?
Ryan saw Luther's pleading look, his Adam's apple bobbed, and he swallowed a mouthful of bitter saliva.

"Father, is it really the only way to destroy Caliban and then retrieve Ouroboros?"

"Is there any other, more gentle way to obtain the Ouroboros, a warp artifact, without harming Caliban?"

Ruth and Chagatai did not remain silent any longer. The three Primarchs had already formed an extremely close relationship after going through so many life and death experiences.

“Father,” Lemanrus was the first to speak.

"Caliban is the cradle of the Knights, the foundation of the Dark Angels, and the home of countless loyal souls."

The emperor turned his gaze to the wolf king, but he forced himself to continue speaking.

After all, he was perceived by everyone as a barbarian from the Primarchy, so he could disregard the constraints of rules and etiquette and say things that others were not suitable to say.

"I understand that when it comes to the interests of humanity, no one's interests are above the law."

"As the saying goes—no sacrifice is too great to be accepted, and no betrayal is too small to be forgiven. But we are not left with no choice but to accept it. We can try to... reduce the damage to the Dark Angels."

“If we must blow up Kaliban, then perhaps we can preserve ‘a part’ of Kaliban, at least as a vessel to carry the glorious history and profound legacy of the Dark Angels.” Chagatai Khan still chose to stand with his brother.

Ryan, Ruth, and Chagatai, all three Primarchs, were Dark Angels, and Luther had witnessed it all.

The disgruntled veterans among the Dark Angels calmed down somewhat with the support of the Primarchs.

Yes, if the rewards of destroying Caliban far outweigh the costs, then any loyalist should make the right choice.

Luther is not the kind of stubborn person who never looks back once he has made a choice.

In fact, Luther is a very rational person. For example, he chose to give up his own glory and wholeheartedly assist Ryan because he understood that Ryan's abilities far surpassed his own, and this was the only way to maximize his effectiveness.

When he learned of the Emperor's plans, he understood one fact: the will of the Lord of Mankind was unshakable, and he would stop at nothing to obtain the Ouroboros.

Since this outcome cannot be changed, we should at least try to preserve as much as possible for the legion.

What Luther needs to do is not to change the Emperor's mind, but to slightly deviate from the plan when it is about to be implemented.

This was a difficult task, after all, they were facing the Lord of Mankind, the sovereign who launched the war of unification and the Great Expedition, and who led mankind out of the dark ages of the past.

Even with the support of the three Primarchs and the silence of the Dark Angels' leadership, Luther didn't know if it would have any effect.

Secondly, Luther also used this method to prevent Ryan from arousing dissatisfaction or even hatred among the extremists within the Legion.

If the Lion King stood unconditionally by the Emperor's side, and was even willing to take action against the Legion without hesitation for the Emperor's sake, it would undoubtedly hurt the hearts of some Astartes.

He couldn't let that happen, so he had to force Ryan to make a statement.

Once the Primarch has made his stance clear, the more independent Astartes within the Legion will have no reason to hate Llane.

After all, expressing a stance but having it rejected is completely different from not expressing a stance at all, or even never standing on the side of the legion from beginning to end.

The emperor also fell into a brief silence.

This is certainly not because Rosie is using her psionic powers to stab his lower back from a higher dimension.

"Okay, I'm thinking about it. Give me some time to think," the Emperor transmitted to Loxi.

"I will no longer be like I was in the past, completely lacking emotional intelligence and disregarding the feelings of others."

"You can stop now."

Upon hearing this, Loxi also stopped his little actions. Letting him use his psionic energy to fight the Emperor was not much different from a mortal trying to move a mountain with his own strength.

The higher one stands, the stronger one becomes, and the more one can sense the unfathomable depth of the emperor's power.

Even though the current emperor has already given most of his power to the god emperor, he himself has only retained the human part.

"I regret to inform you of your question."

Yes, Caliban must be destroyed. The Ouroboros isn't sealed away in a specific place like the Earth's core, but rather within the concept of "Caliban."

“Every rock, every ancient tree, every giant beast on this planet embodies a part of the concept of the Ouroboros. Only by completely destroying it can the Ouroboros be freed.”

Luther and the others' expressions immediately darkened.

Is it still beyond repair?
"but--"

The emperor spoke again, and then he said...

"I can try my best to squeeze the concept of the ouroboros into some of Caliban's celestial bodies, and I can preserve the existence of those celestial bodies stripped of the concept as much as possible."

"This means that you can preserve Caliban, at least part of Caliban, if you are willing to acknowledge that a fragment of a star is also a continuation of Caliban."

Loxi gave a thumbs-up in the Emperor's consciousness.

The same idea of ​​destroying Caliban leads to completely different results.

For an emperor, anything that benefits humanity will be done unconditionally.

Destroying Caliban, a vital homeworld of the First Legion, and acquiring the fragments of the Web Shield were never choices for the Emperor.

This is a multiple-choice question; no matter how many times you choose the Emperor, he will blow up Caliban.

In the eyes of the Lord of Mankind, the Primarch and Astartes were originally weapons created to eliminate humanity's enemies and reshape humanity as a whole.

If a weapon becomes disobedient and develops its own will, the solution should be to replace it with another weapon, not to try to reason with it.

Just like the punishment the Emperor imposed on the Legion of Word Bearers, if the Great Crusade hadn't required seizing every minute of progress and the absence of a legion would have slowed it down, the Emperor might have done more than just punish them; he might have completely eliminated this disobedient legion.

Even the original gene can be erased once the red line is crossed.

Anyway, there are already two precedents.

The emperors of today, at least, are able to add a little bit of emotional warmth to their absolute rationality.

Although these acts of human kindness are few, they are enough to be a reason for the dark angels to choose loyalty, and to be a weight on the scales.

“You mean…” Luther’s voice was terribly hoarse, “that we can retain a portion of Caliban’s entity?”

"Can we choose to preserve the area where the Legion Monastery is located?"

"Yes." The emperor's voice returned to calm.

He raised his hand, and a holographic projection unfolded before everyone, displaying a three-dimensional model of Caliban. A blinding red line marked the predicted core destruction zone, an area that covered almost half of the planet.

In the heart of human activity in Caliban, a relatively small green area is marked around the monastery that has witnessed the Knights' thousand-year history.

"This region will be the foundation of the new 'Caliban,' and its size will depend on the precision of our operations and the thoroughness of the stripping away of the Caliban ouroboros concept. It is not expected to be smaller than the volume of an asteroid."

The Emperor looked at Luther and then continued.

"You have seventy-two hours to use all your resources to gather the monastery's core relics, the Legion's most important historical artifacts, databases, gene seed banks, and all civilians in this area who are willing to evacuate into the green zone."

As for those industrial facilities that have been painstakingly built, those whose core components can be dismantled and relocated should be moved immediately. Whether they are transported to other locations to continue production or relocated after the new Caliban is established, it is up to you. Those that cannot be relocated should be abandoned; after all, the Empire is not lacking in production capacity now.”

The Emperor's voice reached the ears of Luther and all the dark angels.

Relocating an entire legion's homeworld in seventy-two hours is a daunting and suffocating task.

But compared to the complete destruction of the homeworld, turning everything to ashes, this is the greatest mercy the Emperor has shown, an opportunity won through the struggle of the Dark Angels and the three Primarchs.

"As you command, Your Majesty!"

Luther suddenly knelt on one knee, offering the highest respect to the Lord of Mankind.

"The Caliban and the Legion of the Dark Angels will forever be grateful for your mercy, and we will repay you with our lives."

For the future of humanity, Caliban is willing to sacrifice its body, but its soul and glory will live on forever in its fragments!

"For the Empire! For the continuation of Caliban!"

Astram and other veterans followed closely behind, roaring in unison.

The roar was devoid of doubt, leaving only the tragic grandeur of a great sacrifice and the relief of loyalty being recognized.

Their gazes toward Ryan held a newfound gratitude; it was the Primarch's stance that had secured this faint yet precious hope for them.

As the man caught between the Legion and the Emperor, Ryan was in a very awkward position throughout the entire confrontation.

Regardless of which side he favors, it is a betrayal and a disservice to the other.

But now, although the Caliban's interests are still being harmed, at least it's not to the point of no return, and the huge weight in Ryan's heart can finally be lifted.

"Let's get moving. We must seize every minute and second to move all the important things from Kaliban."

“Especially the native people of the Kaliban, I know that some will choose to live with their homeland. At times like these, our soldiers need to personally go out and persuade them to make a change.”

“I don’t care what methods you use, you must take every single one of the Kaliban away.”

"If you save the land but lose the people, you lose both the land and the people; if you save the people but lose the land, you save both the land and the people."

Luther and his Dark Angels immediately dispersed; they were going to save Caliban's last remaining forces.

Luther once again demonstrated his efficient administrative skills, forcefully suppressing the Caliban who were unaware of the truth and were confused and dissatisfied with the decisions made by their superiors.

Anyone who dares to cause trouble will be arrested and detained by Caliban's mortal military police, who will wipe out any resistance that tries to prevent the Dark Angels from relocating.

The massive transport ships, like migrating swarms of steel bees, traveled tirelessly day and night between the planet's orbit and the designated area.

Some of the items that were relocated were transferred to the Dark Angels' fleet, while others were moved to other safe planets within the Caliban system.

The Dark Angels' technical sergeants and mechanical priests formed a demolition team, dismantling the precision foundry's core furnace and machining production line in the most efficient, even somewhat brutal, manner.

The precious relics were carefully packed into boxes, and the armor and weapons of the Grand Masters of the Order of Order throughout the ages were respectfully removed from the display wall.

After the stone tablets and scrolls that record the Knights' thousand-year history were digitized, the originals were also packed up and taken away.

All traces of human activity on Caliban will be taken away, leaving only the steel jungle that has already been transformed, waiting to face its final fate along with Caliban.

The most heartbreaking thing was the evacuation of Kaliban civilians. The Kaliban people, who had lived there for generations, were told that they had to leave their homes immediately because a huge threat to human life had emerged in Kaliban.

Panic, sadness, and disbelief spread through the crowd.

However, thanks to the strong organization of the Dark Angel warriors and local officials, the evacuation was carried out in a difficult but orderly manner.

People, with their families and the few belongings they could carry, flocked aimlessly into the designated safe zone around the monastery, or were directly taken to warships by transport ships.

The cries of children, the sighs of the elderly, the silent carrying of men, and the reluctant glances back of women together create a poignant picture of a nationwide migration.

The person who issued the evacuation order was Luther. Because of Luther's high prestige, many Caliban people suppressed their confusion and doubts out of trust and respect.

They firmly believe that Luther will not harm the Caliban, not in the past, not now, and not in the future.

Luther stood atop the highest tower of the monastery, looking down at the ant-like crowds and auxiliary machinery below.

The wrinkles on his face seemed to deepen, and there was a hint of weariness in his eyes, yet he continued to issue orders and coordinate the overall evacuation.

Only when he occasionally pauses and casts his gaze toward the distant industrial zone and recruit training ground that he once fought for, which are about to be erased, can you see a fleeting pain in his eyes.

Caliban was his life's work, but Ryan was rarely in Caliban. For the Lion, the homeworld was merely a place where troops and supplies would "refresh" regularly.

The Dark Angels undertook the Empire's most important, most dangerous, and most secretive mission.

Therefore, even with the strongest strength and most comprehensive equipment among all legions, the First Legion's casualty rate remained high.

The First Legion was the only legion with three Glory Queen-class battleships at the beginning, but in the end, only the Unyielding Truth remained.

Ryan has always focused his energy on military matters, leaving all the other logistical and trivial matters to Luther.

The planet Caliban has contributed too much blood to the First Legion, and Luther is the one who keeps Caliban constantly replenished.

His clenched fist loosened and clenched again, finally turning into a barely audible sigh that dissipated into the last gusts of wind in Caliban.

"An old era will eventually pass, but a new era will slowly begin."

……

While Caliban was carrying out a mass relocation, the Emperor wasted no time and began working on another matter.

He needs to obtain the Tuchucha Engine before he can get the Ouroboros.

Compared to the Ouroboros, which requires destroying Caliban to obtain, the Tuchucha Engine was already under Ryan's control long ago.

This artifact once allowed the Dark Angels to cross the storm of destruction and reach Guilliman's Macragge.

It can be said that among the three sacred artifacts, the Tuchucha Engine is the most unique and has the closest relationship with humanity.

Even Ryan believed that the Tuchucha engine fell into his hands because its self-awareness chose to do so, hoping to use humans to make itself whole.

The Tuchucha engine was placed on the Legion's flagship by Ryan, which is the second safest place in the entire First Legion after the Caliban.

Given that the Ouroboros was located in Caliban, Ryan dared not allow the two artifacts to come together without knowing the full story.

Accompanied by Ryan, the group boarded the New Caliban, the flagship of the Dark Angels Legion, which was cruising through the galaxy.

Ryan strolled on the flagship's deck, seemingly sensing that the lingering smell of war hadn't completely dissipated.

He missed the war to wipe out the ghoul orc empire, but fortunately, the Dark Angel did not.

The Lion already knew that it was Luther leading the First Legion that made outstanding contributions on the western front of the battlefield, which eased his guilty conscience for a moment.

The New Caliban was under extremely tight security, while the Tuchucha engine was stored in the core vault.

A complex field of spiritual energy and physical barriers separated the inside and outside of the vault. Ryan walked at the forefront, using his biological information to disarm the defense system.

When everyone arrived at their destination, a huge spherical device, confined by numerous metal pipes and flowing with a gentle blue energy, was quietly operating inside the room.

The Tuchucha engine exudes an aura of order and computation, and beneath it stands a slender figure.

It was a servant who looked about ten years old, a human boy, with pale skin, empty eyes, and wearing a simple gray jumpsuit.

Two cables connected the boy to the Tuchucha engine itself, making him appear as stiff as a puppet controlled by some malevolent force.

However, when the emperor stepped into the cabin, the boy's empty eyes instantly lit up with a deep blue light, as if containing the stars and the sea.

“You’ve finally arrived,” the boy servant said.

"Tuchucha Engine." The Emperor examined the object before him and saw the powerful force hidden within it, far more complex than it appeared.

"We need your assistance in a critical operation. The Ouroboros within Caliban is about to be released, and it will finally merge with you and the Heart of Plague to recreate the Ancient One's Web Shield."

“That’s what I hope for too.” The boy’s voice remained calm, but the frequency of the blue light flashing increased slightly.

“Since the ancient saint perished and we were separated, there is only one meaning left for me—to reunite with the other pieces of the puzzle.”

"So I found Ryan Al Johnson, who had the power to help me find the other pieces of the puzzle."

Ryan frowned, instinctively sensing a sense of unease. The Tuchucha engine in front of him might not be telling the truth.

"Why must you unite? What is the ultimate purpose that the ancient sages entrusted to you?"

Loshi stared at the Tuchucha engine in front of him and questioned it.

The boy servant's head was tilted slightly, an extremely human-like gesture, yet it appeared particularly eerie due to his empty eyes.

"Maintaining the stability of the network structure, expanding the network, and restoring the ancient heritage. This is the established procedure," the Tuchucha engine replied.

"You ask me what my purpose is? Then I would like to ask you in return, what is the purpose of humankind's birth?"

"To hunt, to reproduce, to perpetuate the species—that is the purpose of humankind's existence." The Tuchucha engine seemed to be mocking.

"Wait... on your body..."

The Tuchucha engine was asking a question when suddenly, as if sensing something, it controlled the boy servant to come in front of Rosie.

"Why do you have the aura of the Creator? Such an aura should not exist in this era."

"The ancient saints are extinct, at least in this universe, I can be sure of that."

A smile appeared on Rosie's lips.

He thought the Tuqiucha engine was some kind of mysterious thing, but now he sees things he doesn't even know.

"Why should I tell you the answer to this question?"

The boy servant fell silent, and at that very moment, several rustling footsteps were heard inside the vault of the New Caliban.

Loshi turned his head sharply, only to find that the special life form he had seen before, known as the Dark Watcher, had somehow appeared near the Tuchucha Engine.

"Don't listen to it, it's lying." The Dark Watcher, barely a meter tall and shrouded in robes, spoke in a human voice.

(End of this chapter)