This is our Warhammer journey

Chapter 441 Let Ryan be the War Commander! (4.8k)

The artillery fire finally began to roar.

The massive machine suddenly erupted, the heavy breech slammed into the barrel, the air whistled, the buffers clanged, and the scattered sparks that had once covered Caliban transformed into a continuous barrage, constantly embedding horrific wounds into that noble angel fortress.

When Arthur entered the front-line command center, many people looked up at the same time.

Koswayne leaned against the edge of the house, his robe and hood drawing a clear line of light and shadow across his face, as he stared at the pale light projected by Caliban onto the slowly rotating hologram in the center of the room.

His gaze swept over Arthur and Ryan, who was following behind. He took a breath. Beside him stood a woman in a court robe, Aglaia, who was recording something in the database.

A hundred years have passed, and even though his power has increased many times over, this judge still has an extraordinary fondness for recording history.

There's no way around it, I really do like him.

"."

Ryan looked at the pile of records about Caliban on the data sheet, most of which focused on upper-level political affairs and the development of Caliban. With the Primarch's superhuman abilities, he could see the problems inside almost at a glance.

Back when Caliban submitted to the Empire, Ryan allowed Terra to transfer a large number of people to Caliban to assist in the development of the planet.

Terran technicians established numerous military factories on the Kaliban to produce various weapons and equipment for the Great Expedition. In order to avoid the harsh forest environment on the Kaliban's surface, they also built eco-cities for people to live in. Many of them played a clever trick: the Terrans mostly lived on the upper level, while the Kaliban lived on the lower level.

This deliberate class division undoubtedly sowed the seeds for future escalation of conflict between the Kaliban and the Terrans.

Meanwhile, the planet also has bureaucrats from the Ministry of the Interior, whose demands on Caliban's productivity are increasing daily in order to meet the growing material needs of the Dark Angels' Great Expedition.

After being exiled, Luther was constantly burdened with these heavy administrative duties. He took over the development of various city areas, the forests were leveled, and the people were forcibly relocated. The Chaos pollution that had gradually transferred to humans after the disappearance of the Caliban behemoth was also covered up due to the conflict between Luther and Terra.

Then the Horusic Rebellion broke out.

The increasingly fierce warp storm nearly severed Caliban's communication with the outside world, while Terra's unreasonable production demands continued. Naturally, a turbulent storm began to brew on Caliban as well.

At first, there were only sporadic worker strikes and protests in various places, but gradually various acts of sabotage and organized riots began to occur. The security forces were also infiltrated by the rioters, and Caliban's police force gradually became unable to quell the unrest. Luther's internal investigation clearly suspected that Caliban's former nobles and knights were involved.

Caliban's factory output was declining due to the unrest, and the bureaucrats of the Interior Ministry repeatedly urged Luther to quell the unrest and restore Caliban's output.

Luther was forced to deploy Caliban auxiliary forces, the Caliban Javelin, to suppress the increasingly rampant rebellion.

Here comes the worst: the leader of the Caliban Jab was a Terran general who didn't treat the Caliban people like human beings at all!

Luther was deeply distressed by the suffering of the Caliban. The condemnation from his colleagues and the oppression from Terra made him increasingly haggard. However, Luther was unaware of Lane's thoughts. He did not know whether all of this was at Lane's behest. His loyalty to Lane and his loyalty to the Caliban people began to clash.

And so Luther collapsed under pressure from both sides.

He chose to betray.

This conclusion came to Ryan's mind.

Ryan's abilities are very strong, or rather, none of the Primarchs' abilities are weak.

He reconstructed the entire event simply from the policy changes and the details within those documents.

They betrayed us as expected!
Ryan instinctively wanted to jump up.

He can tolerate it, so why can't you?
Arthur glanced back.

"This is your fault."

He said it bluntly.

If this person could empathize with mortals, no, even with Astartes for a single second, they wouldn't be here dealing with Luther's rebellion.

"."

Ryan walked into the corner with a cold face, staring at the sky without saying a word.

It's like they've lost their soul.

Koswayne sighed silently, then handed over his findings regarding the placement of Astartes on the surface.

As a descendant of the Caliban, Azrael's actions had already given the surface dark angels who were attacked a great sense of security, but the appearance of this familiar face made them even more at ease.

As soon as the ceasefire meeting ended, most of the members who wanted to leave the battlefield began to gather in the refuge area, which was a mix of refugees, soldiers, and Astartes. It was also a transfer point for supplies for the Dawnwings to enter this spacetime, in order to prevent them from worrying that being gathered together was Azrael's plan to wipe them out.

Arthur glanced at it, patted Cosway on the shoulder, and thanked him for his help.

"Connect".

The door behind him closed, and Arthur immediately spoke.

A tactical staff officer immediately began operating a machine.

"Connected".

The officer said that the distant explosions and continuous tremors continued to seep into the house.

"Azrael".

Arthur said, "The Supreme Master."

“We can hear you, Your Highness.”

Azrael's voice came from the other end of the communication. With the assistance of the fleet that had already taken control of space, there was no distortion, and even the sound of the shell casings falling to the ground was exceptionally clear.

"Lord Arthur."

Merian's voice said that this loyal Terran warrior was one of the few native members who joined the frontal assault.

Arthur responded in turn.

"The War General-class General Cannon has been deployed."

Ramses chimed in, and even through the communication device, you could tell his mouth was stretched to the sky.

The General Cannon is an excellent surface siege weapon. It can greatly reduce casualties for the superior side in combat. The General Cannon, especially the type that can bypass various void shields to fire, has been deployed in various main forces.

Among them, the General Cannon, which they had captured from the Iron Warriors, was classified as a War Marshal-class cannon.

It's a perverse sense of humor among time travelers; they don't like to put pressure on mortals who are already living miserable lives, so they can only put pressure on these original beings.

Besides, it's not a big deal; the sword the future emperor gave to Ryan is called Loyalty.

Ryan turned his head, as if he had thought of something, and his face flushed red.

Arthur's gaze lingered on the holographic projection, but Ramses showed no sign of noticing it or stopping speaking.

"After bombing the loyalists and the walls of Terra, now we can finally give the rebels a proper beating."

For a fleeting moment, Ryan thought it would be better for him to die at Arthur's hands.

The dark angels mostly didn't care about his temper anymore, since no matter how vicious he was, he wouldn't fabricate things that didn't exist.

If you want to say it, why can't people say it if it's true?
Anyway, they're not going to use cannons to bombard the loyalists now.

"The remaining resistance forces are being consumed at maximum speed. All of our effective forces are expected to intersect with the enemy's forces in the most optimistic way. The fortress will be captured within three hours."

Azrael reported the situation calmly, only choosing to ask for instructions at the very end.

"Should the general's cannon be fired?"

It contained a deep well of anger.

If there's anything the Dark Angels are most looking forward to right now, it's utterly crushing their enemies.

"Fire."

Arthur nodded in agreement, took one last look at the withdrawn Ryan, and then left for the battlefield.

Some mistakes can be corrected, while others cannot.
-
Self-discipline and integrity in solitude; guarding one's heart and understanding one's true nature.

Even when facing the most critical and difficult situations, we should have this awareness.

Because there are just too many things in this universe that can make people lose themselves.

For millennia, from high lords like Van Diel and Primarchs like Magnus, to demon wizards and all sorts of jesters, these people have been driven mad by desire, indulging in power or the elusive strength bestowed by the High Heavens. Such behavior may bring temporary power, but it will inevitably come at a price in the future. And right now, the interior of Angel Keep is full of such a price.

A deafening roar echoed throughout the fortress, accompanied by violent shockwaves that surged along the vehicle's hull from firing, and flashes of light like the sun.

The shockwave kicked up a large cloud of dust around the fortress walls, causing the building to shake. One side deformed inward first, then burst open like an incubating egg. The precise bombardment killed 90% of the monsters on the spot.

Next came the cutting off of the fortress's energy supply. Thick smoke billowed through the main road, the upper floor expanded and collapsed, crushing the demons below.

Many of them were already dead, or dying in the area where they stood, injured by high pressure, burning gases, or explosive debris that stretched through the building walls. The fire quickly engulfed the entire upper area, and the conscious survivors screamed as they were consumed by the flames.

The fire surged like rolling waves through the collapsed floor and into the lower levels.

Many more demons died before they even had a chance to get up.

Some of the demons that climbed up blocked the passage, and then became a charred gate, blocking the way out for their other comrades.

Only the demons deep within the fortress have a chance.

The demons fled in panic, abandoning the corpses of their companions, and scattered across the open ground. Many of their bodies were already ablaze.

Haw!

An iron boot crushed the Nurgle demon, splattering its juices everywhere.

The rumbling tracks rolled over, smearing the flames along with the demon's bones.

As the Great General's cannon blasted open the walls of Angel Castle, Arthur walked across the filthy ground and looked at the enemies before him, corrupted by chaos and transformed into something unrecognizable. On either side of him, dark angels fearlessly charged into the enemy ranks.

Apart from the areas wiped out by the General's cannon, almost every inch of the gap ahead was filled with decaying enemies, filling everything that once symbolized the history and honor of the Caliban.

Most of them were zombies and demons, their density compressed into a dense formation, their bodies radiating a flickering eerie light. A small number of Space Marines were mixed in, shouting the name of Caliban, seemingly unaware of what they had become.

Their adversaries are the closely united Dark Angels.

In front of Arthur, around Arthur.

His legions charged fearlessly at the enemy, brandishing their blades and shouting battle cries.

As always, the Lord of Knights led from the front, and none could withstand his unparalleled skill.
-
Wow!

Driven by a hint of annoyance, the spoon that had been stirring the soup pot was put down, splashing up waves that caused the stars mixed in to ripple, before finally disappearing into the soup pot.

Nagoro looked at Caliban's scene, took a deep breath, and picked up his spoon again.

The rich, aromatic broth began to simmer once more, revealing the real universe to Nurgle.

He looked at Azrael and Arthur walking side by side, at the dark angels who entrusted their backs to each other, at the mental health workers busily comforting people in the crowd, and at those who had made grave mistakes yet still received opportunities to redeem themselves.
Look how united they are.

The soup flowed a little faster.

After a brief moment of approval, Nurgle's eyes were once again filled with anger.

But why his own opponent, his own enemy?
I used to find this unity and trust incredibly appealing, but when faced with such an opponent, Nurgle just can't feel happy.

Nagoro's current attitude is conflicted.

On one hand, he hoped to spread the pollution in Caliban simultaneously through the chaos in Caliban and his contamination of Longlin Star. He would then rely on deliberately intensifying conflicts, reducing trust between humans through chaotic pollution, exacerbating the conflict in Caliban, and turning the entire planet into chaos. With the support of the demon army, he could hold back the Wings of Dawn.

On the one hand, after witnessing Arthur and the others' series of actions, all of the above was clearly wishful thinking.

Corruption was useless, and the conflict was completely transferred to this enemy because of the existence of chaos. Nurgle felt that his series of operations would probably be in vain again, with the effort and reward disproportionate.

Nurgle looked at the plague fleet shrouded in a cloud of plague; this fleet from ten thousand years ago had not yet reached Caliban.

Should we end it here?
"No, we can't let it end like this."

After glancing at Mortalian and the others' progress, Nurgle quickly shook his head.

Caliban's current situation was already keeping him busy enough. Arthur and his men had absorbed tens of thousands of dark angels who were fighting within hours. If these people were to successfully reach Macragge, the combined power would be unimaginable to him.

Keep in mind that Guilliman isn't as troublesome as Ryan, and the Ultramarines aren't as neurotic as Dark Angel.

Moreover, in the 40k era, the authority of the Dawnwings was no less than that of the Primarchs who had long since become mythical.

At that time, the pressure on Motalian will only increase.

"Let's invest some more."

Nurgle grumbled, but eventually led Typhon's path toward Caliban, while tossing a few plants into the cauldron.
-
Luther gazed at the scene of battle.

Even here, with annoying scoundrels like the Minister of the Interior and General Terra banished, Luther still felt a strange, nauseating, rotting sensation.

Their armor had become so rotten and so filthy without them even realizing it.

However, they were rebels, and they were loyalists.

Loyal to the Caliban, they resisted the tyranny that harmed the people of the Caliban.

"I had to do it."

Even as Angel Keep was breached and an unknown Primarch entered, Luther stubbornly persisted.

"We must survive."

"Yes, you have to do it."

Zaharel blinked again, and the scene changed.

Once again, they were left alone, surrounded by complete darkness and silence, as if they had completely escaped the constraints of real time and space, and the surrounding scenery had come to a standstill.

"So imagine if you knew these two truths, if you knew that the only way to ensure Caliban's survival was to immerse himself in the waves of the warp and receive its most powerful gift, which no power in the entire galaxy could control again."

"Think about it again. All your past fears are real, just as the Emperor once said on Nicaea. Any connection with the High Heavens will lead to your utter destruction and cause you unimaginable suffering. Now that you know all of this, what will you choose? What will you do?"

"Do the right thing."

Luther replied.

"But they are both right. If you reject the High Heaven, you will never become the destined strongmen again, but if you embrace it, you will bear eternal pain. You can remain pure but weak, or you can become corrupt and powerful, just like when you tried to understand Ryan, cautiously, caught in a dilemma."

"How absurd it is to ask someone who is used to brute force to think!"

Luther retorted loudly, not understanding what Zaharie was talking about. He had completely changed since becoming Lord Cypher, and even Luther couldn't see through him.

"So that's why Ryan wavered between the two. He couldn't be sure of his path, just like the indecisiveness of mortals. He didn't know that every path leads to a tragic end, and he couldn't even pretend he didn't care, but in fact he cared the most. But he and you chose completely different paths."

At that moment, Luther remembered his knightly oath.

I love Caliban deeply. If there is anything I have done wrong, it is that I have not had enough power to resist the ensuing tyranny.

'This is the only mistake I'm willing to admit.'

Luther murmured softly.

"The decision has been made."

As he spoke, a hint of hesitation lingered in his voice: "Do we still have a chance? Is there still a chance to restore Caliban to its former state?"

"Of course, but not in the way you're thinking of it."

Zaharel said, "This brings us to the last part."

A sinister smile flickered across his ashen face.

“Let’s talk about Tuffons, and then about yourself.”

　P.S.: Status of the characters appearing in the game.

　　Arthur: After the fight, chop people up.
　　Ryan; After the fight, he became withdrawn.
　　Ramses: Currently entangled with Nurgle, while also taking a jab at others.

　　Coswayne: Plans changed, I'll help with the work.
　　Azrael: I just want to fire the cannon and kill everyone.

　　Nagou: Torn between sunk costs and the intention to further escalate the intensity, ultimately choosing to increase the intensity.
　　Luther: He's tainted by chaos; there's no turning back.
　　Zaharie: Completely corrupted by the Ouroboros, currently up to no good.
　　
　
(End of this chapter)