Warhammer: Black Emperor

Chapter 863 The Primarch's Primary Target Killed in the Ascension Ceremony

000.M31.

The hazy star field, the Ulanno Galaxy.

Thousands of ships are suspended in the orbit of Ulanno.

The plasma engine operates, resisting the pull of the planet's gravity.

The Mountain Formation of the "Imperial Fist" hovered alone.
The warships of "Son of the Emperor" and "Holy Blood Angel" are extremely magnificent and dazzling.

A striking, gilded warship occupies the central position, hovering above a continent.

Horus's Vengeful Spirit.

Black and crimson warships slowly approached, weaving through the void ships.

Nimrod stood before the viewing window, gazing into the void: Chagatai's white swift warships, Angron's berserk red warships, Logar's gray warships, and his target—Motalian's fleet.

The Death Guard's fleet was lined up in a row, resembling sturdy spears.

The ship's name is written in high Gothic script on its hull, representing the unwavering determination of the Death Guards.

The spearhead is the Resilient, its dark green bow etched with tall lettering detailing the battles it has fought, the worlds it has visited, and the records of its conquests.

The ship's hull is decorated with the Imperial double-headed eagle and the spiked skull emblem of the Death Guard itself.

As soon as Nimrod had a thought, the Heraf Source Being Yulman, who was connected to him by mind, immediately took action.

His tentacles swayed, and a non-human mind silently emanated from them.

Yulman's tentacles twitched excitedly, licking the remnants of gunpowder left after the "Great Victory of Ulano," and his spirit, which had been shattered by the terrifying will, gradually recovered.

A force from the void penetrated the upper deck of the Resilience, and chilling tendrils clung to the brain of an officer.

"Kunsa!" A whisper from the void entered my mind.

“Motalian and his offspring have never regarded you or anyone else as human beings.”

“You are considered lowly insects!”

"Now that they're away from the ships, your chance has come."

Black lines appeared on Kunsa's body, covering his neck.

He whispered repeatedly, "The opportunity has come..."

Kunza moved, his speed far surpassing that of Superman's Death Guard, swiftly traversing areas he had never been allowed to set foot in, his steps never faltering, as if he had walked through them a thousand times before.

He stopped in front of the armory, his empty eyes gazing around.

Kunsa raised his arms, revealing that dark veins had spread across his arms.

Enforcers from the seven decks lined up around him, as if following their master—the Death Guard.

Thoughts flowed between him and the seven law enforcement officers, without being hindered by the ordinary brain.

Their heartbeats gradually rose as they communicated, their breaths burning with intensity.

Kunsa strode toward the door, his entire body covered in black patterns.

With a flick of his wrist, the door swung open with a bang.

Law enforcement officers surged into the armory, their arms covered in black markings, and picked up explosive pistols.

A deafening roar echoed across the Resilience. Their target wasn't the crew, but the Thinker connected by wires, the metal-eyed monitor...

Amidst the rapidly spreading chaos, Kunsa quietly arrived at the highest hall of the Resilience.

He concealed himself in the shadows, observing a group of guards.

They wore gray-white, iron-clad Terminator armor with brass and dark gold accents, and barbed gauntlets gripped the black handles of giant scythes.

The death shroud of the elite "Death Guardians".

Ten bodies, dressed in their burial shrouds, stood shoulder to shoulder in two rows, completely blocking the entrance to the passage.

"A riot has broken out on the ship, and we must go there immediately to stop it."

"Defending the Primarch Palace is our primary duty, and we must leave enough personnel to garrison it," the Primarch Palace Guard Captain commanded, raising his giant scythe.

"Palacios and Bard, you stay here."

After he finished speaking, he strode towards the magnetic elevator with the other seven people in their funeral shrouds.

Kunsa stared at the passageway between the exquisite railings, where two Death Guards stood, one on each side.

He quietly emerged from the shadows and walked straight between the two guards.

The Death Guardian showed no reaction, completely unaware of Kunza's psionic concealment.

He went straight to a spire and stared at it with empty eyes.

The spire is 300 meters high and about 100 meters wide.

He raised his arms, waving them like a bat flapping its wings.

Kunsa quietly took off and landed on the top of the tower.

The will of the Originator, following the information provided by its contractual partner Ninglu, drove its parasite through the pillars to the end.

Kunsa climbed the spiraling wrought iron staircase and entered the spire, arriving at the last room—the clock room in the stargazing dome.

He raised his arm, covered in black markings, and the door slid open silently.

Kunsa stepped into the clock room and immediately discovered a huge array of clocks.

The clocks hang from every part of the wall beneath the glass dome, ticking away.

Small carriage clocks and huge gilded clocks occupied dozens of tables, their ticking echoing throughout the hall.

Kunza strode toward the center of the hall, where the pendulum of the gilded clock—the Silent Blade—was brought to the surface of Ulanor by Mortarion.

But there is still one thing inside the clock—the dead prisoner.

The top of the clock is a huge bell jar covered with mysterious symbols.

The lower half of the bell jar extends into the large bell, forming a small dome inside which is a pale, enormous head.

Kunsa knew that was his goal for this trip—the head of Nekare, the alien overlord and Motalian's adoptive father.

The black veins burst open, ripping open the officer's uniform. Tendrils whistled and slammed against the gilded bell's jar.

Click!

The mysterious device jointly created by the Death Guard and the Mechanicus exploded, its tendrils gripping Nekare's pale head.

As the lights began to twinkle, Mortarion's most prized possession vanished into thin air.

On the bridge of the USS Fortep, Magnus seemed to sense something, and his single eye slid down to orange.

He gave the order to the sound array supervisor: "Switch to Mortalian's communications channel."

A few seconds later, the voice of the sound array manager rang out, "Sir, the transfer has been successful."

"Magnus, what is it?"

Magnus detected the suppressed anxiety in his low voice, "Something has happened to your Endurance, and you may need my help."

“No need!” Mortarian’s voice was as cold as a scythe.

“I can handle it.”

“Magnus, I’m warning you, don’t resort to any witchcraft!”

drip...

Magnus shook his head helplessly when he heard the beeping sound of the communication being abruptly disconnected.

On the flight deck of the Resilient, Mortalian hurriedly stepped out, glaring angrily at the Death Guard before him.

"Can anyone tell me what happened?"

"The Emperor and the ten Primarchs are gathered in Ulanor to celebrate their glorious victory, and yet my flagship has rebelled at this time?"

“Father…” The captain of the Primarch Palace trembled in the rage of the Father of Genetics.

"Seven law enforcement officers launched a rebellion, which I have suppressed."

"Where is my spire?" Mortarian glanced at the eight Death Guards and suddenly had a bad feeling.

"Foolish thugs, have you dared to trespass upon my spire?"

“Father, absolutely not. Palacios and Bard have been guarding there all along. No one has defiled your sacred palace.”

“That would be best.” Mortarian’s voice came through the bronze respirator as he strode past the captain.

Company Commander Taifeng and Company Commander Nathaniel Garo followed on either side.

A moment later, Mortarian strode into the spire clock tower and looked toward the gilded clock in the center.

"No!"

Mortarion's roar shook the spire.

His most cherished trophy, the symbol of his most glorious achievement, the Nekalite leader, is gone.

"This is what you meant by 'untainted'!"

"Motalian said coldly, swinging his right fist and striking the captain," Mortarian said.

boom!
The Iron Cavalry-type Terminator was sent flying, tumbling and rolling in the stairwell.

“Father!” Nathaniel cried out, “There is blood here.”

Mortarian followed the sound and looked toward the deck.

A pool of splattered blood was spread in front of the gilded bell.

“I smell the stench of witchcraft,” Mortarian said with disgust.

"Could it be Magnus?"

“I don’t think so. The Primarch of the Thousand Sons wouldn’t do anything to offend you,” Nathaniel advised.

"Perhaps an alien wizard, or a member of the Eldar?"

"Whoever it is, I will make them pay the price," Mortarian said coldly.

The captain of the guard, his shoulder torn and his armor soaked in blood, staggered over.

He knelt on the ground, "Father, I have failed in my duty, please punish me!"

The other nine people also knelt down.

Palacios and Bard trembled uncontrollably; it was their dereliction of duty that had implicated their fellow fighters.

"You are no longer death shrouds," Mortarian coldly declared.

"From this day forward, you will be the vanguard suicide squad of the combat company commander."

“I will definitely oversee their atonement,” Nathaniel said.

The seventh company commander of the "Death Guard" holds the honorary title of combat company commander, a title bestowed upon him by the Emperor when he commanded the "Twilight Raiders".

At the same moment Mortarion unleashed his punishment, Nimrod looked down upon the Nekal's head, which had been sent to the "Land of Chaos."

The potion ingredients have been gathered; the next step is the advancement ceremony.

Who should be chosen as the primary target?
Nimrod first ruled out Peturabo and Magnus, whom he wanted to recruit.

As the most perfect Primarch in Tzeentch's eyes, Magnus doesn't need to sacrifice anything like other Primarchs; he can ascend to the Primarch realm whenever he wants.

In his memory, Magnus chose the moment of promotion in front of Old Man Huang, Macado, and Vokán.

This is too conspicuous; Ninglu could not possibly advance to Sequence 4 in front of Old Man Huang.

[The Ascended Vorgrim from the Eye of Fear and the Ascended Mortalian from the Warp are not good choices either.]

The primary target is still Angron.
On the one hand, there are many informants among the "World Eaters" who can keep track of Angron's movements.

In this respect, the same applies to Akulduna, whom Forgrim favored most, but Nimrod would not allow him to seduce Perturabo and plunder a portion of his power as a sacrifice.

On the other hand, Angron's promotion ultimately takes place in the real world, and Ninglu was able to arrive in time.

Even in its anger, Khorne could not fully exert its power through the veil.

[Well, if we're going to kill, let's kill Angron, who gathered the most energy when he ascended to demonhood.]

Furthermore, Khorne is usually the strongest of the four gods, making this ritual most effective.
(End of this chapter)