Emperor's Bane

Chapter 662 Ambitious, but Dorne

"Three chapters of the agreement."

Until he finished his long-awaited meeting with the Father of Genes and reluctantly walked out of the Tower of Babel, Horus was still muttering this word, which was somewhat offensive to a Primarch.

He was sensitive to the fact that this word seemed to be the reason why the Emperor had summoned him specifically, and it was the only core of the conversation between father and son: Although the Wolf God was reluctant to admit it, now that he thought about it carefully, in the previous conversation, the Emperor had indeed mentioned this [Three Rules] many times, both explicitly and implicitly.

This is what he wanted, isn't it?

The Wolf God shook his head. No matter what he thought about these three rules in his heart, when he realized that the Emperor wanted him to accept this clause, the Wolf God had made up his mind to accept it: The Son of the First Return would not disobey the will of the Lord of Mankind, no matter what this will was.

Since he could accept that his father was about to leave their common cause and return to those humble mortals, what did a few mere terms matter?

What's more, he actually quite liked some of the suggestions: Horus was not sure whether this set of rules was entirely written by Morgan, or whether people like Guilliman had their say in it, but in any case, a lot of the content in it did touch the heart of the Wolf God.

Perhaps in their view, especially in the view of Guilliman (if he was really involved in this conspiracy), Horus would be there to complain and cry bitterly about the loss of a considerable part of the Warmaster's power.

But they were wrong. The Wolf Shepherd God had never been a mediocre person who put worldly power as his primary goal. His vision and state of mind were much broader than his brothers imagined.

As for the Warmaster?

From the moment the Emperor promised Horus that he would place the Warmaster's wreath on his head, all of Horus' ambitions for this position and this honor vanished. When he truly held the wreath he had been longing for in his hands, the Wolf God realized that this thing was actually just that.

There is nothing to brag about: I don’t know why Jonson was so greedy that he even went so far as to win over Guilliman, whom he originally looked down upon.

What Horus really wanted was to once again experience the Emperor's trust in him and confirm his value in his father's heart: what could be better than the Emperor personally granting him the position of Warmaster to prove the Lord of Mankind's trust? Compared with this priceless father-son relationship, all the honors in the world are nothing but passing clouds.

When he left the tower, they no longer held any attraction for him.

"Huh...ha..."

Horus took a deep breath. He had never loved the air of Ullanor filled with the sour smell of metal and the sunlight that slanted across his cheek as much as he did now: the daylight in the sky was so thin that the shepherd wolf god didn't need to squint even if he looked directly at its outline.

Then the Primarch noticed how much time he had spent in this tower: Horus remembered that when he entered, the sun of Ullanor was still hanging high above his head, just a little to the west, and now, it was weaving an embroidered robe of sunset under the mountains.

Thanks to the celestial orbit of this world, which is no different from that of Holy Terra, it makes the glory of the Wolf Shepherd God more real: perhaps he should turn back now and pray to the Emperor to hand over this world to him, to exist as a great ritual world in the Wolf Realm.

But Horus knew that this was almost impossible. Not to mention how presumptuous it was to assign the entire Land of Glory of the Great Crusade to the jurisdiction of one Primarch, in terms of distance alone, he was not the first choice.

This was one of the future eastern gateways for the entire Solar Segmentum and Holy Terra, chosen by Malcador himself: the three Primarch realms closest to Ullanor were the Governorate of Fenris belonging to Leman Russ in the north, the Realm of Prospero belonging to Magnus in the northeast, and the Perfect Court of Fulgrim in the east. Horus' jurisdiction was squeezed to the outer layer.

He knew that this was a trick used by the mortals on Terra to exclude him. They wanted to keep him away from Terra: Malcador was even unwilling to transfer Horus's home world, Cthonia, which witnessed his reunion with the Emperor, to the jurisdiction of the Wolf Kingdom. The Sigillite arrogantly demanded that the Wolf God choose a new home world and royal capital for him and his Shadow Moon Wolves Legion in the wild lands in the north of the galaxy.

As for the original territory of the Solar Star Region?
Confiscated together as a transfer.

"Tsk..."

This old bastard.

If it weren't for my father's sake...

The Wolf God frowned and decided not to think about these troublesome things. He turned and looked at the tower behind him for the last time, but he could not see the balcony where he talked with the Emperor. All he could see were the disappointing eyes of the Imperial Guards, full of alienation and vigilance.

Horus snorted. He was used to ignoring these useless sycophants around the Emperor. They had the honor of being created by the Lord of Mankind himself and mastered countless skills and abilities given by him, but the only job they could do was to act as bodyguards for his genetic father, and they were not even capable of this job.

Horus thought of Goron, and then of Ullanor: these golden pieces of trash had twice put his Gene-Father in danger, one of which even required the Wolf God to rescue him personally. God knows how many times the Guards had tarnished their honor in places that Horus had never seen before.

The only thing these guys are good at is probably relying on their noble status to look down on the frontline soldiers who are really fighting bloody battles. Horus couldn't help but smile at the vicious speculation in his heart. He turned around, took a step forward, and strode away from the guards in an attempt to get rid of this prisoner-like treatment.

Fortunately, before he had gone far, he met another unlucky guy who was in the same prisoner's dilemma as him.

"Alpharius, brother."

Horus grinned, quickly adjusted his emotions, and tried to show a sincere smile in front of his brother: Alpharius was standing not far from him, and a circle of guardsmen surrounded him.

It looks like Alpha has been waiting here for a while.

"I hope you have not remained in this place too long, my brother Alpharius."

Horus embraced Alpha, noting once again how small his brother was: the horns of Alpharius's helmet did not even touch the Wolf-God's forehead, an incredible feat for a Primarch, and he was almost as tall as his scions.

The Wolf God originally thought that Morgan was the shortest among their brothers: he heard that Vulcan once made a suit of armor for Morgan according to his own size, but it turned out that the armor could cover the entire Spider Queen, and even the silver hair on her head could not be seen.

I can't even jump out.

As compensation for this, the Fire Dragon Lord allowed their sister to sit on his shoulders for two hours: Morgan was said to be very satisfied with this novel perspective.

But even so, the Spider Queen seems to be taller than Alpharius, even if she is just a general among short people.

Horus tried hard to suppress the corners of his mouth. He didn't want Alpharius to notice that he was thinking about something impolite in his heart: the mind of this Hydra lord was frighteningly sharp, fortunately he was thinking about something else now.

"Have you been waiting here for a long time?"

The Wolf Shepherd God asked the question first.

"Not very long: five hours."

Alpha was still a little dissatisfied.

"I only wish the Emperor could spend as much time talking to me as he does with you."

Horus did not respond. He laughed in his inner pride.

"Five hours?"

"Thank you for your hard work, brother."

"nothing."

The Hydra spread its hands.

"I had just ordered my legion to handle the relocation of the camp when the Custodians found me with the Emperor's order. Fortunately, there was enough time left for me to complete the work: my legion has completely left the sight of the Imperial Fists and is now stationed next to the Night Lords. I hope this result will satisfy Dorne."

"Um...cough..."

Horus coughed and kept calculating in his mind: he did not want to see the confrontation between Dorn and Alpharius continue to be deadlocked like this. After all, they were blood brothers who were very close to him, and both of them had outstanding personal abilities. Their infighting was not a good thing for Horus.

"You know."

The wolf-god organizes language.

"Don is definitely not a bad person. He is our most trustworthy brother. I assure you that there is no malice in his words. He is just stubborn and opinionated. His comments on your life experience are not a personal attack. It is just a difficult to understand... uh..."

"bona fide?"

Hydra added with a smile.

"Yes! Yes, yes, yes: kindness."

"His anger is a kind one."

When Horus said this word, he felt his teeth aching.

"In short, you should learn to trust our brother Dorne: I will find a time to get you together again in the future, or arrange for you to fight side by side? I believe that when the two of you see each other's strengths, today's slight unpleasantness will become a joke after the foundation of friendship is established."

"I do not think so."

The Hydra's brows drooped.

"Horus: I heard that Dorn is about to be appointed by the Emperor as one of his Guardians of Terra."

"That's right: this was decided before you came back."

"Really? What a pity."

Alpharius nodded, glanced obscurely at the surrounding guards, and then motioned Horus to come closer to him so that the voice of the Hydra could reach the ears of the wolf-god: the tone was as cold as ice, which pricked Horus' spine for no reason.

"Listen to me, Brother Horus: I will only make these assumptions once."

"Yeah, I'm listening."

"Don't you think it's not safe to appoint Dorne's legion as Terra's guard?"

"What do you mean?"

Horus frowned, bewildered by Alpharius' words: the Wolf-God might have doubted whether he was worthy of the title of Warmaster, whether Sanguinius, Jonson, or even Guilliman were more suitable for the position than him? But he never doubted the Emperor's order to appoint Dorn as the Guardian of Terra.

No one among the Primarchs would doubt this order, and no one even in the entire Empire would doubt it: when the selection of the Warmaster was still hidden in the fog, Dorn was already the Terra Guard in everyone's mind.

After all, even Perturabo had acknowledged this fact: he had even taken the initiative to advise the Emperor that Dorn was the most capable person to serve as Terra's Royal Guard.

"Just speculation."

Alpharius' voice lowered.

"Think about it: when our respective legions were on the front lines of the Great Crusade, and when all of our kingdoms were scattered to the wild corners of the galaxy, only Dorn's Imperial Fists could occupy Terra for a long time, and only Dorn's military zone was the Primarch's kingdom closest to Holy Terra."

"Terra is right in his path."

"He is so close to the heart of the Imperium, to our Emperor, that he has decades or even longer to take over the entire Throne World piece by piece: imprisoning the Imperial Palace with his own high walls, transforming Holy Terra into what he wants, and adjusting the center of the Imperium at will according to his will. Not even another Legion can restrain him."

"But Dorn..."

"That's right!"

Alpharius waved.

"He is loyal, firm, and enthusiastic. It seems that except for his outspokenness, there is nothing wrong with him. Moreover, even this shortcoming has become a symbol of his kindness as it has been passed on among us. Don't you think this is too suspicious?"

"How can anyone be perfect?"

"Donne has his flaws, too."

Horus tried to correct himself, not noticing that his tone was wavering.

"Really?"

Alpharius just smiled.

"Frank? Or stubborn?"

"Honestly, are these two shortcomings really shortcomings? They are neutral words."

"..."

"Think about it, Horus: Is Dorn really so perfect? ​​So perfect that we let all of Holy Terra and his legion stand alone together, and no one would be wary of this."

"Guilliman is far away, but we have to be on guard against him all the time. Dorne is right in front of us, but no one doubts him: we don't even doubt why he wears golden armor that is so similar to the Emperor's, because the color of the Imperial Fists is not golden."

"Or, if our father lives in seclusion in the palace of Terra from now on, and is completely submerged by the walls of Dorne, so that people can only see Dorne standing on the high walls: then after decades of transformation and control, do you think the Empire will still care about who the golden armor standing on the high walls of Terra belongs to?"

"The Emperor? Or Dorn?" "Who cares?"

"Anyway: they're all golden."

"When that time comes, who knows who will give the voice and command from Terra?"

"..."

Horus' eyes widened.

The words of the Hydra were like a dagger, which fiercely cut a black gash in the heart of the wolf-god, and then instilled into it ideas that Horus had never thought of: or perhaps such ideas had already been lurking in Horus' heart for a long time, but he had never noticed them before.

"Ah...Alpharius!"

Horus couldn't help but adjust his tone to a ruthless one.

"Stop talking like that! I don't allow you to criticize our brothers in front of others like that!"

"It would be fine if I heard it, but do you know how much trouble these words from your mouth would cause to you and Dorne if they were to spread? The relationship between you would be irreparable! Dorne would not tolerate your criticism of his legion like this!"

"Don't worry, Horus."

Hydra smiled and patted his brother on the shoulder.

"I've already said that this is just my guess. I'm not stupid enough to casually tell others about this unfounded speculation."

"But you are different, Brother Horus. I trust you, so I dare to tell you: because I know you are noble and smart enough to listen to my thoughts rationally, instead of blindly covering your ears and shaking your head in denial."

“It turns out that I didn’t trust the wrong person.”

Alpharius' words made Horus feel inexplicably warm in his heart, so the wolf-shepherd god cleared his throat and intended to end the topic.

"Thanks for the reminder, Alpha."

"But no matter what: we should stop making arbitrary assumptions about Dorn. He is already the de facto Guard of Terra. His achievements and abilities have won the trust of everyone, including the Emperor. I will arrange for you to work with him as soon as possible. I believe that after you witness what he has done, you will trust Dorn as much as I do."

"Better so."

Hydra nodded. He really didn't want to continue to dwell on this topic. Moreover, reality didn't give him time to continue: not far away, the Custodians had already turned their dissatisfaction into reality and were about to bring it to the two Primarchs.

Hydra could only smile, then quickly left with the group of servants.

Only a silent Horus was left, distraught at his words.

The Wolf God stood there, immersed in his thoughts. The guards behind him did not interrupt the Primarch's thoughts, because their duty only went this far: the sons of Horus were rushing over from not far ahead, and the distant shouts brought the Wolf God back to reality.

"What a crazy thought..."

Horus smiled helplessly, and had to admit that Alpharius's random guesses just now did enlighten him to some extent: Why had he never thought about Dorn's behavior from this perspective before?
It’s terrifying to think about it…

"Tsk..."

Forget it, what are you thinking about?

That's Dorne. Any unwarranted slander against the Master of the Imperial Fist is a fantasy: the eyes of the entire galaxy have been checking the loyalty and integrity of the Master of the Imperial Fist over and over again for so many years. Could it be that all of their eyes are actually wrong?

Including the Emperor?

What a joke!
The Wolf God shook his head, thinking that this idea should be thrown away as garbage: Perhaps it was because Alpharius had just returned and didn't know his blood brothers very well, and he had developed the concept of the survival of the fittest and distrust of others during his long wandering life, which led to such a wrong perception of Dorne?
It was also his responsibility that he ignored Alpharius's sensitive heart.

He will have to correct this later.

Horus raised his head, refilled his heart with the power of action, then held his head high and walked towards his descendants, throwing the silence just now into the wind: He still had too many things to deal with one by one, so how could he have the energy to deal with these random speculations?
Everyone knows that the probability of these speculations being correct is less than one in a billion.

but……

------

Sure enough, I still care about it.

------

When the Wolf God led his Council of Four Kings back to the camp, anyone could see that he was worried: the iconic smile on Horus' face was still there, but just like the clear sky in winter, it did not make people feel any warmth from the heart.

To Loken, at least, the change in temperature was obvious: reporting to the Primarch now might not be a good idea.

However, the captain of the Tenth Company was never a person who would seek profit and avoid harm. The Primarch took a fancy to him for this reason, and he vowed not to disappoint his genetic father: under the admiring gazes of Abaddon and others, Loken resolutely pushed open the heavy iron door that was permeated with a slight low pressure.

As soon as I walked in, I was met with Horus' heavy eyes.

"Lorcan."

The Wolf God recognized the newcomer and found him to be one of his most capable sons: after all these years of training, Loken's ability had been recognized by the Primarch. In Horus' heart, which he was unwilling to reveal to outsiders, he had already ranked Loken between Torgaddon and Aximander, second only to Ezekiel and Sejanus in the Legion.

In terms of brains, Ezekiel could be ranked lower than others.

"Are you here to report on your work?"

"Yes, my lord."

Loken stood up straight: as the temporary head of the entire Luna Wolves camp appointed by Horus himself when he went to meet the Emperor, Loken was obliged to report to his father immediately all the major and minor matters that had occurred in the past few hours, and he was already familiar with this.

After all, Horus had already entrusted Loken with the task of aspect several times: in the Primarch's mind, it was one of his most brilliant endeavors.

"Is there something important?"

"It's nothing, actually."

Locke coughed awkwardly.

"There are mainly two things: one is about a narrator named Mesati, who is now in our camp. I hope you can arrange time to meet her. She wants to have a private interview with you."

"Private interview?"

The Wolf God raised his eyebrows: Locke dared to bother him with such things?
"That's right, father."

The Tenth Company Captain lowered his voice: he could clearly see the Wolf Shepherd God's displeasure.

"Ms. Mesati's articles are very influential in some areas of the Wolf Kingdom, and she herself is an avid admirer of yours."

"Um……"

The Primarch narrowed his eyes and thought for a moment.

"Very well: you go and discuss my next itinerary with Sejanus."

"What about the second thing?"

"The second thing is about the application for the large-scale outing of our mortal auxiliary army. When you arrived in Ullanor, you told me that once our mortal army has a collective outing record of more than 10,000 people, I need to report it."

"Ten thousand people."

Horus sat up straight.

“So how many are out now?”

Loken flipped through the document, then spat out a number that made Horus sweat.

"How many?!"

One third of his mortal soldiers went out for a collective trip during these few hours?
"What did they go do?"

"Uh... it's like this..."

Locke spoke intermittently and didn't seem to want to say what was next.

"Most of them have asked for leave and are heading to the Blood Angels' camp. It is said that the Ninth Legion is providing free physical examinations for all mortal auxiliary troops, including blood quality tests and motor function tests. Everything is free, and there is even a special lottery event?"

"lottery?"

Horus just laughed.

"So: they were actually there to enter the Ninth Legion raffle."

"That's right: only those who have undergone a full medical examination can go for the lottery."

"What's the prize?"

"Well: the first prize is a ticket to attend the bonfire party at the Dawnbreaker camp: it is said that many Primarchs will attend the party."

"Who are the attendees?"

"Let me see: Morgan, Sanguinius, Konrad, Corax, Jonson, Leman Russ, and Guilliman, and Angron, and Vulkan, and..."

"stop."

"What's wrong? Father?"

"Nothing...Lorcan..."

"Do you think I should also go for a physical examination?"

Loken was silent.

"Indeed, Father."

"Mr. Morgan sent the invitation three hours ago."

"She also said that if you decide to attend the banquet, please remember to bring Abaddon with you."

"Ezekiel? Why?"

"because……"

Locke bit his lip, looking like he was trying hard to suppress a smile.

"Because she said that many warriors, including Akudona, Bayar, Alajos, Koswain, Sevata, and Orfeo, wanted to know how powerful Abaddon, one of the Three Great Crusades, was."

"Tell Morgan for me."

"I will keep my appointment: I will do it."

------

I don’t know if it’s an illusion.

Loken seemed to hear the laughter of Horus in the air.

(End of this chapter)