Emperor's Bane

Chapter 860 The Dice Has Been Rolled
"It is well known: every expedition of Abaddon is a complete victory!"

"In the Luna Wolves, there is no greater commander than him!"

"Come on! Give him three cheers!"

““Victory in every battle!””

““Victory in every battle!””

““Win every battle!!!””

"..."

As soon as Ezekiel Abaddon stepped off the transport plane, he saw a bustling crowd standing on the platform of the airport.

There were hundreds of faces, some of them were brothers and comrades he knew well, but most of them were strangers to Abaddon: hundreds of Luna Wolves he didn't know, and ten times that many mortal elites.

The company commander was already used to this.

As the most combative and meritorious captain under the Wolf God, Abaddon knew better than anyone how rapidly the so-called Wolf Kingdom had expanded in the past fifty years: after all, he had contributed to it.

And it’s a huge contribution.

Abaddon saw it with his own eyes: countless victories promoted countless warriors, both legion recruits and mortal generals, and every piece of land recovered by the legion required more professionals to manage it.

To conquer a star region with thunderous means, perhaps only ten companies need to be dispatched, but if one wants to ensure long-term stability here and allow it to continuously provide blood transfusions for the great cause of the Wolf God, then a mortal army a hundred times larger than the former, and thousands of loyal and reliable bureaucrats are needed.

As for more critical areas, such as transportation nodes with extensive connections, or mining areas of irreplaceable rare metals, as well as industrial core areas that can support the logistics operations of the entire legion: in these places, mortal armies are no longer trustworthy.

Only by sending elite Sons of Horus to garrison for a long time can it be somewhat reliable: if the Wolf Shepherd God is willing to be more cautious, he will also find a way to replace the local governors one by one, and replace them with trusted backbones personally selected by the Warmaster from his mortal confidants.

The benefits of doing so are self-evident, but the disadvantages are also quite obvious: with fifty years of continuous victory and expansion, the size of the Luna Wolves has continued to expand at an unimaginable rate, and now has become ugly and bloated.

Various additional problems popped up like bamboo shoots after rain: the Legion could no longer act in a centralized manner as before, many old brothers had not seen each other for decades, and a large number of new recruits and mortal bureaucrats, with unfamiliar faces, were gradually squeezing into the familiar circle of the more old-school Moon Wolves.

Abaddon felt that he was one of the biggest victims of these problems.

The First Company under his charge was broken into pieces due to countless dispatch orders, and the Council of Four Kings had long been scattered, with no chance to gather except for routine meetings: the time in his early years when he spent his days leisurely in the arena and drank under the light of the full moon had unknowingly become a thing of the past that could never be returned to.

Not only that, what he could not tolerate the most was the expansion of the Council of Four Kings: a large number of mortals whose names he could not even remember, were able to enjoy the honor of becoming advisors to the Primarch while he was on an expedition. Half of them did not know how to fight at all, and the other half could not even lift a chainsword.

But now, they are also part of the glory of the Council of Four Kings, because they can serve the Wolf God in other areas: this person is an agricultural expert who can feed three star zones, that person is a wandering merchant who has opened up twelve new routes on his own, and the third person works for the Primarch's Wolf Kingdom, and has secured the lowest tax amount in history from Terra, and convinced the Sigillite with just his words.

With the movement of a pencil, they can accomplish what a Luna Wolf with a chainsword could never accomplish in a lifetime.

At first glance, with the addition of these elites from all walks of life, the Council of Four Kings seemed to have become more powerful than ever before, but Abaddon felt more hesitant.

The reason is simple. No matter how powerful the Council of Four Kings is, nowadays, even the name of the Council of Four Kings is rarely mentioned by the Primarch: because it can no longer represent everything that Horus desires.

The same was true of the Society of the Mourning: Abaddon had not heard them referred to as such by his Gene-Father in over thirty years, and for exactly the same reasons.

The Grand Council of Shadowmoons: This is what the Arms of Horus are now called.

Abaddon did not like it, just as he did not like what was happening to the Luna Wolves: he did not like the dissolution of the brotherhood of warriors without any hierarchy, nor did he like the banning of the gang tattoos and slogans that carried his Cthulhanian memories, which could no longer be seen on the walls of Vengeful Spirit.

But just as he could not change the emergence of the Shadowmoon Grand Council, he could not prevent the demise of the Warriors' Lodge and the Black Tattoo: the Primarch even gave up his sovereignty over Cthonia, his and Abaddon's shared homeworld, which now had no overt connection with the Luna Wolves.

It all hurt him: Abaddon finally understood the feelings of Terran veterans like Cruz.

But he thinks he won't be like that "ear-whispering wind" (Cruz's nickname), who just complains about everything.

As a frontline commander, Abaddon could clearly feel that as certain ancient marks were gradually erased, the Legion was indeed bursting with unprecedented vitality.

Discipline and strict discipline are indeed more useful on the battlefield than the so-called brotherhood. Legion recruits from ordinary families are no worse than bloodthirsty gangster killers. As for those mortals who are favored by the primarch, they have indeed demonstrated their value and loyalty.

Abaddon had no reason not to accept the reality that the Legion was making steady progress: their individual gains and losses were insignificant compared to the overall strength of the Wolf Kingdom.

Primarch be damned, at least he gets to keep his pigtails, right?
Abaddon shook his head, mocking his own sentimentality: ever since Horus ascended the throne of the Wolf, his most powerful captains were unable to surround the Primarch and had to go out to guard a place for their father, Abaddon found that he was getting better and better at thinking.

This may not be a good thing: the previous transparent happiness is more suitable for him.

The cheerful military band music interrupted the captain's thoughts, and Abaddon realized that he had walked the red carpet and came to this place that was most likely prepared for him alone: ​​he hoped that this would not be the center of the welcoming ceremony.

Forty-four Luna Wolves warriors formed a blockade, behind which stood a huge crowd of bureaucrats and mortal dignitaries dressed in various formal wear. They came from various organizations and semi-governmental agencies. A company commander could hear the sound of thousands of cameras firing at the same time, and the harsh sound of leather boots rubbing against the ground as the crowd pressed forward.

Abaddon stopped and tried his best to force a cordial smile. He did not want his stern expression to appear on the front page of tomorrow's newspaper: If it were in another world, it would be fine, but at the feet of the Primarch, it is better to be careful about some things.

Here, mortals may not necessarily hold less power than the Astartes.

Fortunately, he only had to endure for a few seconds as Abaddon strode across the remaining red carpet. There was one last hurdle waiting for him: the battle brothers of the legion, needless to say, but those mortals who could stand in front of the blockade to greet him were all guys he needed to be cautious of.

Who knows, among them might be a popular figure in the eyes of the Wolf God.

Abaddon had suffered from this before.

He would never forget that the skinny old man he casually scolded at the legion party that day had just developed a talent selection system for their genetic father that had been operating smoothly to this day: It was not a pleasant feeling to be forced to apologize by the Primarch himself.

However, Abaddon's ability to sum up experience and lessons has always been his strength: every successful expedition he made just illustrates this point. After realizing his shortcomings, the captain of the first company quickly took remedial measures.

"Frank."

Abaddon called out on the private communication channel, and a skinny mortal figure quickly caught up with him from behind, his light golden pupils revealing his shrewdness and strength.

He stood very close to the captain and was familiar with his duties: the young man only glanced at him briefly, and while keeping pace with Abaddon, he quickly told him the names and positions of these mortal officials in front of him.

Yes, Abaddon still didn't want to memorize the long and boring bureaucratic list like Sejanus, Loken, Agnes and Malohurst, and who knows when it would be updated again: but this didn't mean that he couldn't choose a young man who was skilled in this and absolutely reliable from among mortals to help him do this.

As the Primarch said: mortals are sometimes more capable than Astartes.

Thinking of this, the smile on Abaddon's face suddenly froze: When did this idea come to him?
After thinking about it carefully, the company commander realized that he didn't know it at all.

Never mind: it’s not wrong anyway.

With his usual optimism, Abaddon immediately put the matter behind him, because there was something more worth looking forward to. After dealing with the last mortal official, the captain was finally able to look aside. Those were the faces that made him feel familiar.

"Sejanus, Archimandre, Agnes... Oh, and of course you: Loken!"

Abaddon called out these familiar names enthusiastically: Primarch, in this age of change, familiar old objects are always priceless treasures.

He hugged everyone and laughed at Sejanus's still weed-like hair and Agnes' handsome face: little Horus' expression was still so flattering and numb, and Loken seemed to have matured a little, but his seriousness had not changed at all.

How reassuring: the former Council of Four Kings has not completely disappeared.

His closest brothers, they still look the same as they did all those years ago.

"Tell me, Lorcan: whose idea was it this time?"

After the warm hugs and jokes between the battle brothers ended, Abaddon took the opportunity to embrace Loken. He knew that among the people present, Loken was the one who could least keep secrets: lies had always been an area that Gavial was not good at.

"Sejanus."

Sure enough, after being fooled for a while, Locke obediently gave away the [criminal].

"He was the first to arrive: you know it."

"Hey……"

Abaddon smiled but said nothing.

This is one of the few traditions preserved from the former Council of Four Kings.

Ever since Torgaddon, who was usually responsible for livening up the team atmosphere, died on the Murder Star, the Council of Four Kings always seemed a little dull because no one could inherit his outstanding language talent: as they gradually went their separate ways, this problem became more and more obvious as the number of their meetings decreased.

Finally, several people formed a tacit understanding: every time they gathered for a regular meeting, if someone arrived first, he would spontaneously prepare a welcome ceremony for the others, even if it was grand or sarcastic, it didn't matter, just to liven up the atmosphere among the old friends.

"But I remember that the previous times, there was no such a big fuss as today."

After finally getting rid of the cheering crowd and the red carpet, they headed towards the other end of the airport while exchanging their inner thoughts with each other: Abaddon looked at Sejanus, his pupils still full of respect for this old brother.

"indeed."

Sejanus simply nodded.

He was the only one in the Council of Four Kings who had not been completely exiled by Horus, and his main responsibility was still to stand beside the Wolf God and manage the entire fiefdom for him. Therefore, compared with other brothers on the front line, Sejanus was less solemn but more calm and convincing.

"This is also a celebration for you, Abaddon."

"The Primarch himself praised your campaign against Isstvan."

"Yes."

Loken also nodded.

"A textbook punitive expedition."

"Those are his exact words."

"And the Primarch was particularly pleased with your handling of the Isstvan rebels."

"It's nothing."

Abaddon smiled, but not because he was being modest: he honestly thought Isstvan was not a difficult target.

"In such a remote place, it would be redundant for me to lead a company."

"really."

Sejanus agreed, but his smile was a little odd.

"I've always been curious: where does the governor of Isstvan get the courage to betray the Empire?"

“Because I’m unwilling to give in.”

Abaddon responded fluently.

"You know, the Primarch has always advocated more competitive values ​​within the country. Many places are in a state of the strong taking all: the ruling class of Isstvan believes that they are being deliberately oppressed by the higher-level governors, and they chose to rebel when they were desperate."

"And after my investigation, I found that the governor of this star region did commit a lot of illegal acts."

"Even if he had worked for the Wolf God, these illegal acts were enough to sentence him to death."

"That's it."

Sejanus suddenly realized.

"So, you didn't choose to destroy the entire Isstvan system?"

"Yes."

Abaddon replied nonchalantly.

"After conquering the City of Holy Songs, I proposed a clause to the rebellious governor: he and the core members of the rebellion must commit suicide, and their direct descendants and lower-level rebellious members must join the imperial army and use their blood to wash away the shame of betrayal."

"But other than that, the rest of their descendants will be forgiven by the Empire, and I will allow them to elect a new governor on their own. After clearing the crimes of the governor of the star region, I will also appropriately reduce the burden on Istvaan and promise to send personnel from the Mechanicus to help them mine the resources in the galaxy."

"Yes, I know that this punishment sounds too light, but I have my own ideas." "I think that the geographical location of the Isstvan system is very unique. It is located on the edge of the empire, and the legion is out of reach and cannot rule effectively. But at the same time, it is the first stable outpost of the Wolf Kingdom facing the north of the galaxy. Its greatest value to us is its timely warning."

"So, for this place, ensuring their loyalty is far more important than squeezing out a little profit from its land: rather than letting them grow resentful in suffering, it is better to use some benefits to ensure their loyalty and avoid continuing the Isstvan Expedition, which would completely prevent us from recovering our costs."

"I chose to bring the offspring of Isstvan's high-ranking officials into the army for this reason. They are both hostages and rising stars. As long as their offspring can have a better future in the Moon Wolves system, I believe the local tyrants will swear allegiance to the Wolf God until death. This is a method I learned in the Far East."

"Listen, Lorcan, listen."

As soon as Abaddon finished speaking, applause from the brothers came as expected, with Sejanus' exclamation mixed in.

"Even if the Primarch went there himself, he wouldn't be able to come up with a better solution."

"No wonder Lord Horus praised your Isstvan Crusade so highly, Abaddon."

"Yes."

Locke lowered his head in shame.

It's not because of anything else, compared to Abaddon, who has made great military achievements. The youngest member of the Council of Four Kings has never had any outstanding achievements: the last time he showed off his martial arts skills was on the Murder Star.

This is not Loken's fault. After all, the Warmaster has always had clear plans for his most important captains: the talkative James and the experienced Malohurst are in charge of the diplomatic and internal affairs departments respectively, Abaddon is busy on various important fronts, and as for the loyal but incompetent Horus, he is responsible for the guard work of the capital star zone.

Similarly, Loken also has a business that he is specifically responsible for: Gavial is the most peculiar governor under the Wolf God. Like Abaddon, he has no designated jurisdiction and travels between planets according to the will of the Wolf God.

The captain of the Tenth Company is fully responsible for everything related to mortals. He is allowed to negotiate with the governors of various planets, supervise and report possible crimes of mortal officials. Occasionally, he has to go deep into the grassroots to check whether anyone is disobeying the orders of the Wolf Shepherd God.

For half a century, Loken has been executing the Primarch's will almost perfectly. He is one of Horus' most trusted people. At the same time, his experience of working with mortals has earned him a very good reputation among the rising mortal bureaucrats.

In fact, Loken's role in the Luna Wolves is no worse than any other captain. While other battle-brothers have earned bloody merits on the front lines of the expedition, those worlds that have been able to get rid of corrupt or incompetent governors with Loken's selfless help will spontaneously erect statues for this upright Astartes.

Far away from the front lines, Loken can also command the support of hundreds of people: just like Avadon did in the army on the front lines.

However, although praise from mortals may be equally beautiful, the Legion is ultimately a place to compare strength and glory: when Abaddon shows off his military medals, Loken can only choose to remain silent in the corner, and be genuinely happy for the success of his battle brothers.

Abaddon did not notice this, and even if he had, the captain would not have said much. He knew Loken, and he knew that Gavial was not so fragile. What attracted Abaddon's attention more than Loken was the magnificent city of the Wolf King at their feet.

“Every time I see Baimon, it always changes dramatically.”

“It’s almost different every day.”

The generosity of the company commander won the approval of his colleagues.

"After all, it is the capital city used by the Warmaster to rule the entire Wolf Kingdom. Half of the galaxy's resources and elites are leaning towards it. If it weren't for the special cleanup for the convening of the parliament, the congestion of these star ports would be no less than that of the orbital space station on Holy Terra."

Sejanus was very proud: for he had contributed a lot to this.

"After all, it is the primary royal city. It cannot be compared with the other three."

"I know."

Abaddon simply nodded.

If there is any difference between the Kingdom of the Wolf and the fiefdoms of other Primarchs, the most striking point is that it has four capitals: Horus' fiefdom is so large that due to realistic considerations, the Wolf God has to set up several more core hubs.

He would never admit that he secretly referred to the Five Hundred Worlds in this matter.

In the east, there is New Baal, which is responsible for connecting with the countries on the Far Eastern border and was established to commemorate the friendship with Sanguinius: there are more than 60,000 elite Luna Wolves warriors stationed in this system all year round, many of whom followed the Wolf God to complete the entire Great Crusade.

In the southern border, not far from the Knight World of Morro, Horus established a secondary capital called Attalu to monitor pirate activities in the Maelstrom region. It also served as a base station for contacting friendly forces in the region: for example, the Emperor's Children and the White Scars Legions had embassies in the Attalu sector.

In the north, the fortress world of Asmade is located in the Gothic Sector. It is a pure void training camp that provides Horus with hundreds of loyal and reliable heirs and countless mortal auxiliary troops every year. The officers and fleet commanders who come out of here are spread across every corner of the Wolf Kingdom.

But they were all just secondary capitals.

The real royal city of Horus: Baimon.

This rich but dangerous galaxy is located in the Hazy Star Region. Compared to the vast Wolf Kingdom, the Baimon Galaxy is located a bit too far to the west: the Wolf Shepherd God sits here all year round, facing several of his most powerful potential opponents.

The Dark Angels, the Space Wolves, the Imperial Fists and their fortresses, with at least two hundred thousand men stationed within, and Holy Terra, which was more powerful than all of them combined and closely protected by these three legions.

It is precisely because of this semi-military and semi-political purpose that the overall layout of Baimon is somewhat incongruous: there is a royal city as magnificent as the Terra Palace, and standing on Horus' favorite tower, you can almost overlook the vast wilderness of most of Baimon.

But at the same time, it is difficult to define this place as a simple hive world or fortress world: the wilderness of Baimon has never been completely cleared under the orders of the Warmaster, and giant beasts powerful enough to hurt the Astartes roaming there are seen as a good way to show the courage of the residents.

This fertile land was filled with bureaucrats and generals close to Horus. They lived side by side with the camp of the Luna Wolves, separated only by a wall, but there was no real hierarchy among them: in front of the Wolf God's tower of kingship, whose top was out of reach, all were equal.

Including Horus himself.

After all, the Wolf Shepherd God's own residence is actually no more luxurious than that of the mortals under his command.

He has the Wolf Palace, but it is more of an office space. If the Wolf God really wants to choose a suitable living environment, he would rather go into the homes of his generals, raise a glass with them, share a feast, and spend a night in intimate conversation.

He does this often.

"However, at this time, we shouldn't go looking for him from house to house."

Sejanus smiled.

"Hundreds of generals and governors are gathering on Baimon's land. There is no time to allow our Primarch to mess around."

Then he looked at Abaddon.

"Come on, follow us to the venue, Ezekiel. You are the last one to arrive."

"In half an hour, the first course of the Primarch's banquet will be served."

"I'm a little hungry."

Abaddon looked up, noncommittal.

Then he thought of something and looked back at his adjutant.

"Can I bring someone with me?"

"This young man?"

With Abaddon's words, several Luna Wolves looked at the mortal adjutant who had always been following behind the captain: the skinny young man adjusted his glasses nervously, but did not lose his proper demeanor.

"good."

Sejanus nodded, then touched Abaddon's shoulder sarcastically.

"I can't believe it, Ezekiel."

"You've actually learned to find yourself a mortal confidant."

"Didn't you make fun of Locke for this more than a decade ago?"

"That's all in the past."

Abaddon smiled, cast an apologetic look at Loken, and then touched his nose awkwardly: Just as James just said, when Loken became the first captain of the Luna Wolves to set up a mortal staff for himself, many battle brothers mocked him behind his back.

Abaddon was no exception.

But after so many years, the company commander, who had long since learned to take charge of the front lines and had to start considering many complicated matters that he had never considered before, also began to admit: Although the combat brothers are indeed more efficient and reliable, having a mature mortal staff team is often not a bad thing.

At least, in the Moon Wolves, he couldn't find a ruthless character who could memorize the names of every mortal governor of the Wolf Kingdom and remember their life stories. But if such a person was missing, God knows how much trouble he would cause in every regular meeting.

In a way, Abaddon is a microcosm of the entire Luna Wolves Legion.

Among the sons of Horus, there were some Great Astartes who looked down on mortals, but they also had to face a problem: without the help of mortals, they were indeed unlikely to compete with those battle-brothers who were willing to accept and listen to the opinions of mortals.

Many times, even a change that is forced is still a change.

To be honest, if Abaddon hadn't brought this young man named Frank, he wouldn't even dare to walk into the banquet hall: Primarch, the Wolf God has summoned all the mortal dignitaries from the entire Wolf Kingdom to come here, and God knows how many names he doesn't know.

"so……"

Abaddon turned and looked at Sejanus expectantly.

"Okay, no more than him."

Looking at the captain's watery eyes, Sejanus waved his hand.

"The number of people the Primarch wants to examine today has exceeded five figures: you know what that means."

The company commander nodded.

"So, where are we going?"

He tried to recall several iconic buildings that represented the authority of the Wolf God. They had been built one after another over the past half century. In a sense, the impact of these world wonders on the Wolf Kingdom had even surpassed that of the Spirit of Vengeance itself.

"Primarch Palace?"

"The King's Tower?"

"The Hall of Unity?"

"Victory Hall?"

"Or is it the Grand Expedition Plaza?"

"neither."

Sejanus shook his head.

"The Primarch has ordered to open up an open space outside the city of Baimon, which is large enough to accommodate one million people. He has mobilized a seven-digit tent and enough supplies to hold an open-air banquet. The Primarch believes that any banquet held in a grand building overemphasizes the concept of class."

"He said that today, he wants to get along with every participant as a brother."

"Ah, that's it..."

Abaddon blinked. Having followed the Wolf God for so many years, he naturally knew what these actions meant: Horus's intimacy was not always for profit, but when he needed something from you, he would tend to be more intimate and selfless.

"so……"

When they got into the transport plane specially prepared for them at the star port and planned to fly directly to the feast venue of the Wolf God, the captain of the first company of the Moon Wolves seized the opportunity, quietly leaned close to Sejanus' ear, and then nervously asked the question in his heart.

"What is the Primarch's decision?"

"..."

Sejanus just smiled.

"To be honest, I'm not sure whether I should stop Lord Horus's idea."

"but……"

"Prepare to lead your company across the Rubicon, Abaddon."

(End of this chapter)