Emperor's Bane

Chapter 876 Terra Crisis - The Cunning Rabbit Has Three Burrows
This was the first time Corax had seriously considered the possibility of civil war.

Indeed, the civil war within the Imperium, the Warmaster's war with Holy Terra, even the Legions Astartes themselves fighting one another: these topics have come up in the past.

As early as the Badab Crisis, the tit-for-tat confrontation between Holy Terra and the Five Hundred Worlds had triggered fear in people's hearts.

Especially when the Imperial Fists' army officially entered the Maelstrom and confronted the Ultramarines' troops in the focal area: no matter how clear the facts were, to the outside world, it seemed that Terra had dispatched a large army, making it possible for a civil war between the Astartes to break out at any time.

It was also at that time that many mortals and Astartes began to wonder for the first time: Would the sharpest blade the Emperor used to conquer the galaxy one day turn against itself?
This sentence sounds quite funny.

After all, during the glory of the Great Crusade, conflicts between the Astartes were limited to contradictions and frictions. Although there were bloody rumors about the 11th Legion that persisted for a long time, they were ultimately just urban legends with no basis in reality.

For most people, they prefer to believe that the 11th Legion never existed: their number was officially cancelled before it was formed due to disease or other reasons.

As for the civil war in the legion, it is even more nonsense.

It was not until the crisis at Badab that the bloody reality was revealed to everyone: although it did not ultimately turn into a disaster of war, when the two legions faced off on the battlefield, the human empire, which had just ended the Great Crusade, was indeed shrouded in a gloomy atmosphere as if it were the eve of the end of the world.

A cold topic that had never been formally discussed thus came into people's minds. While most people were still praying for peace and trying their best to forget the unpleasantness of Badab, those who were more sober remembered those days firmly.

Remember the bloody possibility that the Astartes Legions could turn against each other.

The Crow King belongs to the latter.

In other words, the vast majority of more realistic Primarchs belong to the latter.

Although the confrontation between the Ultramarines and the Imperial Fists was more like a misunderstanding, the Primarchs had sharp minds and could certainly see more problems from this small detail.

It’s not that the Legion cannot resist.

That is to say, it is not impossible for the Primarchs to confront each other: without their orders, how can the legions resist?
Now that the war has already begun among the Primarchs, will their respective fiefdoms, the massive forces they can mobilize and the hundreds of millions of people, follow the orders of their respective monarchs and plunge into a new bloody war?

Before, provoking such an incident would have been considered high treason, punishable by excommunication from the irresistible Master of Mankind himself: but now, with the Emperor gone, who, what power, could pass judgment on the Legion's defiance?
Is it the Warmaster? Or is it Terra?

What if they themselves were involved in this legion confrontation?

Furthermore, what if the two opposing sides were the Warmaster of the Empire and Holy Terra?

It’s not that no one has thought about this question.

And once they start thinking, the first thing they face is a choice.

Do you want to: get involved?

------

To the Crow King, the answer was obvious.

Unless there was a special reason, he didn't want to be involved in such danger.

And Corax could guess that most of the Primarchs would make this choice.

Let's be frank: why would they die for the Warmaster or Holy Terra?

They certainly respected Horus, and were willing to acknowledge Terra's status because of the Emperor: but whether they were Warmasters or High Lords, they were not the Emperor after all, and without the prestige and authority of the Lord of Mankind, they were not enough to make the Primarchs and Legions fight for them to the death.

Moreover, to put it more bluntly: even the Lord of Mankind himself could not ensure that all his sons would be loyal to him. Think about it, the primary reason why a considerable number of Primarchs joined the Great Crusade was not loyalty to the Emperor.

Some are simply tired of their home planet, some just want to pursue a bigger stage, and some simply desire to save the fate of human civilization: There are Primarchs who are absolutely loyal to the Emperor, but their absolute number does not account for the majority of the total, and at most there will be no more than five.

This is true for the Emperor, not to mention Warmasters whose prestige is not as high as that of the Emperor, and High Lords who have no prestige at all among the Primarchs: if these people want to mobilize the Primarchs to fight for them, then in addition to legitimate reasons and orders, they will probably need to give up huge amounts of benefits.

Without tangible benefits, who would let their own sons shed their blood?

As for how big the benefit will be: so big that they basically cannot afford it.

Therefore, there are bound to be more spectators in a war than participants in it: at least in the early stages.

Let the most loyal followers of both sides fight to the death for their own interests, and the neutrals only need to bow to the victor. Or, one of the parties will make conditions that will make the legion leaders feel tempted for the sake of the final victory.

As for what this condition will be...

The Crow King thought about it, but still couldn't come up with a better answer.

If the Warmaster or the Terran faction could prove that they had the Emperor's blessing, then Corax would not mind fighting for the Legitimacy, as the Emperor's orders still held great weight in his heart: beyond that, the Raven King could not see the value of shedding the blood of these people.

Whether it is the Warmaster, a challenger to order who is obviously sharpening his sword, or Holy Terra who can never reveal the whereabouts of the Emperor, Corax is unwilling to lean towards any of them: compared to the intrigues of these power beasts, the Raven King cares more about where his gene-father is now.

The Emperor has been missing for too long.

The Emperor's long disappearance is intolerable both for the entire human Empire and for the individual Primarchs.

And Holy Terra, which was directly related to this, naturally became the target of public criticism.

As the Sigillite once again chose to ignore the Warmaster's request, even the Raven King, who originally disliked Horus, felt a little annoyed: this was the first time that Corax chose to be so inclined towards Horus on something.

It is not known whether it was intentional or unintentional, or simply out of concern: although he knew it was useless, Horus still expressed his true feelings in the following conversation, or hinted at his desire to meet the Emperor.

His attitude was even a little humble.

Every time Malcador refused, it was seen by the Primarchs standing by. In the hearts of these Emperor's bloodlines who were already inclined towards the Warmaster, their attitude towards the Sigillite and Holy Terra would naturally decline.

Back and forth, over and over again.

Until even neutrals like Corax began to whimper in anger in their hearts.

why?
Why didn't Tyra agree?

Why does the Seal Holder want to fight again and again for such a reasonable request?
Do they have something to hide?
Are they really afraid to let us see the Emperor's current state with our own eyes?

Could it be that they... Could it be that they really...

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Just when the Crow King was about to come up with that somewhat outrageous inference for the first time, three abrupt hammer strikes interrupted the lengthy conversation between the Seal Bearer and the War Marshal, and woke up all the participants who were originally drowsy, and the atmosphere in the meeting hall became clear.

Everyone looked in the direction of the sound, only to see a golden figure sitting there, holding a small solid wood hammer in his hand, and there were clearly visible dents on the table in front of him.

The Primarch of the Imperial Fists raised his head calmly, and met every pair of inquiring eyes with a calm expression.

He spoke.

"According to the rules discussed before the meeting, the one-hour discussion time has expired: both parties should take a break."

After hearing what Dorn said, everyone realized belatedly that there seemed to be such a rule, but no one cared about it.

However, seeing the extremely calm eyes of the Lord of the Imperial Fist, no one was willing to object.

Horus stood up first. Although the Warmaster's heart was gradually being consumed by anger, the wolf god still smiled and shook hands with Malcador to say goodbye without losing his manners.

But then, Horus left his seat without hesitation and walked towards the lounge next to him. Behind him, Fulgrim, Mortarion and Jagatai Khan immediately followed, while Alpharius and Sanguinius were only one step slower. All of them expressed their positions clearly.

The Crow King saw it.

He knew that if the tide fell, these Primarchs and their Legions would follow the Warmaster.

The Emperor's Children, the Death Guard, the White Scars and the Hydra, and the famous and feared Blood Angels: if only Terra could withstand the forces of Horus.

As for Vulkan and himself, as well as the envoys representing various legions, they stayed where they were, moving their bodies awkwardly, just as a way of resting: When the Crow King turned his gaze to Lana, intending to have a private discussion with his closest nephews, his eyes noticed something interesting.

Neither Dorn nor Leman Russ, the theoretical Terrans, left with Malcador and the High Lords.

It seemed that the conversation just now had an impact on more than just Corax's views.

But the two people mentioned above, and the Lord of the Salamanders sitting next to the Raven King: judging from Corax's impression of them, if the situation collapses, they will still stand on Terra's side.

Unfortunately, the power of these three legions is far from comparable to that of Horus' supporters.

The one who holds the seal will have to endure hardships.

As for Malcador himself, his leaving figure seemed particularly desolate, because Malcador not only refused the accompaniment of the two high lords, but also chose the most remote lounge by himself: no one knew what the helmsman of the Terra government wanted to do in that narrow darkness.

But, none of this has anything to do with him.

Corax closed his eyes and gathered his strength for the upcoming meeting.

But during the rest time, out of instinctive pity and uneasiness in his heart, Corax habitually rolled up his robe, covered his head, and began to mutter to himself in a very low voice: The Lord of the Raven Guard prayed to his father whom he had not seen for a long time, and the confusion in his heart needed the protection of the Emperor.

"The Emperor..."

"Bless us."

“Bless us: not to be torn to pieces by our own greed and folly.”

"Do not let the blood of the Great Crusade be shed in vain."

"Don't let... don't let that tragedy happen."

"Please come back soon."

"After all, we have already..."

------

"Is there nothing that can be done?"

In a person's lounge, the seal holder didn't even have time to turn on the lights to illuminate the dim room, and he couldn't wait to connect to the communication channel.

No one knew that Malcador was actually absent-minded throughout the conversation. His attention was not on Horus at all, but on the strange changes that occurred inside the palace a few hours ago. "Yes, Sigillite."

At the other end of the channel, an extremely anxious voice of a tribune of the Imperial Guards was heard.

"All attempts have failed."

"After the Emperor lost contact, we were no longer able to approach the entrance to the Webway."

"call……"

Macador took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down. After all, he was the only one who could hold on to the situation. No matter what, his mind and body could not fall. The seal holder bit his lip, stimulated himself with pain and blood, and tried his best to think of a solution to the problem.

"Have you sent anyone in?"

“We tried.”

At this point, the usually capable tribune of the imperial guards seemed a little hesitant.

"But all efforts failed. Whether sending Servants to lead the charge or trying to throw condemned prisoners into the webway, they were all roasted alive the moment they touched the webway entrance. The speed was so fast that there was no time for rescue."

"The network entrance has now turned into a pool of extremely strange things that cannot be described by any elements in reality. It is full of high temperature and poison, and has serious corruption. We have tried to use the shell of the knight mecha and the armor of the Titan to conduct experiments, but the results are without exception. They all vaporized directly the moment they came into contact with the entrance of the network."

"After that, we also tried the strongest metal we knew, but the results were also less than ideal: the Death Knight Guardian Fediro once volunteered to be a member of the death squad to touch the entrance of the webway, but in less than two seconds, he was melted alive in front of me into a pool of scalding metal and blood."

"I'm sorry, Sigillite: our communication with the Webway has been completely cut off."

"Any life that comes into contact with a Webway portal will die: even a Primarch."

"That's it..."

The seal holder nodded. He didn't remember how he turned off the communication channel because too many important things had come to his mind, causing his head to ache and making him unable to even do basic thinking.

In the chaos, Malcador felt weaker than ever before. He slumped in his chair, trying his best to grasp a thread that could avoid tragedy as much as possible from the current tangled situation: whether it was avoiding the tragedy in the palace or avoiding the tragedy that was about to happen on the Phalanx.

He had to start thinking, thinking about a path he had never imagined.

Should he temporarily disobey the Emperor's previous instructions and allow Horus access to the Imperial Palace, let him see the entrance to the Webway, understand what his father was doing: that should be fine?

However, if the Warmaster of the Empire did carry something related to the Warp, then allowing him into the Imperial Palace would be enough to cause disaster: Horus did not even need to touch the Webway, just allowing him close to the entrance of the Webway would be dangerous enough.

But if they don't enter the palace, they will sooner or later push all the primarchs to the opposite side.

Really...

The Seal Bearer rubbed his temple in pain. Even with his experience and ability, he could not find a suitable way out of the stagnant situation. Fate was so cruel, as if the gods had found a dead end specifically for the human empire: and they were fanatically awaiting the tragedy behind the scenes.

What to do... What to do...

Hiss... um... wait... wait a minute?
Just when he was having a headache, Makado suddenly thought of something?
He reached out his hand, rummaged through his sleeve, and quickly pulled out the box: the gift that the Spider Queen had specially asked her offspring to bring him.

Malcador understood that given Morgan's character, it was impossible for the Lord of Avalon to specially ask someone to send him an insignificant gift at this time: there must be something fishy about it.

Maybe... there will be a turning point?

With hope emerging in his heart, the seal bearer slowly opened the box, and the first thing that caught his old eyes was a note filled with densely written instructions and symbols.

Malcador recognized the handwriting as Morgan's.

He picked up the note and began to read its contents carefully.

------

Long time no see, the seal bearer.

As for our relationship, I will not waste any useless preface: let us get straight to the point.

Perhaps you have already forgotten it now, but please allow me to awaken your memory: I wonder if you still remember that during the Nikaea disaster, my foolish brother Magnus exchanged his own life and the lives of countless imperial elites present for the evil god of the warp who had not yet awakened.

Yes, you know its name: you should have remembered it by now.

So, wait a moment, until your trembling hands return to normal.

……

Okay, let’s continue.

After your meeting, although you accepted the Emperor's arrangement and forgot about that thing, you still felt uneasy, so you decided to make some preparations of your own in private: then you came to me and asked me to become your ally and secretly investigate the intelligence about the so-called Fifth God.

Because we all know that my special identity makes me not afraid to face that thing.

But seriously, even so, it is no easy task: while my unique situation makes me not afraid of it, whether it is a long wandering in the deepest part of the warp, or facing it directly, it will awaken the essence within me.

Suppressing it is no easy task either.

Fortunately, I did well enough.

As for more details, I will not go into them here, but I would like to thank enthusiastic people like Mr. Tarasim: I will just tell you the final result.

If Rana is not mistaken, then below this note you can see a bracelet I made myself, with magic infused on it specifically for this purpose: wear it, but remember not to wear it for too long, because it will make you stand out in the warp, and I'm not sure if the gods will come out to hunt for food at this time.

As for its function, it is very simple: it allows you to see traces of the Fifth God and allows you to find its presence in the real universe.

You told me that you feared that the object on Nikaea might cause some of the Primarchs present to fall into the same darkness: therefore, you wanted me to create this bracelet to determine if your fears were manifested in some of the Primarchs.

And now, I have fulfilled my promise.

Wear it, Mr. Machado.

This is something we all share: hoping it doesn’t actually happen to my brother.

And if our hopes are dashed, please be sure to tell me who that person is: you should be able to remember the contact information now.

Finally, I wish you peace.

……

Oh, I have something else to say.

Allow me to be frank, Sigillite: if, after all that has happened, you and your High Lords are still eager to use so-called politics or compromise to avoid the war that is bound to engulf the entire galaxy, then I advise you to give up this effort as soon as possible.

Even if you can really suppress Horus's reaction through various means, you cannot solve the entire empire one by one: in the final analysis, the human empire itself is a lame giant, and the Emperor's conquest cannot be landed smoothly.

We all know how many hidden dangers the Great Crusade buried in pursuit of speed. In less than two hundred years, the Human Empire expanded from a small nation on Terra to the overlord of the entire galaxy. I simply cannot imagine how many contradictions and how much resentment and rebellion are hidden under such glory.

Civil war is bound to break out.

All accumulated contradictions must find a breakthrough.

If Horus wasn't enough, they would surely look for someone else: who that someone was I couldn't even guess.

In other words, it doesn't matter who he is.

The empire has too many hidden dangers. A judgment that ignites all unstable factors is the sword of Damocles that we cannot escape at all: there must be a leader of the rebellion, and someone must lure out all the ambitious people in the empire.

Only then can we mobilize our army to win the final battle of this great crusade.

This is a very simple reason.

I understand this matter.

The emperor also understood this matter.

And now, I hope that you, the Sigillite, can also understand this simple thing.

The answer has remained the same since the beginning.

……

Give up fantasy.

Prepare to fight.

------

"..."

Malcador read the note over and over again until those dusty memories, along with Morgan's straightforward reminder, reappeared in his mind.

He remembered.

He thought of what Morgan had said: these were indeed all things he had prepared behind the scenes.

So, the seal holder looked at the ordinary bracelet in the box.

He put it on without hesitation, then left the lounge and headed towards Mataris Hall.

The break is over.

Let him come and see.

Let him see if he can get Horus into the inner court of the palace.

Let him see if he has the chance to stop the raging war that is about to engulf the galaxy.

(End of this chapter)