Emperor's Bane

Chapter 879 Terra Crisis - Life on the Line

"Who opened fire?"

"Who gave the order?!"

"Answer me! Tell me! Who is hiding this from me and disobeying my orders?"

------

To those who don't know him well enough, the wrath of the Wolf God is an extremely rare thing.

Most people would even think it doesn't exist.

This is something that is easy to understand.

Over a long period of time that lasted for several generations, at least in the fifty years when the Lord of Mankind was away from the Great Crusade, the most basic impression that the Empire's Warmaster left on the general public, in addition to his invincibility on the battlefields of the expedition, was his smile and open-mindedness in all occasions.

Horus was a good-tempered man, possessing the nobility, grace and calmness that any great king should have: whether this was a disguise or not, with long-term persistence, any mortal and foreign guest who met the Warmaster would believe this fact.

They saw with their own eyes the Warmaster chosen by the Emperor, the only heir to the universe. He was as noble as a god and as kind as a loving father. He walked among the Honor Guards with great military achievements and the crowded group of slaves. Against the backdrop of those cold and serious Moon Wolves, the Wolf God's smile and gaze were particularly impressive.

He is alive and well, he is the future of the Imperium and of humanity, a great leader who can tame the wild journey on behalf of the Emperor: one day, he will lead the dreams of mankind into a new era of abundance and joy, ushering in glory and peace.

In order to engrave these views into the minds of everyone who shook hands with him, the Wolf Shepherd God used every means possible. He faced every crisis calmly, carefully considered every word he said, and his eyes always revealed forgiveness and mercy, but he was never short of means to demonstrate his authority.

He always has the world in mind, and regards the difficulties of every supplicant as his own, but he never forgets to hold the reins tightly behind his back: and at the other end of the reins, there are naturally a lot of loyal warriors who are willing to share the worries of their lord, and make those who misunderstand the primarch's kindness pay the price.

When just his gaze was enough to make the strongest warrior kneel down in submission, and he took the lead and solemnly helped him up, the Wolf God finally achieved his desired goal. Perhaps some people would still remember the Shadow Moon Wolf's past, but it didn't matter.

Time will wash away everything.

And he will be full of patience.

Before getting what he wanted, Horus would carefully maintain the balance, maintaining the illusion of a holy king and wise ruler under the watchful eyes of the public. He believed that one day, even if it was a false performance, it would become a fact that no one could refute after being repeated thousands of times.

But fate didn't seem to want to give him more time.

It was just a cannonball, a seemingly simple cannonball, but it was fired at the wrong time and at the absolutely wrong target, and it successfully dragged the holy image that Horus had painstakingly created for decades into the quagmire of blood and soil.

At this moment, the War Marshal's rage broke through his psychological defenses, which he had no time to raise.

------

Upon returning to the Vengeful Spirit, Horus did not immediately separate from his guests: in hindsight, this was a wise decision.

Although a few people said goodbye and left, such as Sevatar who disappeared as soon as he returned to the deck, and bystanders like Santo, Fricks and Kahn who seemed to have no interest in what happened next: but most people were still willing to stay with the Warmaster.

This included all the Primarchs who came, several legion envoys with strong backgrounds, and an alternative: the Silver-Armored Guards who were responsible for supervising Horus and others.

Although most people were not happy with this uninvited guest, the Warmaster himself was not among them: Horus was very interested in these legendary guards who were related to the Lord of Avalon, and he was even willing to let this supervisor walk by his side.

“Everyone must do their duty, and everyone must be considerate of others doing their duty.”

Although these heartfelt words did not soften the attitude of the imperial guards, the Wolf God did not care: he had more important things to do.

Long before heading to the Phalanx for the meeting, Horus had ordered the Vengeful Spirit to prepare a banquet.

This is not a frivolous act of popping champagne in advance, but a necessary measure to unite people.

Regardless of whether the first meeting was a win or a loss, Horus would hold a banquet to thank his supporters: uniting the strength of the various legions was one of the two main purposes of the Imperial Warmaster's visit to Lost City.

To force the whereabouts of the Emperor and to unite the various legions: If both goals can be achieved perfectly, then it would not be impossible to use the power of the throne to force Terra to bow down.

Even if only one of these tasks was accomplished, it would be enough to bring unprecedented prestige to the Wolf God, making him an unparalleled hero who calmed the panic of the empire's subjects, or an absolute leader who could lead the Great Crusade again: At present, the former is unlikely, but the latter still has a chance.

For this reason, as soon as he returned to the flagship, the Warmaster could not wait to welcome his guests: the simple decoration and the appropriate wine were impeccable, and beside the black stone colonnade decorated with silver thread patterns, the Wolf Shepherd God graciously clinked glasses with each of his guests, smiled, drank, and thanked them in a low voice for their help.

The Warmaster did his best to treat everyone, whether Primarch or Astartes, with equal respect, but some people received more special treatment: for example, when facing Mortarion, the Warmaster would act more approachable, and when talking to Lana and others, he would express extra gratitude for the support of the Far East as a whole.

Even if it was the Imperial Guards, Horus approached them with a smile on his face. Even though he knew it would be futile, he still had to go through the necessary superficial procedures.

After ensuring that every participant would be treated equally and with due respect, the Warmaster came to the center of the banquet hall. He raised his glass and looked at those who were still willing to support him: They might not be sincere, but Horus didn't care.

The previous meeting had completely shattered the possibility of peace in the Warmaster's heart. Even if he was not sincere, he needed to win over more allies to resist the war that he thought was already visible to the naked eye: it didn't matter even if it was just an alliance based on simple interests. Sometimes, an alliance based on interests is the most steadfast alliance.

For example, in the Far East, Horus was confident that he could offer better conditions than Terra: more autonomy, complete abolition of the tithe, and the sincerity of inviting Guilliman or Morgan to join the core of power, and opening Holy Terra as a permanent recruitment point for the Dawnbreaker Legion.

Do they have any reason to refuse?
Thinking of this, the Wolf God raised his glass to Corax and Lana from a distance. Then, his eyes swept across every face that was looking at him. The Primarch was in high spirits, as if what they experienced on the Phalanx was not a failure, but a victory that would go down in history.

"My reliable brothers... and every comrade who is willing to support our common cause."

Horus cleared his throat. He didn't want anyone to hear his inner fatigue and frustration.

"Here, I offer you a toast."

"I thank you: I would never have been able to do this without your help..."

Before the Warmaster could finish his humble opening remarks, a sudden change interrupted his words.

The vibration was as if a violent earthquake had occurred in a distant place. The crystal cup on the table could not stop shaking. The flag of the Giant Wolf under the Moon swayed like catkins under the dome. No matter whether they were the Primarch or the mortals, they had to grab the things beside them, stand firm, look around in confusion, and try to understand what was happening.
They soon found out.

Because almost at the same time as the vibration, an earth-shaking roar reached their eardrums.

Everyone present was a brave warrior who had survived hundreds of battles. They knew all too well what that sound meant: it was the roar of the cannons of the Spirit of Vengeance.

Is this ship firing?
When? Where?
The flickering fire outside the floor-to-ceiling window on the starboard side quickly answered everyone's doubts. At least twenty pairs of eyes keenly captured how the damn shell whimpered and pounced on Holy Terra: at this moment, even Chagatai Khan, who was always known for his calmness, froze in place, his wine glass tilted on his beard, full of water droplets, and he had no time to pay attention.

They stood there in a daze, as if they were watching a miracle from another world. No one screamed, and no one spoke in confusion, because what was happening before their eyes was too absurd, so absurd that rather than being angry or panicking, they were more curious about whether they were hallucinating.

But whether it was the sound of the cup falling to the ground, the voice of the Wolf God lingering in the air, or the extremely unusual shock after the cannon was fired, they all told them that what they saw was not a false fantasy, but a real fact: all of them were watching the Spirit of Vengeance launch an attack on the land of Holy Terra.

Even the Primarchs behaved no better than the mortals around them at this time. For a long time, perhaps a few seconds, no one spoke, and no one made any further reactions: until a sharp, clear sound of a bullet being loaded broke the silence in the room.

Following the sound, I found that the first ones to react were indeed the Imperial Guards.

Although he was also shocked at first, the nameless guard with a silver decoration on his chest clearly felt more responsible than he was instinctively surprised, especially when he discovered that the shell was targeting the palace area which was clearly visible even from low-Earth orbit.

Without any hesitation, the Emperor's guard raised the power spear in his hand. The relic disintegration ray installed on it was a threat even to the Primarch. He strode towards the Warmaster with firm steps. In the blink of an eye, he had approached the still stunned Horus. It was obvious that he intended to single-handedly bring this Imperial Warmaster who had committed a heinous crime back to Holy Terra for trial.

At this moment, Horus seemed to have not yet come out of this absurd incident. He froze in place. Although more and more eyes were focused on him, the smile on the Warmaster's face had not faded. Instead, his stiff face revealed a different kind of funny feeling.

As the Wolf God stood there at a loss, watching the Imperial Guards advance towards him, he actually revealed a strange sense of helplessness: Horus blinked, not knowing whether to resist or try to communicate.

Fortunately, someone helped him make the choice.

When the Adeptus Custodes walked with firm steps to Sanguinius, who was closest to Horus, although there was still surprise between his brows, the Archangel still glanced at the Emperor's guards and spread his wings slightly.

Most of the people present did not see clearly what happened next. Their eyes were attracted by the suddenly spread wings of Sanguinius. When they came to their senses, they found that the spears of the Custodes had already fallen in the distance, and the Emperor's Golden Warrior was cursed and detained by the Archangel who looked relaxed.

"Horus!"

After struggling for a long time and seeing that he could not break free, the imperial guards looked at the Wolf God in anger.

"Do you know what you're doing?"

"This is treason. You have betrayed your loyalty and oath to the Emperor! Attack Terra! Take off your armor! Roll to Terra! Accept your judgment!"

The accusation of the Custodians made most people in the room react. The waiters and servitors huddled together and tried hard to get into the corner. Among the Primarchs and Astartes, half of them frowned and looked at the Warmaster with dissatisfaction, while the other half were still confused.

"I……"

Seeing that the attention he had planned for was gradually turning into public criticism, the War Marshal, who had no psychological expectation for such a development, could not help but stand there in a daze. He did not even put down his wine glass, but took a deep breath, neither standing nor retreating. His tongue was frozen, and his voice was stuck in his trembling teeth.

"I'm not……"

"We'd better not jump to conclusions so early."

A voice interrupted the Warmaster.

Chagatai Khan wiped the wine stuck on his beard and strode forward to the center of the banquet hall. He talked loudly and soon attracted everyone's attention. At the same time, he nodded in the direction of the wolf god.

"Everyone, we all know it."

"We have been staying on this ship since the Vengeful Spirit entered the Solar Segmentum, and Horus has not forbidden us to go anywhere. Therefore, I think everyone here should be aware that there are no gunners or technical sergeants on this ship. Theoretically, it is impossible for it to fire at Holy Terra."

Khan looked around and found that there were still a few pairs of eyes that disagreed among the people present.

So, he continued.

"What's more, after the meeting on the Phalanx ended, the Wolf Shepherd God has been with us the whole time. From the end of the meeting until the moment the shells were fired, he has been in all of our sights and has never left."

"So tell me, men: Have any of you ever seen Horus give an order? Or any other obscure act that you cannot explain?"

After these words were spoken, the people still standing in the banquet hall looked at each other in confusion. In the end, no one stood up to deny Chagatai Khan's words.

Except for the Imperial Guards.

"You can't deny a fact."

Although he was being pinned down by the angel and unable to move, the Adeptus Adeptus did not flinch at all. He stared directly at Horus, causing the Warmaster to involuntarily step back.

"The Vengeful Spirit bombarded Terra: your arguments cannot erase that fact."

"What are you going to do, Horus?"

"Is this what you want? If you can't get it, are you going to rebel against Terra and the Empire?"

This hat was too big, and no one else would frown because of it. Even the Wolf God himself had gradually calmed down. He frowned and wanted to refute directly: But at this moment, Agnes hurried to the side of the Primarch.

"grown ups!"

He lowered his voice.

"The Phalanx and the Heracles Fenr have both entered combat mode. They have directed their fire on us. Lord Dorn and Lord Leman Russ have both sent communications demanding an immediate explanation from us."

"And Terra: The Sigillite, the High Lords, the Terran Air Defense Command, and the Imperial Guards have all sent us communications at the same time. They demand an explanation from you or a confession."

Before Agnes finished speaking, more and more messengers and mortal servants rushed into the banquet hall, all with panic and shock on their faces. They hurried to Horus' side, bringing more and more bad news.

"Sir, the ship's command wants to know exactly what happened."

"My Lord, this is an alert from the navigator. They just detected something in the subspace..."

"Sir, the air defense command center has just issued a red alert. They request that you respond immediately..."

"My lord...my lord...my lord..."

More and more noises, more and more anxiety, more and more upsetting bad news: the noisy connection beside his ears became a prelude to chaos, sweeping him up like a violent wind, unable to hear more, he felt that he was gradually losing touch with the world, he felt that anxiety and madness were gradually crushing everything in his heart

Horus breathed heavily, cold sweat streaming down his forehead. He didn't know what he was doing, nor did he know what they were doing. Before he could get over his confusion and shock, more panic, anxiety and frustration engulfed his mind.

The Warmaster could feel that he had taken a few steps back and sat on his throne at some point. He seemed to have raised his hands and hugged his forehead, and he seemed to have bent down as if trying to avoid the disturbances in the outside world. He seemed to have heard something clearly, yet he also seemed to know nothing.

Everything is so false.

He was angry and anxious, and a lot of saliva was produced under his tongue. He could feel that everything in front of him was gradually disintegrating in the trembling. He roared in his heart, roaring why the development of the situation was not what he expected, why a damn shell was fired at this damn time! Who did it! Who dared to do this!

Who is it! Malcador? The High Lord? Some malicious brother? Even the Custodes!
What are they going to do?
They were going to destroy him! Destroy him!

His lips were trembling, and bizarre illusions invaded his pupils. He seemed to see the imperial guards with strange smiles, holding up sharp blades, eager to execute him. He also saw the seal holder lurking in the shadows, directing all corruption. He saw his own failure and death, and he saw his sadness turning everything into dust.

He saw his father.

Ah… he needed Horus, and his proudest son had let him down.

No…no…no! No!

It can't be like this! It can't be like this!
He couldn't let this happen.

Horus widened his eyes. He could feel sweat invading his pupils. They seemed to bring pain and different colors: each color was urging him to take a new action.

He felt anger, anger at the pathetic conspiracy that was trying to harm him and the Emperor behind his back: perhaps it would be better to kill them all.

Yes, kill them all...

The rage just rose up and was quickly suppressed. The tide of anger came quickly and went away quickly.

After his anger, he seemed to calm down again. He wanted to think as hard as he could, trying to find a way out of the deadlock.

As he thought about it, hope ignited in him, and he began to walk out of the initial shadow. He was certain that he had the ability to restore everything that had collapsed to its original state: whether it was Terra or the Great Crusade, everything would remain unchanged forever.

Yes, he will break it all, he will restore everything to its original state, he will definitely do it, only he can do it!

After experiencing anger, regaining his composure, and rekindling hope, after a whirlwind of emotional ups and downs, he gradually became obsessed with this feeling. He was obsessed with this difficulty, and obsessed with a better future after the predicament.

Should he do that?

no no……

This shouldn't be the case... He can't be like this...

When the strong winds from the depths of the warp invaded panic into the mind of the wolf god, wantonly splitting the land and dividing the borders in his heart and soul, whispering in his ears, singing the joy of war and slaughter, Horus frowned and clenched his teeth. He grabbed his scalp tightly, and the last trace of calmness healed him, making him realize how weird what he was thinking now was.

How could he think like that.

He shouldn't do this...

He should... he could... oh my god... oh my god!
What should he do? What should he do?
Why is he like this? Why is everything like this?

Why…why…why…

In a trance, the Empire's warmaster seemed to hear himself sobbing quietly.

He cried like a child, wandered around, and begged in despair to the only person he could trust.

Father...Father...Where are you...

I just want to find you.

I just want to know if you're safe.

Do you need my help?
Why does this happen?

Why... Father... Help me...

I don't want to do this...I...I...

What should I do...

------

He begged, he roared, he let out his unwilling roar to the laughing sky.

He longed for a response.

And the response was longing for him.

Accompanied by a thunderous explosion, it was as if the gods used a sharp sword to split the chaotic world open, bringing new order and hope.

Those wild laughs quickly turned into angry roars. They were torn apart, expelled, and thrown out of his mind. In their place was dead silence and reassuring darkness.

------

In desperate pleas.

The only thing that could answer him was endless darkness.

------

And in the darkness, that warm and broad chest,

He contained Horus.

He saved Horus.

He told him, he reminded him: he was the Warmaster of the Empire, and that was what he was supposed to do.

------

"What's up with him?"

Rana was the first to notice something was wrong.

He didn't know if it was an illusion, but he always felt that the current Wolf God seemed to have changed... a little.

After recovering from the shock of the bombardment, Horus did not immediately answer the questions of the Imperial Guards.

He returned to his throne, sat down, held his forehead, and remained silent for a few seconds.

Yes, from the outside, it was only a few seconds in total.

This is nothing more than normal mediation thinking.

But only Rana, perhaps because he had stayed by Morgan's side for too long, had an instinctive and keen perception of certain auras: Rana could feel that when Horus remained silent, some disturbing changes seemed to have taken place in him.

Certain things seemed to want to take advantage of this moment to invade the soul of the Wolf Shepherd God, hammer in a nail, and then slowly corrode it like pests.

But they were unsuccessful.

Because something more disturbing, as if it were the master of this place, drove them all away.

"..."

Lana only hoped that thing was simply the strength and glory deep in Horus' soul.

Then the Wolf Shepherd God stood up.

To outsiders, he has adjusted.

And this is indeed the case.

"Everyone."

Horus stood up, and had regained his triumphant appearance a few minutes ago, as if the bombardment of Terra had never happened.

His confident and hearty laughter quickly calmed people's hearts: the Wolf Shepherd God poured himself a glass of wine and toasted everyone.

"Sorry, for some reason, we have to suspend this banquet."

"But please don't worry, although it was an accident, it is not beyond our capabilities."

After saying this, the Wolf Shepherd God looked at his adjutant.

"Agnis, notify all departments on the ship to maintain smooth operations and tell them that the situation is not out of control."

"Also, transfer all communication requests from Terra, the Phalanx, and the Heracfenr to me. I will communicate with them personally."

The well-organized deployment not only reassured the servants of the Wolf Shepherd God, but also gradually calmed down the Primarchs and Astartes present. It seemed that the convincing Imperial Warmaster had returned.

They watched as Horus put down his wine glass, walked down the steps, bent down, and picked up the imperial guard spear that Sanguinius had knocked aside.

"All right, Sanguinius."

He smiled at the Archangel.

"Be gentle with our guests. I understand his desire to fulfill his responsibility."

Then, after the half-believing Archangel released the Guards, Horus smiled and walked up to the Guards who were still on guard.

He held the spear horizontally and returned it to the golden warrior in front of him with the utmost respect.

"Back to you, sir."

"..."

The guard looked at him warily, but there was a hint of weirdness in his expression. He took the spear and still pointed the tip of the spear at the warmaster.

"take it easy."

The Wolf Shepherd God was so calm, as if he was the one in the attacking posture between the two.

"You see, I came here without giving any orders, and I was unarmed."

"If this matter has anything to do with me, I am willing to go down with you and face the condemnation of Holy Terra."

"But before that..."

By the time the Imperial Guards began to hesitate because of the Wolf God's calm transformation, they saw Horus had already turned around and looked at everyone again. His gaze finally stopped on Lana, because the Dawnbreaker's wrist was emitting obvious psychic ripples.

"Ladies and gentlemen, I suggest that we should prioritize finding the real perpetrator of the bombardment of Terra: we can't let the enemies of the Empire get away with it here, can we?"

The Wolf Shepherd smiled.

But soon, his smile was interrupted by another thing.

Suddenly, a silver-white light appeared on Lana's body.

Then, a gap in the subspace that no one had noticed appeared right above the Dawnbreaker.

"boom!"

And followed by a dull sound.

The wounded and dying Prince of Crows fell directly from the gap.

(End of this chapter)