Emperor's Bane

Chapter 901 The War Commander's Confidant...A Major Threat

“Let’s begin with your true intentions, Horus.”

"I want to hear your real thoughts, not just something to fool those outsiders."

Chagatai Khan picked up his wine jug and poured a full cup for his best brother.

Although Zhan Shuai believes that this white porcelain artifact, with its smooth and pleasing shape, has little to do with wine, it is more suitable to be displayed in a museum, behind thick bulletproof glass, for millions of people to admire, telling the story of the spiritual achievements of humankind's ancestors: this antique has this value.

Even Mortarian would agree.

But to the Khan, it was just a wine jug: at best, a wine jug that needed to be handled with care.

Gaining something brings no joy, and losing it by accident is no cause for anger: the Khan's temper is always so strange.

Even after discovering all the Primarchs, his personality is still the strangest one.

Other Primarchs known for their eccentricities: Perturabo is nothing more than born with arrogance and coldness; Mortarion is merely a self-deceiving shell and stubbornness; Johnsen's realism outweighs his eccentricities; and the Emperor Fist Master is a figure deeply misled by rumors, yet he is one of the few normal people among his brothers.

Even the Spider Queen is just a normal person hidden under her skin: her weakness is just a rumor, but she is indeed kind to her own people; her cunning and treacherousness are nothing but rumors in the shadows, but she can indeed be ruthless when faced with truly necessary decisions. She is just a wise monarch who distinguishes between public and private matters.

But Chagatai was different.

He was neither cold-hearted nor gentle.

He was not arrogant, but he kept people at arm's length.

He has a straightforward and resilient personality, but he also has his own minefield when it comes to many minor issues.

He may be very intelligent and able to see the truth of the world.

But in reality, who can guarantee that?

At least, after they had lived together as blood brothers for over a hundred years, the Lord of Shadowmoon Wolf still did not believe he could see through the man from the grasslands before him: his gaze was sometimes intelligent, and sometimes bewildered; his attitude was sometimes ambiguous, but at other times, it was firm enough to leave onlookers at a loss.

Isn't that strange?
But he was indeed one of Horus's best brothers.

If Saint Gilles were not present, they could even remove this "one of".

Although the Khan never cared about these things.

If he cared, he wouldn't have so readily chosen to support Horus.

Honestly, even the Wolf God didn't expect this.

In his mind, Chagatai Khan was not a steadfast ally. Although Horus never doubted his brotherhood with the Khan and had long planned to win over the Fifth Legion, he thought he would have to put in a lot of effort rather than get the Khan's full support from the start.

This made Shepherd Wolf feel somewhat flattered.

This is no small matter: it is not a joint operation during the Great Expedition, nor is it a matter of speaking a few words of justice for the Wolf God at a banquet. Horus knows very well that his current actions are incredibly close to rebellion. No matter how righteous his slogans may be, in reality, he is a challenger to the order left by the Emperor and the legitimate government, the traitor in the eyes of his enemies.

Verbally, Zhan Shuai would certainly deny all of this.

But deep down, he knew perfectly well what was going on.

He knew very well that choosing him meant being blacklisted by the high lords of Terra.

Before achieving final victory, the label of "traitor" is an indelible one for Horus's supporters, and anyone can use this word to mock them with a clear conscience.

If they win, everything will be fine. Shepherd is not a stingy cunning man. What he promised his brothers who supported him, he will only give more after the war: even if they march on Terra as traitors, when they return victorious, Shepherd will make all his supporters and brothers kings of the galaxy.

Of course, those who support him will receive more: that's only natural.

But if Horus loses, even though the probability seems pitifully low at the moment, if it does happen, they will face annihilation: even if their status as Primarchs means they won't be in mortal danger, losing their crown, being imprisoned, or even losing their Legion and honor are all reasonable consequences.

It should be noted that Magnus's crimes in Nicaea had some non-subjective factors. Although the destruction he caused was unprecedented, even the Primarch of the Thousand Sons was forgivable compared to Horus: at least Magnus never intended to betray the Empire, while Horus was genuinely preparing to raise the banner of rebellion.

The punishment awaiting them may be far more severe than becoming part of the "Erase Legion".

(In the original work, the nine rebel legions that participated in the Horus Rebellion were indeed erased from the list of legions and became, in fact, one of the missing legions: at least according to the official propaganda of the Empire, the Empire only ever had nine loyal legions.)
(There's another interesting point here: because the rebellious legions had their records erased, sometimes even the loyalist Primarchs were affected. For example, in the relief commemorating the Khan's duel against Mortarion at Liongate, it's said that the Fifth Legion Primarchs' duel was with a giant mass of excrement wielding a scythe.)
Horus's supporters certainly knew this.

However, their sources of confidence are quite different.

Forgrim didn't care. He believed that his legion was naturally more noble, powerful, and perfect than the group of incompetent mortal lords on Terra. In his worldview and philosophy, he couldn't imagine the possibility of a force he participated in losing to the high lords, nor could he think about what kind of punishment they would suffer.

The Phoenix Lord even joked that if the Third Legion had fallen so low that it couldn't even defeat ordinary mortals, then they should be punished, and as the actual leader of the Legion, he should not escape responsibility. They should all pay a heavy price for this shameful depravity.

Mortarion, however, was dismissive. His reasoning was similar to, yet different from, that of the Phoenix. He also did not believe that Horus, with his assistance, could lose to Terra. But this had nothing to do with nobility or perfection; it was simply the unspoken truth that the strong would not lose to the weak. Compared to the weak Highlords and their armies, Mortarion and the Death Guard were naturally stronger.

They will win, creating a new order where only the strong enjoy everything, and Mortarion will get a very good position in the new order, with the possibility of going even further one day: compared to the self-important Forgrim, the Lord of Death undoubtedly has more down-to-earth and realistic ambitions.

He was perhaps the only one who was truly moved by Horus's vision of a new postwar order.

Guilliman was indeed drawn to Horus, but his indecisive nature meant that he would never have joined Horus's camp without Morgan's approval, which was truly regrettable: with the help of that rustling quill, the Wolf God was confident that he could crush Terra as easily as a gnawed bone.

Morgan was also an option, but unfortunately, Horus's constant offers ultimately failed to sway the Spider Queen.

He might need to find another way.

For example, Saint Gilles?
No, Saint Gilles would not be a good idea.

Of all Horus's supporters, the archangel was undoubtedly the weakest and most wavering. Even Alpha, whom the Wolf God had been secretly wary of, was more decisive than the archangel in many matters: Saint Gilles's support was really just lip service.

Given his attitude and enthusiasm, even if Horus is defeated in the future, the Ninth Legion will at most be treated as an accomplice.

Honestly, this made Horus a little sad.

Although this was not unexpected, he had always regarded Saint-Gilles as his best brother, and he believed that Saint-Gilles felt the same way about him: but when he really needed this good brother, Saint-Gilles, a man who had absolutely no reason to be loyal to the Emperor or Terra, showed disappointing hesitation.

If he had insisted on standing with Terra, Horus wouldn't have been in such a bad mood.

But this weakness is especially hurtful.

This is a nail that can never be erased.

Especially in the presence of a staunch brother like Chagatai Khan as a stark contrast.

Horus didn't quite understand where Chagatai Khan's confidence in supporting him so strongly came from: he was neither as proud as Forgrim nor as ambitious as Mortarion, and the Wolf God had never made any irresistible demands of his brother.

He should have remained neutral: rationally speaking.

But he chose to support Shepherd: the only answer is true brotherhood.

At times like these, this is what the commander-in-chief needs most.

Therefore, when news of Chagatai Khan's secret visit was placed on Horus's desk, the warlord did not hesitate at all. Although his more cautious advisors were still advising him to at least bring some guards, Horus unusually adhered to his own style and took a small fleet to the world chosen by the Khan.

The world chosen by Chagatai was named Jadaran, located in the cosmic region not far south of Moro. It was a barbaric world with no usable resources or abundant minerals except for vast grasslands, and its barrenness was not even enough to support a large settlement.

Therefore, even though the White Scar Legion incorporated this place into the Empire's territory during a routine expedition as early as the thirteenth year after the Khan's return, it has remained undeveloped for a century, retaining its original appearance as it was when it was first discovered.

The only sign of civilization here is an outpost left by the White Scars in the Zardran system, bringing this place into their vague sphere of influence: only the most observant people would notice that this seemingly insignificant outpost is actually located at the very focal point of the border between the two giant groups, Shadowmoon Wolves and White Scars.

This is a world destined to write stories.

When Horus arrived, the Khan had already prepared moonlight and wine on a lush, grassy hillside.

A bright silver disc hangs high in the deep blue sky, radiating a cool and ethereal glow, draping the vast天地 (heaven and earth) in a hazy, dreamlike white veil, transforming the whole world into a silent, clear, ethereal fairyland: and fine wine swaying in a white porcelain bowl.

For some reason, Horus felt very cold.

He raised his wine cup, one cup after another, until his stomach felt warm: until Chagatai Khan, who was also there acting as if he were in his own world, raised his cup.

With a crisp sound, the two brothers, who had been looking at each other in silence, each drank their cups in one gulp and then put them down.

Then Khan raised his question.

Just like Dorne, the Khan doesn't like to say too many useless things in front of those he's close to.

"So, what exactly do you want to do, Horus?"

The Khan put down his wine cup and slowly combed his long beard that reached his chest. He was not wearing the pale white armor, but a simple long robe that Horus found strange.

But none of that matters: before the Fifth Legion's Primarchs' sharp, eagle-like vision, all adornments and possessions seem utterly insignificant.

The sound continued, and although it sounded calm, no one could lie to it.

"You want to completely overturn all of this?"

"Or perhaps they simply want to gain more for themselves from this grand feast left behind by the emperor?"

"..."

Horus toyed with his wine glass, unsure of the implications of either option.

So he asked a question in return.

Which scenario would you prefer to see?

"I?"

The Khan smiled, but his smile was subtle.

"I'm fine with anything: because I don't care."

"I have no further interests to pursue, so of course I can remain detached from worldly affairs."

"For me, whichever choice you make will not affect my support for you."

Chagatai Khan crossed his arms, his attitude as relaxed as if he were discussing a falconry.

“If you want to completely overturn all of this and let the splendor left by the emperor begin to burn, I will certainly support you.”

"Our father was a tyrant, as evidenced by his actions during the Great Crusade and the rampant exploitation by the minions of Holy Terra over the years: the rule brought by a tyrant is stable but painful, it is destined not to be a lasting order, and its demise is a foreseeable future."

"And you, Horus: at least you are not a tyrant."

"I don't know what kind of future you will bring: but it shouldn't be any worse than what the Emperor did."

"A tyrant..."

Horus nodded, showing no reaction to this clearly disrespectful title for the emperor.

After all, it's ironic: in this crazy galaxy, tyrant isn't entirely a derogatory term.

The reason is simple: in this extremely chaotic, dark galaxy that has endured decades of distortion and madness, losing all moral compass and humanity, words like freedom, enlightenment, abundance, benevolence, or democracy are not so appealing, especially when faced with promises of stability and guarantees of security.

In this galaxy, "tyrant" is often a unique form of praise for a ruler: in people's subconscious, no matter how cruel and insane a tyrant is, he can at least bring a relatively stable social order and at least prevent the world from completely collapsing. For humans living in an era of conflict, that is enough.

A tyrant: at least he wasn't the worst.

Both the Emperor and the Primarch have been called tyrants, even Morgan, a title bestowed upon them for bringing peace to a region of space through their ruthless rule. If the Emperor forged a new order in the galaxy with his cold-blooded ruthlessness, then calling him a tyrant of the entire galaxy is not unreasonable.

Of course, for Chagatai Khan, the word "tyrant" naturally carries a more derogatory connotation.

Horus tacitly ignored this.

"What if it's another situation?"

"The war commander then asked."

"What if my ambitions were smaller, and I just wanted to take a bigger share of the existing benefits?"

“Then I should support you even more.” The Khan lowered his head, his eyes rolled upwards, glanced at his brother, and smiled.

"After all, this is a very reasonable request."

"Whether it's Dorn, Ruth, Guilliman, Morgan, or you and me, we should all acknowledge one thing."

"The idea that mortals can govern such a vast empire is ultimately just wishful thinking."

"But to ensure the long-term stability of the Empire, we Primarchs must ultimately take the lead ourselves."

"Among mortals, there are indeed some who are very noble."

"But if they alone could maintain the smooth navigation of a vast empire, then they wouldn't be mortals."

Horus nodded.

He deeply agrees with this.

Over the years, in order to govern his ever-expanding wolf kingdom, the Wolf God has indeed been selecting talented people from among the mortals without being bound by convention. Therefore, he has witnessed the strength and nobility of these mortals, but at the same time, he has also been deeply aware of their own shortcomings.

"In my opinion, Chagatai."

Horus poured himself another cup.

"If it were a purely mortal government, their capacity would be limited to managing a single star sector."

"Believe me, this is not meant as a derogatory term, because the vast majority of Astartes warriors do not even have the ability to manage a sector."

"If we can revive those ancient technologies, then the potential of mortals will be even higher."

"But we can't: it's not allowed."

"That's right, so: one sector."

"And it can't be a particularly complex star sector."

The Wolf God sighed.

"For example, those military districts on the front lines, important mining or industrial production star sectors, and certain strategic strongholds located at transportation hubs: the complex and ever-changing situations and the massive flow of information completely exceed the capabilities of mortals. Without the assistance of Astartes and the Cult of Mechanics, even the best people would make a mess of it."

"It's a pity that during the Great Expedition, we had to ban some technologies that could have helped in this regard."

"AI, or something else."

"Without them, relying solely on the abilities of ordinary people, they would absolutely never be able to return to the dark age of technology."

"Naturally, this empire could not be sustained either."

"They should not be in power."

The Khan had not yet replied; he simply poured himself another glass of wine.

"Is this why you decided to take action?"

Before the wine touched his lips, Chagatai asked his brother seemingly casually.

"Have you had enough of those high lords?"

"Some of them, but I don't think it's all of them."

Horus blinked; in truth, even he himself couldn't explain the problem.

Why did he raise the flag of rebellion?
There could be too many reasons.

The fear of being discarded after being used.

Hatred for the Holy Terra in my heart.

An impulse to find the emperor.

The mission to fight for Astartes.

Too much is too much.

Selfless, selfish, cautious, reckless, luminous, sinister, self-justifying, and utterly shameless: each reason seems insufficient to constitute a raging fire that burns the galaxy, yet each seems indispensable.

After all, when the vast rebels gathered behind the Shadowmoon Wolf banner, coming from all corners of the galaxy, speaking different languages, with different personalities and values, harboring different purposes, and pursuing different goals, chose to follow him, how could the Warmaster possibly set the tone for their common cause at will?

He could only vaguely make the promises that everyone wanted to hear, making the actual rebellion sound so righteous and awe-inspiring.

But before Chagatai Khan.

It seems he can't say anything.

"So what is your reason?"

The Wolf God simply countered with a question.

"Since you're going to follow me no matter what, you need an excuse that you can convince yourself, right?"

"I?"

The Khan laughed.

"You might not believe it."

"I suppose it's for the people."

"..."

"what?"

"See, you wouldn't believe me if I told you."

Horus's surprise was not unexpected by the Khan.
"Do you think I'm the kind of person who would disregard the lives of ordinary people, Lupecar?"

"That's not it."

Horus quickly shook his head.

"I just never expected that the reason for urging the eagles of the grasslands to get involved in this war would be this; it's just too much..."

"Too mediocre?"

The Khan raised an eyebrow.

"..."

Horus remained silent.

"Okay, it's not your fault."

Chagatai, on the other hand, took it all in stride.

“I believe that none of our brothers would consider me to be the kind of person who would draw my sword for the innocent.”

“But I will, Horus.”

The Khan spoke these words with great seriousness.

“Remember, I will: Chagatai Khan is a man who will draw his sword to protect the innocent.”

"That's why I joined you, brother."

"I don't want this war to last too long."

The Khan stared intently into Horus's pupils. In the eyes of this steppe eagle, the wolf god had never seen such a straightforward and clear answer.

“I think you’ve already realized that, Horus.”

"The empire is powerful, but also fragile."

"The two hundred years of conquest were glorious, but they also left us with countless hidden wounds."

"And most importantly, the only unifying force of the Empire is actually the Emperor: once the dream of expelling the aliens and restoring the former glory is achieved, there is no reason for the million worlds to work together anymore. Only the Emperor's prestige and his glorious past can keep the entire galaxy in awe, gratitude and fear, and continue to submit to the banner of the double-headed eagle."

"But now, everyone knows that the Emperor has, in effect, disappeared: or worse."

"..."

Horus clenched his fist tighter.

The Khan simply shook his head.

"Now, the bonds that unite the empire have been severed."

"None of us can replace the prestige and power accumulated by the Emperor. Without him, countless ambitious individuals and separatists would rise to the forefront. If the Empire itself could remain united, we would still have the ability to use our powerful military force to forcibly suppress all villains. But since the Warmaster and Terra have split, the unity of the human Empire is out of the question."

"The empire has already cracked at the top of power: how can a divided empire guarantee that the galaxy will not split apart?"

"So, you and I both know, Horus."

"Why is it that despite the seemingly massive Terra crisis, less than half of the Primarchs are willing to get involved in this galactic catastrophe? Is it simply because they don't want to shoot each other? No! Deep down, there are their own ambitions and reasons for not being able to do so."

"It's not just the Primarchs, but also those powerful fleet commanders and sector governors. When the two centers of power, second only to the Lord of Man, begin to fight each other, neither you nor Terra will have time to spare. At that time, I'm afraid there will be countless people in the entire galaxy declaring themselves emperors and kings."

"And if this war drags on for too long, the complete disintegration of the empire will be an inevitable fate."

"Unless we are willing to launch another great expedition."

"Theoretically, it might be possible: but nobody wants to launch another Great Expedition."

"Therefore, we must end this as soon as possible before things get worse."

Chagatai Khan raised his wine cup.

"Whether it's you or Terra."

"Determine a winner as quickly as possible."

"As the victors who united the entire empire, we have once again stabilized the galaxy with our still-powerful armies."

"Only in this way can we achieve lasting peace and stability."

“Otherwise, when chaos descends, countless innocent lives will be lost: I cannot bear that.”

"So I found you, Horus."

"I will also do everything in my power to help you win this war in the shortest possible time."

"Before it's too late: preserve this hard-won peace, and all those who live in it."

"So, listen carefully."

"I'm only going to say it once."

"I will fight for the fate of the innocent."

"Whoever is their enemy, I will be their enemy."

(End of this chapter)