Emperor's Bane

Chapter 907 Morgan's Expedition

"Bayar".

"Ok?"

"Didn't the Primarch say he was going to lead us out of the Far East and launch an unprecedented expedition?"

"That's exactly what she said: What's wrong?"

"Then why, after we finished assembling, did the expeditionary fleet seem to be heading towards Avalon?"

"Perhaps because we're a special operations force?"

"What kind of special operations force would launch a special military operation against its own capital?"

------

[Airborne transmission?]

No, no, no, that's unnecessary.

[Bringing some fighter jets and transport planes will suffice: we need to streamline our personnel as much as possible.]

[Given the Comoros environment, jetpacks and assault motorcycles are better options; a few assault squads are more reassuring than an entire Valkyrie squadron. I don't intend to engage in any prolonged aerial combat. The Eldar Scourge are among the few adversaries we should take seriously, and our allies will help us maintain air superiority.]

That's right, just like that: Go do it.

With that, the Spider Queen casually tossed the still-ringing communicator aside, letting it make a crisp clanging sound against the marble wall, not caring whether the person on the other end was still speaking or if there were any new questions or situations that needed to be addressed.

Because beside the Spider Queen, at least forty communicators were simultaneously screaming: each one represented a crucial question, involving every aspect of the upcoming expedition, and ignoring any one of them would put the lives of millions at risk.

Needless to say, those who can reach the Spider Queen directly are all elites that Morgan has specially cultivated in the past: they only need to get a general direction from the Primarch, and they can use their abilities to carve out the details.

As for not being able to do it?
Those who can't do it won't be here.

It's not that Morgan was particularly cruel; it was simply the pragmatic philosophy that the Primarch had always practiced.

Among any of the Spider Queen's (living) subjects, she could not possibly be known for anything as cruel or ruthless. In fact, Morgan's gentle nature and sentimental disposition are no longer just rumors spread by the Primarch; they have become facts in a sense.

She can not only change others, but others can also change her in return.

I wonder how many people still remember the emperor's words.

And indeed, as her control over the entire Far Eastern frontier deepened with age, it became unshakeable. The Spider Queen's ruling style became increasingly casual: she no longer needed to deliberately cultivate an aura of authority, because this land in the far east of the galaxy was already permeated with her shadow.

Through propaganda, grace, fear, and psychic power: the Far East is Morgan's land.

This is the universally acknowledged reality in the galaxy.

Now that things have come to this, the selection of the virtuous and capable, as well as promotions and transfers, are nothing more than clay puppets in the Spider Queen's hands. She can completely exclude a powerful family that has served her for generations from the core circle of power based on her own preferences and temporary needs, or promote an ordinary person with no background: these are not very reasonable actions.

But the original is the principle.

Morgan went a step further on this basis.

In the past, Morgan would have had to consider the opinions and views of the ordinary people under her command, and would have needed to take extra care of the powerful families who had served her for generations, and would have had to leave them a place. But now, the Queen of Avalon can easily remove a large family that has followed her for four or five generations from the circle of power at any time.

Most importantly, this won't even cause panic.

Neither the exiled families themselves, nor their political allies and peers saw anything wrong with this fall from grace, nor did they have any opinion on the Primarch's rule: the Spider Queen's political reputation, which she had accumulated over nearly two centuries, was now gradually playing its proper role.

Because everyone knows that even if you experience a temporary setback in front of Morgan, as long as you don't commit any fundamental mistakes and as long as your descendants can consistently produce qualified individuals, you will eventually have the opportunity to return to your original position. Even if you don't have that opportunity for now, the Primarch will never forget your past contributions.

The temporary fluctuations are simply due to a change in the original entity's needs.

Morgan would never forget those who had contributed to his cause.

We will never abandon them.

This formidable political credibility is the result of the Spider Queen's decades-long, unwavering treatment of her Mechanicus allies, as well as her countless meritorious subordinates and followers. It has long since become a towering mountain: unless there is an extremely despicable act of betrayal, Morgan can rely on this powerful political credibility and the strongest fist in the entire Far East frontier to freely spread her ideas and thoughts across the land of Avalon.

No one will stop her.

Because everyone knows and trusts Morgan's reputation.

She will always give you a satisfactory reward: she has hundreds of historical cases to give you peace of mind.

It is precisely because of this extremely high safety margin that the Spider Queen can dismantle and reorganize her most important direct subordinate agencies at will without worrying about causing any potentially uncontrollable catastrophic consequences: in this respect, she surpasses all her brothers, and even far surpasses Guilliman, who is also known for his dominance.

The five hundred world lords on his Macragge were far less carefree than the Spider Queen.

After all, he was subject to the parliament, to the faint public opinion in Macurag, to the moral condemnation in his heart, and to all sorts of unspoken political rules: Guilliman grew up in such an environment. Although theoretically he could break through these constraints and become a supreme monarch like Morgan, unfortunately, the Lord of the Five Hundred Worlds had already become that "elephant".

That's a proverb from ancient Terra: It is chains that bind the baby elephants, but habits that bind the elephants.

As for Morgan, she cleverly transformed this proverb that had bound Guilliman into her own strength.

Through the political reputation he has built up over the past century, and through the subtle indoctrination and influence of his subordinates, Morgan has successfully chained these "little elephants." Even though they have now grown into towering trees in their respective sectors and worlds that can actually influence the Primarch, their instincts still make them obediently follow Morgan's commands without even the slightest hint of rebellion.

Take a sector? No problem.

Believe in the great Morgan: one day, she will reward you with two star sectors for your forbearance and dedication today.

Whether she does it or not is irrelevant.

Importantly, everyone believes this: especially those who hold the highest power, they are the ones who worship the Primarch the most.

This is why the Lord of Avalon dared to set aside the entire Far Eastern frontier and personally lead the expedition.

Unless something earth-shattering happens, Morgan believes that, even out of inertia, the entire Avalon will maintain its utmost loyalty to her: this loyalty will also extend to Rana and others, making it easier for them to rule this vast kingdom, even though it is actually beyond their capabilities.

Therefore, before setting off, Morgan had to resolve all the troubles, big and small, as much as possible.

That's right, and armored units should be brought in as few as possible.

[Just prepare the Sikaran tanks; at least two-thirds should be Hunter and Punisher types. Their neutron laser projectors and rotary cannons have always performed exceptionally well in urban warfare against the Xenomorphs. Don't worry about numbers; I've discussed it with Guilliman. The transport fleet from the Five Hundred Worlds arrived a few days ago. Go check it out.]

As she spoke, the Spider Queen casually jotted down a note on her favorite notepad.

As Morgan and the Dawn Goddess prepare to return to the Avalon system, which is utterly loyal to her, an expedition that mobilizes almost the entire military force of the Far East frontier has officially entered the countdown phase before departure: all that remains is for all the fleets to assemble in near-Earth orbit and then transport the fully equipped Dawnbreaker army in sequence.

The expeditionary force that surged forth from all directions at the command of the Spider Queen was enormous. Even though Morgan had reduced the total number of troops she would take to Comoros as much as possible for various reasons, the final figure still surprised the Primarch somewhat: although she knew that these were all necessary conditions.

Although Morgan's legion was far from being the main force in the upcoming Battle of Comoros, the Spider Queen always liked to exaggerate any problem: especially considering that the battlefield was located inside the Web, if any unexpected situation occurred, the Primarch would not even have anywhere to call for reinforcements.

She can't exactly let Johnson or Guilliman smash a hole in the net and send reinforcements in, can she?

To be honest, if it weren't for the high probability that Horus had already been corrupted by Chaos, Morgan even had a somewhat immature idea: to bring Shadowmoon Wolf directly into the Comoros battlefield. Fighting alongside the Emperor for the future of humanity would be enough to erase all of Horus's resentment and sense of danger.

The War General will be the most loyal.

Or rather, as long as the Lord of Mankind remains on the throne of Holy Terra, and as long as Horus is not forcibly brainwashed by the corruption of Chaos, then the Imperial Warmaster will always be the greatest loyalist: this is strange, because being the greatest loyalist does not prevent Horus from also being the greatest destabilizing factor in the galaxy, even greater than Guilliman.

This is probably the contradiction in human nature.

In reality, if Shadowmoon Wolves were deployed to the Comoros battlefield, the potential rebels in the real universe would lose their leader. Moreover, the greater the Shadowmoon Wolves' losses in Comoros, the lower their future danger to the entire galaxy. The Emperor could also take advantage of Horus's dissatisfaction to completely eliminate the Sixteenth Legion's destabilizing influence in the galaxy by appropriately incorporating the Warmasters into the Terran government.

Sending vassal kings to the court has always been a good method.

At that time, all that is needed is to gradually abolish the conscription system of each Astartes Legion and send the existing people to retire, and the empire will slowly transition to mortal politics: at worst, Horus will be elevated to the honorary successor to the emperor, and those who oppose him will not be so eager for power. The emperor's affection and the extremely high honor will be enough to appease the Wolf God.

This is a very safe approach, but the only problem is that chaos makes it impossible for all of this to happen.

Therefore, Morgan had no choice but to mobilize a large army.

What cannot be obtained politically can only be obtained through military means.

In particular, we must rely on our own military strength to acquire it.

Besides, in any case, Morgan could be considered the commander-in-chief of the Comoros campaign personally appointed by the Emperor.

There is no commander-in-chief who doesn't have a general reserve force that is completely obedient to him.

However, not all good weapons and equipment should be put into the general reserve. For example...

What? A warship?

Although it wasn't the first time Morgan had heard this question from his subordinates, he still laughed in exasperation.

I've said it so many times, we don't need warships.

Yes, this is an expedition without warships.

[I will hand over full command of the Dawnbreaker Legion's main fleet to Lana. The garrison fleet at Hellrock can continue operating as before. As for the patrol fleets in each military district, I finalized their deployment schedule a few hours ago; you can go to Lana to confirm it.]

I'll say it again, we don't need a fleet.

With that, Morgan casually tossed the communicator aside, watching the little thing slide down the smooth ground. As the crisp sound of the impact reached the Primarch's ears, the Spider Queen was pondering questions about the fleet.

She certainly didn't need to bring a fleet: what she really needed was a large transport fleet.

Fortunately, compared to warships, the Far Eastern frontier has no shortage of transport vehicles.

By simply levying taxes from a few surrounding star sectors, Morgan had amassed enough supplies to sustain the entire Dawnbreaker Expeditionary Force for five to six years, along with a massive transport fleet capable of delivering those supplies. Why five to six years? There always needs to be a contingency plan for unforeseen circumstances.

What if it comes in handy?
In fact, if things hadn't been a bit urgent, Morgan would have even considered gathering enough supplies to last for ten years.

In any case, compared to their size and status, the daily consumption of Astartes is pitifully low. They do not need any luxury or pleasure-seeking items. They only need the most basic drinking water and food to maintain daily operations. The real bulk of the transportation volume consists of items such as power armor and explosives used for consumption.

Morgan calculated the cost based on the scale required to wage five full-scale, apocalyptic wars.

Fortunately, Morgan only needed to bring Astartes on this expedition; she didn't intend to involve any mortal auxiliary troops. In other words, she didn't need to worry about any supply issues involving mortals. As for the drivers for the transport convoy, getting Astartes a driver's license wouldn't be difficult.

The real challenge is figuring out how to deal with the fleet that is stuck in reality.

Or rather: everything in Avalon.

The fleet is manageable: Morgan had been grooming Lana as the second core of the Dawnbreaker Legion for many years. After so many years of training, although the Chief of the Guards did not fully meet Morgan's standards, he is still an outstanding successor.

He couldn't make Avalon thrive, but he could manage to keep it afloat: not to mention, Morgan left him a full staff of Star Maidens, a large number of capable and loyal bureaucrats, and an internal affairs department that was completely subservient to the Rana system.

Since their conversation with the Emperor, this has been the Primarch's primary focus: gradually handing over the entire network of interests and authority in the Far East frontier to Rana and his governing team, ensuring that they can barely manage the Far East frontier and prevent any problems from arising in a state of panic, like the mess that happened with the Emperor and the Terra crisis.

So far, things are going relatively smoothly.

The only problem is that while Rana can manage to keep Avalon running, if Morgan doesn't return in time and the war sweeping the galaxy one day spreads to the Far Eastern frontier, will Rana really be able to mobilize the vast forces under the Dawnbreakers and support the massive amount of computing required for the war?
Morgan wasn't quite sure.

Although she found an outside helper for Rana, no one knew whether that helper could arrive in time.

There was nothing that could be done: the Spider Queen could only secretly hope that she could get back in time.

The numerous contingency plans she left for the Far Eastern frontier, along with the formidable national strength she had painstakingly accumulated over the years, would allow her to withstand the malice from the depths of the galaxy even in her absence, thanks to her sheer size. Therefore, any additional losses would be acceptable.

For example, the Glory Queen.

Morgan handed over the Dawn Goddess to Lana, the Human Glory remained in Avalon on standby, and the Star Cry was the command ship of the Hellrock Fleet. In addition, in the shipyard of the Triple System, the fourth Glory Queen belonging to the Dawnbreaker Legion has completed its final stage and is expected to be officially launched in a few months.

It doesn't have a name yet, but once it's fully staffed, it can immediately plunge into the galactic war.

Morgan had tried to name the warship the Knight of the Apocalypse or the Crown of the Lion. Indeed, as the name suggests, the warship was named by the Spider Queen in memory of her friendship with Johnson, just as Horus named the third Glory Queen of Shadowmoon Wolves, the Ruby King, in memory of his deep affection for the Archangel.

However, these are minor issues: the Spider Queen had already prepared for the possibility that all four of the Dawnbreaker's Glory Queens would be sunk when she emerged from the web.

Even if the entire Avalon fleet were sunk, it wouldn't be a fatal problem.

To put it bluntly: no one can destroy the power of Avalon and the Five Hundred Worlds at the same time. In other words, if the Far East Frontier is hit the hardest, it means that the Five Hundred Worlds will actually retain more power. At that time, even if the Ultramarines were to unleash their full power, they could easily reclaim the entire galaxy.

This is a simple multiple-choice question.

Morgan has always been a top student.

As early as when they decided to follow the Emperor and participate in the crucial Battle of Comoros, the Primarch was already prepared to commit the entire Far Eastern frontier.

Having figured this out, factors that would normally influence her decisions, such as the Dawnbreaker Legion's fleet and the Dawnbreakers themselves, now seem less important. As a result, the Spider Queen's mind is now very clear, and she had made thorough preparations before arriving in Avalon.

This includes the issue that the Ministry of the Interior will soon report on.

"It's me, say it."

The moment the black communicator, which had been placed separately on the side of the table, started ringing, the quick-witted Lord of Avalon grabbed it and held it to his ear.

"grown ups."

The voice on the other end was that of Morgan's most trusted Home Secretary.

"As per your request, the operation to investigate the rumors surrounding Zhan Shuai and Yingyue Canglang has begun."

"It won't be long before Horus learns that you have led a small group of Dawnbreakers on an expedition."

【very good. 】

Morgan nodded in satisfaction.

[Remember, spread plenty of truthful intelligence to convince him that the Far East is leaderless and its political structure is almost paralyzed due to my departure, desperately needing a stabilizing force.]

"Your will."

This black communicator is the only thing that escaped the Spider Queen's clutches.

Now, only one thing remains.

Another ten minutes or so passed, until Morgan finally finished dealing with the still-beeping communicator. She finally got a rare moment of peace and quiet. As her gaze fell upon the verdant landscape of Avalon outside the porthole, the Spider Queen murmured to herself.

At the same time, she looked at this world, which was theoretically her birthplace, a world that was not so familiar to her: at least, in some places, she was completely unfamiliar with it.

For example...

Morgan looked north.

They looked north towards Avalon.

It was a cold, gloomy land perpetually shrouded in the shadows of boundless, unnatural elements: for a long time, no one had ever come out alive and returned healthy.

Even the Cult of Machines cannot use their power to carry out any geological transformation of this land.

Before this, this was a secluded place that even Morgan herself was unwilling to explore casually: until she took the news that she needed to go on an expedition to the Comoros and found the Endless One who knew countless ancient secrets, hoping to get a way to the Comoros from him.

The Primarch remembered what Tarasin had said to her back then.

------

"You want an entry point?"

"The entrance to the internet?"

"Isn't this a simple matter? Why did you come all the way here instead of going to the trouble of finding something closer?"

"Have you forgotten that a strange land exists on your Avalon?"

"Let's go take a look there."

You will get what you want.

"You will reach the most vile lair in this galaxy."

"and……"

"..."

"Someone is waiting for you there."