Emperor's Bane

Chapter 996 Devoted to Duty
Brothers always meet in the shadows.

They would dodge the crowds, the patrol boats overhead, the army rampaging through the ruins, and anything that could kill or disturb them, then choose an unrelated setting, weapons in hand, to greet their comrades and brothers as if they were enemies.

For any Hydra member, being held at gunpoint while embracing is not considered an offense.

This is their habit, and their tradition.

It might have caused trouble at first, but now we've long since gotten used to it.

Even the two Alphas who had just awakened from their long slumber followed this principle.

……

"How many of you are left?"

The Hydra, which arrived first, cautiously observed its surroundings while adjusting the joint servo motors on its power armor: no power armor produced by the Empire is known for being quiet, but the old Mark II is at least better than the Mark IV, at least it won't become noisier when damaged.

Now, Alphareis truly doesn't want to be involved in any more conflicts.

"Less than two hundred people."

Standing a few meters away, a Hydra officer who had once commanded a thousand soldiers answered in this way.

"We fought a real battle with the main force of the Imperial Fist reinforcements. At first, we were able to hold our ground until they brought in knights and Valkyries: at least six hundred people were killed in the battle, and another two hundred got separated during the retreat. But I am confident that most of them will rejoin their ranks."

"Is it."

Alpha, which arrived first, nodded.

"It's a bit better than mine."

“I took 500 men to Lions Gate Airport, and less than 80 of them came back alive.”

"What trouble have you encountered?"

"Dorn did not go in person, but he sent his entire personal guard to Lionsgate Airport."

After he finished speaking, the two Hydras standing opposite each other fell silent. The shadow of defeat and death loomed over his shoulders, while the air was filled with the primal and intense smell of promethium fuel emanating from the damaged adamantite ceramic armor.

"Perhaps even more people survived."

Several minutes later, the officer who had suffered even greater losses finally spoke, albeit with a sense of relief.

He looked at his colleagues.

"Besides your own men, did you contact any other friendly forces during the previous retreat?"

"I do have contact with several brother units: but none of them are in good condition."

Alpharis shook his head, seemingly scoffing at his combat brother's wishful thinking.

"As far as I know, none of the troops that went to attack the Starbow came back alive. They ran straight into Primarch Roguedon, and at least several thousand died under the blades and psionic power of the Terra Guardians. If Dorn hadn't been so eager to return to Terra Palace, the casualties would have been even greater."

"As for the Mountain Formation, the situation is not ideal either."

"We were once close to victory, but the Imperial Fist held us back with its overwhelming numerical superiority, while Terra sent them new reinforcements: cyborg warriors we had never seen before. They displayed exceptional assassination skills during the battle, and our brothers could not withstand their numerous counterattack."

"Even the enhanced warriors can't stop it?"

"No, those combat brothers who had been injected with Primarch blood were no weaker than the assassins sent by Terra. They achieved a very good exchange ratio in the fight against the assassins and even managed to stabilize the front line and launch a counterattack. However, the Imperial Fist and Terra's assassins successfully delayed the battle for twenty-four hours by constantly adjusting the roads and defensive structures inside the knock-off ship."

“When the time comes, those brothers who have been injected with the original blood will no longer be able to withstand it.”

"We ultimately lost the game on the Mountain Array."

"Similarly, because of the blockade by the Terran fleet, no one has ever returned alive from that giant fortress."

"Adding the losses from Xingju, all things considered, this is nearly the cost of 10,000 people."

Alpha, who had initially raised the question, pulled out his personal tactical display, hoping to glean some more valuable information from it. But perhaps due to damage from the previous battle, the flashing floating icons were swallowed up by a garbled mess of text and noise before they could display any useful information.

"Tsk..."

Hydra frowned, pondered for a moment, and then chose the most effective repair device.

Grab it in your hand: then tap it.

Sure enough, after a violent shaking, the tactical monitor actually emitted a smooth sound.

But for some unknown reason, this time it somehow managed to connect to the official broadcast of Holy Terra.

The voice on the radio silenced both Alphas simultaneously.

That's Dorn.

"People of Terra."

"The terrorist attacks that previously occurred in various places have now been quelled by the iron fist of the Empire. Please..."

"..."

Do you think he's telling the truth?

When the Primarch confidently assured them that order on Terra had been restored to the Highlords, Hydra placed the tactical display on the ground, his mind racing with complex emotions.

“I have met Dorn.”

His brother also hesitated.

"That's not the kind of person who would lie easily."

"But we can't rule out the possibility that it's to stabilize public morale. At least judging from the intensity of our attack, the high lords can't possibly quell everything in just a few days."

"But I wouldn't be surprised if they thwarted our massive offensives across the country."

Silence once again.

"In other words, all of Hydra, including us, should have failed."

"Did the Primarch explain how we should retreat or leave if the operation fails?"

"No, there isn't."

Alpha, who arrived first, shook its head.

"And I seriously doubt whether his plan included letting us leave this part alive?"

When mentioning the father of genetics, Alpharez no longer showed much respect.

He sacrificed most of his entire company to become the father of genes.

"Don't you find it strange?"

"We were awakened before the designated date and directly programmed with the code to betray the Empire, launching a suicide attack on a seemingly well-defended Holy Terra that was doomed to fail. Moreover, since the start of this battle, the Gene Father who awakened us has not issued any new orders."

"It's very possible that we were just his stepping stones."

"You shouldn't doubt the Primarch like that, brother."

Is he really our Primarch?

Hydra countered with a question.

“I saw my Primarch before I fell into slumber, and he felt different to me than the one who awakened us.”

"In other words, even our original entity."

"But what happened today is enough to make me doubt him."

"..."

"What are you going to do?"

Hydra hesitated for a moment.

"The most urgent task now is to convey the news that the operation has failed to every surviving brother. We have already lost too many men on this land. Those who remain should not rush headlong into the Seventh Legion's encirclement. Fortunately, everyone knows where to retreat to, and the sons of Dorn will never find our refuge."

"and then?"

"And then... I don't know either."

Alpha shook his head.

“I will lead the men back to the shelter, and then help as many brothers as possible retreat back to the shelter. It is well hidden enough that they will not be discovered, and the survival supplies left behind can last us for a long time. But more importantly, there are still many brothers there who have not been awakened: we need to protect them until the right moment.”

"Then, we will return to Terra."

"Go and carry out our real orders."

"As for the father of our genes who awakened us?"

"..."

"Wish him good luck."

------

"What he needs most right now is good luck."

Standing before Rogdorn, the Marksman used these words to summarize his battle with Omega.

"If he's unlucky, he'll die a painful death within five years at most."

"Believe me, that won't be a relief."

“I have no doubt about your judgment, the Marksman.”

The Terra Guard was fully armed, and all his attention was focused on the room in front of him.

“But I still have doubts: if a Primarch who has already shown a rebellious attitude towards the Emperor and the Empire is allowed to continue to be active in the galaxy for a few more years, wouldn’t there be a great risk?” “I know that.”

The person holding the seal nodded.

Unlike Dorn, he seemed quite relaxed.

"Therefore, I will recall Alpharis and put him in charge of the remaining tasks of hunting down Omega."

"At the same time, it will also test his loyalty."

"Please let me know when the time comes."

Upon hearing the name Alpharis, Rogdorn instinctively frowned.

"I don't want today's incident to happen again."

"I want to see Alpharis's stance for myself."

"I will."

Makado promised.

"Trust me, Dorn."

“If Alpha knew what happened on Terra, he would be even more nervous than you are now.”

“My nervousness is for a reason, Seal Holder.”

The original remained unmoved by this sarcastic remark.

He remained completely focused, his eyes fixed on the cell before him, the one used to hold the unknown.

Just thinking about that guy's existence made Rogdorn raise his shield, grip his blade, and his question to Macado carried a hint of doubt.

"Master of the Seal, do you know how surprised I was when I saw that guy standing outside the prison gates?"

"Even the riot itself didn't evoke as much fear in me as that scene."

"At that moment, I really doubted whether I was capable of fulfilling the trust that the Emperor had placed in me."

The person who held the seal was silent for a moment.

"Are you going to condemn me for this, Dorn?"

"Do not."

The Primarch shook his head.

“I can understand. After all, Omega’s psionic abilities and his diversionary tactics were very clever. Your hasty arrival cannot stop him from waking up this guy. And once he is awake, it will not be difficult for him to break through the cage left by the Emperor.”

"But that doesn't seem to be the case."

"From my observation, he did not leave voluntarily, but obeyed your orders, Seal Holder."

"It's not mine."

Macardo corrected the error.

"It belongs to the Emperor."

“I cannot command him; only the Emperor’s own will can make him so obedient.”

"Moreover, Dorn, we must admit that without his timely intervention, we would never have been able to quell the Black Prison riot at such a low cost."

"All prisoners who breached containment were either imprisoned or simply killed, and Terra is no longer threatened."

"This is more important than anything else."

"I cannot agree with that."

Dorn lowered his voice.

“You are gambling, Sealholder: what stands before us are traitors to the Empire and to humanity.”

“If he no longer follows the Emperor’s will, then the entire Holy Terra will be plunged into a sea of ​​blood.”

“I don’t think he would have been in the mood to distinguish between us and Horus when he was killing.”

"He will only think that Horus betrayed the Emperor and that we have failed the Emperor: and then treat us the same way."

"Then it sounds like we have no choice but to rely on the Wolf God."

"Horus would surely be willing to join forces with us under such circumstances."

The person who held the seal smiled.

Dorn remained expressionless until he confirmed that the only prisoner in the cage had indeed fallen asleep again.

It lost its ability to move, its ability to breathe, and its ability to perceive and react to the outside world: it returned to the absolute state of metal.

Only then did the Primarch breathe a sigh of relief.

But he still dared not let his guard down.

"How did he get back? What can you do?"

"I do not know what to do."

Makado honestly shook his head.

"He was simply following the Emperor's orders. After destroying the last containment device attempting to escape the Black Prison, he returned to his cell. All I did was stand here, make sure he was back, and then close the cell door."

“If you had arrived a few minutes earlier, Dorn, you would have seen with your own eyes how he came back.”

"...the one who holds the seal."

After a long silence, the Primarch finally spoke.

"Because of this, I have to start to doubt your reliability."

"Your handling of the whole thing was..."

“It’s completely uninsured, I know.”

Makado waved his hand dismissively.

"When you live to my age, Dorn, you'll understand why I did this."

"Some things really don't depend on individual effort."

The Primarch clearly scoffed at this idea.

"After things are settled on Terra, I will personally strengthen security here to ensure that no one can open the cage guarding him again."

"That's a good thing."

The one who held the seal turned and left without looking back.

"But you may not have the opportunity in the near future."

"why?"

Ron, still holding his shield, retreated step by step until the cell door was completely out of sight. Only then did he turn around and quickly catch up with Macado.

The broad expanse of the Primarch and the slender figure of the Seal Bearer vanished one after the other into the silent shadows.

Only the flesh and blood, sealed away once more, remain, awaiting another summons, perhaps a thousand or ten thousand years from now.

------

"My agents can transmit intelligence faster than your Spawns and Legion, Dorn."

"So you'll receive a report soon too."

"Horus has launched a new offensive."

"The target is the Minerva and Haken star systems, which serve as the last line of defense for Holy Terra."

"And just recently, signs of war have already emerged."

……

"The commander-in-chief failed to completely capture Minerva."

"But in the Harken galaxy: he succeeded."

"And the current situation is..."

“If we don’t support Minerva, the garrison there is unlikely to hold out for long.”

"If we do not send troops to retake Harken, then the army of Shadowmoon Wolves will pour in from there: it will be pointless to hold out on Minerva."

"So, Dorn."

"After we resolved the Terra issue."

"You must take command of the army and set off immediately."

"On Minerva, on Haken, on those vital planets and cosmic regions that connect these two worlds."

"Together with our War General, let's embark on a brand new apocalyptic journey."

------

I went out today (it's National Day, you all know what I mean), so I can only write this much for now.

(End of this chapter)