Warhammer: Start with a dog.

Chapter 847 The Unexpected Appearance of the Astartes -
"Messenger of Hell! Messenger of Hell! Messenger of Hell!"

All the able-bodied citizens of Adulrim City, along with the remnants of the Hellbringers' army, gathered in front of the east gate, chanting the legion's name. All the laser cannons and similar defensive weapons in the city had been gathered here, and the remaining city gates were already being defended by suicide squads.

"They volunteered to cover the rear; they understood the Emperor's will and fought to protect others." At this point, Colonel Fedorak suddenly blurted out, whether he was speaking to Ramizann, Zao, or Sergeant Malik, it was unclear.

The others were watching him.

"Their last orders were to hold their ground for an hour, until the last man," the colonel said. "They will surely return to the throne, and we will meet there."

Sergeant Malik solemnly performed the Eagle Salute, then looked at Ramizann with hope.

“You are the angel of death bestowed by the Emperor. With you leading us, we will surely be able to gather more easily at the foot of the throne.”

"..."

"Uh." The atmosphere had already reached this point, and Ramizan looked slightly embarrassed at the various weapons spread across the ground in front of him, along with the holy water bowl and brush beside him.

The last few hundred citizens of Adulrim gazed at the tallest and most holy warrior before them, their eyes filled with fear of death, yet also with a burning hope: to follow the Emperor's angel of death into the army of the Chaos cultists, shouting for the Emperor's sacrifice, sounded far better than to die in fear within the city.

"Where is your state church pastor?"

“He was killed long ago,” Sergeant Malik said. “The pastor was hit by a stray bullet when the church was requisitioned. May the Emperor protect his soul.”

“Our… Space Marine consecration ceremony may be different from what you are used to.”

Ramizam was making his final, death throes.

"What matters is what you represent, not the custom of the ritual."

Well, that's how it is.

Lamizan walked over, picked up the holy water bowl and the brush inside, his mind racing as he tried to think of what to chant.

The damn Nottingham Workshop doesn't actually have any proper state religion scriptures set up, and it's impossible to memorize the scriptures of a certain religion. At most, you can flip through them when you're looking up information. So what can you do?
I've got it!

Those standing beside this imperial angel could only hear him chanting in a clear, resonant voice, but no one could understand the ancient and beautiful prayer.

"...All ghosts surrender, their souls vanish...in an instant, they turn to dust, their traces vanishing without a trace. Heaven has clear laws, those who defy it must all submit, the decree is to be carried out immediately—do not hesitate!"

As the mysterious Astartes proclaimed the final words of consecration in a high-pitched High Gothic voice, holy water was sprinkled on all the weapons present. The people chanted the emperor's name in unison, then picked up their weapons and prepared to rush out of the city gates to the final battlefield.

"First time on the battlefield? Young man? Come on!"

Colonel Fedorak grinned at Zano, “Get in my chariot! Let’s smash those Chaos bastards to pieces! I’ll teach you how to use a gun!”

The boy looked at the colonel calmly.

"We won't lose."

The colonel laughed. "Yes! Young man, that's the kind of spirit we're looking for!"

Zão Eifelnetti shut his mouth.

His pupils reflected the dragon-like warp lightning emanating from the weapons.

--------

"kill!!!!"

Colonel Fedorak gripped his communicator and roared, "Charge! Let's rout them! Don't stop firing! Pull the triggers tight! Fire indiscriminately forward!"

"Kill! Messenger of Hell! Kill!"

Bloodthirsty imperial soldiers and civilians fired in all directions from above the drivers who were also flooring the accelerator. The thousands of cultist troops who had been so arrogant in front of the city gates were thrown into chaos and ran wildly in all directions.

What truly terrified them was the power of the weapons wielded by these remnants of the army who had stormed out of the city gates: the laser guns did not merely scorch their own armor or leave a quick-healing wound on their mutated limbs as usual.

These laser guns emitted a deep, rumbling sound, like the roar of a dragon or muffled thunder, when held by ordinary people. Then, beams of light thousands of times brighter than lasers poured out from the ordinary gun muzzles. The ultra-high temperature plasma meandered through the air, and the air on the battlefield was filled with the pungent smell of ozone.

These weapons, which suddenly became extremely powerful, burned and melted everything in their path. No armor could withstand a second shot, and plants turned charred and ashes.

The cultists who were hit burned up quickly, like a piece of paper soaked in gasoline, and turned into grayish-white dust. Even non-lethal parts—even just a small scratch—would ignite an inextinguishable flame from that spot and quickly turn to ashes.

After the first encounter and the discovery of this fact, the witch Gulin's cult army immediately lost morale, and many people began to run towards the woods or other cover, while anyone who dared to fight back was bombarded by one or more bolts of lightning.

Four minutes after the two sides engaged in battle, the cult's encirclement completely collapsed. They howled and fled into the depths of the river and forest, fearing that they would be entangled by the deadly lightning.

The unexpectedly significant and favorable changes rekindled hope in Colonel Fedorak's eyes.

"Form ranks! Form ranks! Don't advance too far in the pursuit!" He shouted hoarsely, gripping the communicator while struggling to maintain his balance so he wouldn't be thrown off the tank.

"Don't chase them too far! Maintain formation! Don't let anyone get separated! Once they're in the woods, we'll immediately prepare to go to other city gates to pick up the survivors and leave this place!"

"But Colonel! We're about to wipe them out! If we kill them all, our retreat will be much safer!"

"They're just terrified right now! We're far too few in number! We'll be at a disadvantage in the forest!"

Fedorak roared, "The wise plan is to get them out of here and move to the nearest of our cities while they're still terrified! I didn't bring you bunch of old, weak, sick, and disabled cats and dogs out here for you to trade one for two with them! Trading your lives with these degenerate scum?! Even if it's one for ten, I'd still think it's a loss! We need to hurry and rescue our brothers at the other city gates and get them back! Understand?!"

The feverish blush on Sergeant Malik's face faded slightly. "Yes, sir! I understand! I'll go and gather the troops immediately!"

Lamizain stood behind the colonel, firing a few shots as if to show it off, secretly nodding to himself. This colonel was really alright; it was rare to find someone so normal in the Imperial Army…

The sound of a powerful engine roaring suddenly came from above the thick clouds in the sky. "Hmm?"

Suddenly, a massive, angular aircraft, accompanied by the roar of three rocket turbine engines, emerged abruptly from the clouds, its wingtips leaving long trails of cloud.

Then, hell missiles, cannons, and heavy quadruple bomb guns roared in mid-air, carving out terrifying trenches of blood and flesh among the cultists who were trying to escape.

--------

"This is a godsend! Is this the support you've been calling for?! Sir?! You..."

Colonel Fedorak swallowed the rest of his sentence, because he saw the Space Marine staring at these powerful aircraft he had only seen in some documents from the Ministry of Military Affairs, his brow furrowed and his expression grave. Clearly, he wasn't very familiar with the owners of those aircraft flying in the sky.

“I’m not sure if meeting them is a good thing or a bad thing, Colonel.” Fedorak looked uneasy as the other’s expression turned serious for the first time, and the reactor began to hum with increased power. “But we’ll soon find out why they’re here.”

Ramizan pointed to the Thunderhawk gunship that was circling and passengers were constantly jumping out of the rear cabin. "They should have noticed you and me by now."

This is an exquisitely decorated, personalized Thunderhawk. Its base color is a deep and beautiful scarlet, adorned with gold and other meticulously crafted sculpted ornaments. A ruby ​​blood droplet encased in gold is prominently displayed among its pristine white wings.

Clearly, this suddenly appearing Space Marine squad came from the Blood Angels, and its leader was of high status.

“I feel very uncomfortable, sir,” Zao suddenly whispered against Rami’s chest. The boy raised his hand, the back of which was covered in the blood from his nose. “I’ve never felt such a heavy darkness before… it’s getting closer and closer.”

What? Isn't this the emblem of the Blood Angels? It looks exactly like it! Ramizane checked with LOGOS again and got a definite answer.

This is it... He secretly ordered the power armor to activate the second layer of anti-psychic shield.

"How is it now?"

"I'm feeling better, sir."

"Then we'll keep them running."

At this moment, more than twenty Astartes surged out of the Thunderhawk like drops of blood, fiercely hunting down the last remaining cultists as if chopping melons and mincing meat.

Ramizan glanced at it briefly and saw no black-painted armor or red diagonal crosses. Thank goodness!

...But there are other colors...this is...

He frowned as he watched the three people stride casually across the ground covered in blood, flesh, and ashes as they approached them.

The leader was dressed in scarlet, yet the armor was exquisitely and luxuriously crafted. The surface of the ceramic steel armor was covered with intricate carvings and fine lines, making this inanimate object look like a living, skinned muscle at first glance. The skull, representing death, adorned his chest and shoulder armor, while only the white winged belt at his waist added a touch of holiness and sanctity.

The warrior exuded a cold and arrogant aura. A uniquely shaped psionic collar stood prominently beside his face. His long, platinum-gold hair was combed back and cascaded down his shoulders. His face was handsome yet pale and sinister. His eyes and forehead shone with a deep blue light. This blue-glowing psionic energy flowed along his body and arms until it converged into the exquisite greatsword he held in his hand.

The two companions behind him, to his left and right, also radiated powerful psychic energy from their eyes. Psychic hoods surrounded their heads, and crystals hurriedly gathered and captured energy, channeling it into the staffs in their hands. Their armor differed from that of the leader, being predominantly blue. However, white wings and blood droplets appeared on one of their shoulder armors, indicating that they and the leader were blood brothers left by the same genetic father.

Upon seeing this, Ramizam finally realized who he was seeing.

"Morpheus?!"

The head of the Holy Blood Angels think tank, who was about to walk in front of them, raised an eyebrow upon hearing this, while the two Holy Blood Angels think tank members behind him had different reactions.

The older one snorted dismissively at the delighted address, as if he had seen this kind of worshipful and flattering opening to Mephisto many times before; while the much younger one gripped his staff tightly, threateningly concentrating his power at the tip and pointing it at the chariot where Ramizan and his men were.

“You know…him, sir.” Colonel Fedorak’s teeth chattered for some reason as he forced out a few words. “That’s…wonderful…terrible…”

The renowned chief think tank of the Holy Blood Angels glanced at the colonel, and Fedorak immediately flinched, feeling as if his soul had been pierced.

"Are you the supreme commander here?"

“I…” Fear gripped Colonel Fedorak; he tried to move his mouth but found himself unable to speak.

At such close range, he could clearly see that this god-like, terrifyingly handsome Astartes had a pair of blood-red, bestial eyes, and rows of sharp canines hidden behind pale, thin lips, as if it were drooling over the flesh and blood of creatures like itself.

Suddenly, a large hand reached out from behind and placed on Colonel Fedorak's shoulder. A warm feeling surged into his heart, and the colonel's spirits lifted.

“Yes, I am Colonel Ayman Fedorak, commander of the 145th Regiment of the Hellbringers of Rubiana. May I ask who you are? Are you a loyal warrior of the Emperor?”

This remark did not displease the Space Marine known as Mephisto, but the two blue-armored warriors behind him were immediately enraged by the colonel's question.

"What! You heartless bastard! We came from afar to save you and your men, and a mere colonel not only shows no gratitude but dares to immediately question our loyalty! I warned you that mortals in the wilderness are often so ungrateful, so we shouldn't have been in such a hurry to act!"

“Laserius.” Mephisto raised his hand to stop his companion’s angry shout, then turned to look at the “Astartes” standing behind the colonel, who had just raised his hand and placed it on his shoulder. The Astartes was dressed in a low-key and harmonious silver-gray armor.

You know me. Have we met before?

"I haven't seen you before, but your chess... I mean, with that armor and your psionic powers, you're really easy to spot, aren't you?"

“Indeed.” Morpheus nodded slowly, and then, psychic energy surged from his extraordinary and transcendent eyes, causing everything around the think tank director to slow down infinitely.

For him, the flow of time seemed to stand still at this moment.

Mephisto's soul left his body and slowly walked forward toward the strange, silver-armored Astartes.

“Why can’t I see through your memories and soul? It’s all emptiness there,” he murmured. “This is impossible. My power is now beyond the ordinary; there’s no way I could not see anything in your heart. The prophecy that guided me here didn’t mention you. Who are you? Mysterious one, let me see…”

Eyes brimming with spiritual energy met the unsuspecting depths of icy blue eyes.

(End of this chapter)