Warhammer: Black Emperor

Chapter 255 Celebration
With the triumphant ceremony and celebrations welcoming the Primarchs back overlapping, Terra celebrated a grand military parade.

Five hours before the celebration began, ribbons of color swept parallel across the clouds over Terra, flying quickly through every area.

The Stormbird is at the center, with fighter jets and bombers forming the two wings.

Macado's special fuel, prepared for the solemnity of the celebration, allowed the colorful rays of the tail flame to pierce through the dim clouds.

As the fighter jets roared overhead, every citizen of Terra could directly feel the power of the Empire.

Countless Terrans gathered under the giant holographic screens erected in various hives, gazing up at the images overhead.

As the visual runes flashed, the holographic screen lit up simultaneously.

A human emperor clad in golden armor occupied the entire screen.

The people of the empire craned their necks and stared wide-eyed at the Lord of Mankind.

In the hive of Iphigenis, golden light shone in the eyes of the people of Terra.

The first person crossed their hands in front of their chest and performed the Eagle Salute.

Inspired by him, one person after another followed suit.

"Emperor!"

"Lord of Humanity!"

Cheers from the people of Terra resounded throughout the hives.

The same scene unfolded on a high platform constructed of steel.

Nobles, imperial officials, and wealthy merchants all praised the emperor in unison.

Amid cheers, the emperor raised his arm and pressed down with one hand.

The cheers then subsided, and the emperor spoke.

"Today, I would like to introduce one of my sons to you."

"He is the fifth Primarch to return to the Empire, he is the Primarch of the Tenth Legion, he is the Iron Hand..."

Manus walked to the Emperor's side, and in the giant screens of each hive, they saw giants in black armor and silver hands.

"Finus Manus!"

The audience erupted in cheers and shouts.

"Imperial offspring!"

"Lord Finus Manus!"

The emperor smiled and spoke to Manus.

“My son, I expect you to lead the Tenth Legion to conquer the galaxy, purify the aliens, and reclaim the human colonies.”

Manus felt the enthusiasm of the people, and his usually stern face was filled with excitement.

He crossed his arms in the Eagle Salute, his voice, heavy as lead, drowning out the cheers.

"Father, I swear on my own two hands that I will carry out your will, lead the Iron Hand, and wipe out the enemies of mankind!"

Manus walked briskly toward the throne where his personal banner was hung.

"The parade begins!"

The Shadow of Order, clad in black armor, led the way onto the 500-meter-long, 5-kilometer-wide parade route, receiving cheers from the audience.

The other warbands did not follow Nimrod to the solar system, so the parade consisted of 3,010 members of the Honor Guard in this batch.

They were the most outstanding Shadow Order fighters in the "Wheel of Fire" campaign, with even the one with the fewest kills taking down over a hundred Greenskins.

They wore at least two commemorative medals, and 130 of them had iron halos personally awarded by the Primarch behind their heads.

This means that they all demonstrated exceptional initiative in at least one battle, achieving results that influenced the course of the battle.

The camera captures images, converts them into video signals, and transmits them to the audio array.

The sages of the Mechanicus lead a team of Tech-Priests to maintain the operation of the sonic array and distribute video signals to each hive.

Following closely behind the Shadow of Order was the Space Wolf, whose leader, Jorin, and Enoch Rashivin, clad in dark gray power armor, led their empire onto the parade route.

Standing on the high platform, Ninglu looked down and could see the wolves' resentment.

Especially evident in the fury flashing in Yolin and Rashivin's eyes, it was clear they were eager to win the hunt and were the first to appear.

The third contingent to march onto the parade route consisted of Faceless Men clad in amber armor. Suarez, Erling, and Mads led their respective groups, striding forward.

The Faceless Ones joined the war in the later stages of the "Wheel of Flames" campaign, and they had no complaints about being placed at the back of the Astartes Legion.

The three Astartes legions stood in neat formation below the high platform.

The people of Terra cheered enthusiastically. The Astartes were the main force behind the Emperor's Great Expeditions, and they had recovered one lost colony after another for the Empire.

Macardo's propaganda machine further convinced them that it was the Eleventh, Sixth, and Second Legions that fought a desperate battle in the Flame Wheel system to purify the evil aliens.

They knew that the fewest of the Order Shadows, clad in black armor, were at the center.

This is because the Shadow of Order achieved the greatest results, and Primarch Nimrod personally killed the powerful Greenskin warlord.

On the right side of the formation are the Space Wolves in dark gray armor; they suffered the greatest losses, with their achievements second only to the Shadow of Order.

On the left are the Faceless Ones in amber armor; they were the last to join the war. Lord Hannibal was the last Primarch to return to the Empire.

"The Shadow of Order!"

"Space Wolf!"

"The Faceless One!"

In the nest city of Iphigenia, a skilled worker with calloused hands said to his two sons:

"The next selection will be coming soon. You must work hard to become a member of the Shadow of Order and fight for the Emperor."

"Shadowmoon Wolf is fine too."

His clever and quick-witted second son asked, "Why not Space Wolf or Faceless One?"

"Lord Horus and Lord Nimrod are not only the two Primarchs who returned first."

"More importantly, 'Shadowmoon Wolves' and 'Shadow of Order' are the two legions with the greatest combat record."

"Next to me, another female technician spoke up loudly."

"My son was among the new batch of candidates who passed the selection process. He came home to say goodbye before going to Luna."

"I heard him say that in the current selection, the top twenty belong to 'Shadowmoon Wolf' and 'Shadow of Order'."

“In the past, the top fifteen were candidates from the Shadowmoon Wolves, and the rest were from other legions. When Lord Ninglu first returned to the Empire, the sixteenth to thirtieth places were from the Order of Shadows.”

"Right now, the first place is the Shadowmoon Wolf candidate, the second place is the Order of Shadows, and the third place is also the Order of Shadows..."

She said proudly:

“The best candidates will go to these two legions, and the rest will go to other legions. My son Ethan was the second best.”

"He will become a candidate for the Shadow of Order, loyal to the Emperor and serving Lord Nimrod!"

The worker father, who had spoken earlier, exclaimed in amazement, "That's truly remarkable!"

He stared wide-eyed at the woman with envy.

As they spoke, the ground in the parade ground trembled, and the Titans of the Cult of Machines strode in.

Looking down, Nimrod saw that the Titans were painted not the green of the "Morning Star Titan Legion," but the red of Mars.

He understood that they were there as a ceremonial force for the military parade.

Macardo's purpose in having them participate was to demonstrate the strength of the Imperial military, boost the morale of the Terran people, and encourage them to serve the Empire more actively.

The Guardians marched in orderly steps, flanking and beneath the Titan, looking like ants at its feet.

After Titan stood still, the Emperor's majestic voice rang out again, and the camera focused on the high platform.

"At the end of the celebration, honors were bestowed upon the three Primarchs who achieved the greatest victories in the 'Wheel of Fire' campaign."

“My three sons, please come forward.”

Nimrod, Ruth, and Hannibal emerged from under the banner and, under Manus's envious gaze, walked behind the emperor.

Nimrod is in the center, Ruth is on the right, and Hannibal is on the left.

The emperor turned around and saw the gleam in Manus's eyes—ambition, a burning passion for achieving great things.

He turned his gaze back to the three Primarchs in front of him with satisfaction.

(End of this chapter)