Warhammer 40: Doom

Chapter 14 Black Viper
Erda was furious at the Imperial Guards' rude behavior. She knew, of course, that the Imperial Guards were wary of her. These extremely rude bastards trusted no one.

“Of course you can, you can even open it, it’s just an old gift from an old friend.” Erda suppressed her anger and answered very easily, a generous smile on her fair face.

Ptolemy silently took a step back, positioning himself at the optimal distance, ready to support his teammates or kill Erda at any moment.

Achilles was drawn to the contents of the box and murmured, "So it is this, the ancient religious texts of mankind."

The box contains a static force field that can freeze time, thus preserving precious items for a long time.

An old paper Bible lies quietly inside, its cover depicting a coiled black serpent, with a gold rose brooch pinned to its head.

Protected by the static force field, the books remained pristine and untouched by time.

“Madam,” Achilles said, his voice tinged with a warning, “Madam Ilda, you should know that the Emperor dislikes these books very much.”

"They are destined to turn into ashes in our Lord's future plans."

The emperor planned to overthrow all religions, break all superstitions, burn religious books, and liberate human thought from faith.

“Of course I know, but not now, right?” Erda nodded slightly, without explaining further, and gestured for the Imperial Guards to return the books.

Achilles examined the book but found nothing amiss. As he closed the book, the crimson eyes of the venomous snake coiled on the cover made him uneasy.

“There are very few serpents on the cover of the Bible. The black serpent deceived Eve and symbolizes betrayal.”

The Imperial Guard was known for its erudition, and Achilles calmly commented on the fables, his seemingly simple words instantly creating tension in the underground base.

Betrayal! At this moment, it is undoubtedly an extremely sensitive word.

With a furrowed brow and a hint of anger rising on her face, Erda rebuked Achilles, "Guards! Watch your words!"

“My lady,” Achilles said, bowing his head, the red tassel on his golden helmet swaying, “I have no doubts about you.”

"Hmph!" With a soft hum, suppressing the tremor deep in her eyes, Erda secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

When the Imperial Guard uttered the word "betrayal," revealing their true thoughts, Erda's emotions shifted slightly. Even such a subtle change could not escape the Imperial Guard's keen eyes.

Fortunately, she managed to mask her emotions with a hint of anger and escape Achilles's provocation in an instant.

The strength of the Imperial Guards was not only physical; their minds were equally powerful.

Lie detection is one of their most basic skills, as they can detect lies or the truth by observing subtle physiological changes in the target, such as slight pupil dilation and constriction.

A seemingly casual remark may contain a dangerous and probing undertone, like a knife pressed against one's throat.

Achilles' voice was full of apology, but his face, hidden beneath his helmet, remained expressionless. After checking that everything was in order, he presented the book to Ilda.

Erda, her face ashen, took the book and turned away from the cramped and tense environment of the underground base.

A deceptive ancient book successfully diverted the Imperial Guard's attention, allowing Erda to easily obtain what she needed.

Long, slender fingers lightly brushed across the book, as if brushing away dust from a rose brooch.

All actions were observed by the Imperial Guards; their logic was clear, reasonable, and normal. After verifying that the books were correct, they were placed into their personal bags.

Little did they know that their seemingly reasonable actions had activated some ancient technological artifacts in the underground chamber.

After the three left, deep within the secret base, several pairs of mechanical electronic devices, flashing with a blood-red light, were activated from their slumber and put into standby mode.

With the goods in hand, the three immediately set off back to the Himalayas.

Terra is very unsafe, with many warlords rising up and fighting each other.

Beginning from the 25th thousandth, warp storms gradually raged, their fierce force blocking humanity's path to the stars. Human genetic mutations surged, resulting in a large number of psionic beings, exacerbating social unrest. Coupled with the rebellion of intelligent machines, humanity entered an era of chaos and despair.

That dark past has not yet faded away, and humanity continues to struggle in conflict with one another.

The mother planet that gave birth to humankind has never seen the smoke of war dissipate; its land is scarred and bears the marks of war everywhere.

The emperor steps into the limelight, determined to end the internal strife among mankind and reunite humanity.

The nascent empire was still in its infancy, yet everywhere it looked, there were enemies.

Albia, Albion, the Pan-Pacific Empire, the Caucasian Wasteland, the Franc, Ursh, powerful technological warlords, and sorcerous tyrants who wield secret arts.

The emperor dispatched his army, the savage Thunder Warriors.

Conquer all in his name, fight against all hostile forces in Terra, and achieve the goal of unification.

Back at her lodgings, Erda casually put the "Bible" back on the bookshelf; the book was just a pretext, the brooch was what she really wanted to retrieve.

He sat back down at his desk, gently stroking the rose brooch, and used the needle to prick his finger to confirm the user's DNA.

A relic from the Dark Ages of Technology, a precious technological artifact that can be used to open dimensional rifts and store items.

A faint blue light emanated from the void before Erda, and a dimensional rift opened, from which a wooden box and a gold ring emerged.

Inside the box lay a bronze dagger, its design simple and ancient, a product of the feudal era on Terra.

The unassuming gold ring, its ingenious disguise failing to evoke any association with the Golden Age, conceals cutting-edge time technology. Shedding his combat uniform, he dons his usual silk robe, minimizing his perceived threat.

With a brooch pinned to her chest, a gold ring on her wrist, and her dagger concealed, Erda, her eyes resolute, left her bedroom and headed for the Imperial Laboratory.

The Imperial Laboratory is located deep at the foot of the Himalayas, the only remaining mountain range in Terra.

Twelve Imperial Guards led several squads of first-generation modified warriors, the "Thunder Warriors," to guard the laboratory entrance. They were surrounded by a large number of ordinary troops, as well as various anti-aircraft firepower and heavy war machines.

Erda, as always, appeared relaxed, with a gentle smile on her face, and walked gracefully towards them.

Achilles and Ptolemy stood three body lengths behind her, dutifully fulfilling their duties.

As a close friend of the Emperor and Minister of the Interior, Erda often stood beside the Emperor in public. Most people in the Empire knew Erda, this gentle woman who stood beside the Lord of Mankind.

She doesn't need any passes or documents; relying on her prestige and the emperor's trust, she can freely enter and exit the most confidential areas.

Now, Erda is shrouded in shadow, a large hand encased in metal armor blocking her path.

Somewhat surprised, she stopped and looked up to see a fierce warrior wearing a helmet, his nose and mouth exposed, blocking her way.

Erda's pupils contracted slightly. The Emperor's first-generation cyborg warrior, a defective product about to be replaced, blocked his path.

“You are no longer permitted to enter here, madam.”

The soldier spoke slowly and cruelly. His tall body blocked out the light, his limbs were thick, and the muscles that bulged out from the gaps in his armor were abnormally prominent. His voice was hoarse and deep, and his words were full of gunpowder.

“Soldier,” Erda’s face darkened, his gentle demeanor vanished, replaced by contempt, “who gave you the authority to stand in my way and stop me?”

Thunder Warriors! Terra trembled beneath their feet as they destroyed city after city, delivering victory after victory to the Emperor.

These warriors are wielding the Emperor's Hammer, rough and violent, utterly savage, with brutality flowing in their blood and only slaughter and destruction in their minds.

Erda despised them and held the Thunder Warriors' achievements and glory in utter contempt.

The Thunder Warriors breached the city-state, destroying countless brilliant achievements left over from the Golden Age, along with technology, knowledge, and the civilization that humanity once possessed.

Besides all that, Erda knew the fate of the Thunder Warriors; they had no future.

In order to conquer Terra as soon as possible, the Emperor urgently created the Thunder Warriors. They were powerful but extremely unstable, with short lifespans, unstable mental states, and frequent outbreaks of genetic diseases.

The Emperor has a plan: once a new generation of soldiers is born, the Thunder Warriors will be secretly purged.

Those outside will know that they will die when Terra is unified, and live on in praise.

“Tell me, soldier. How dare you stand in my way and show me such contempt?”

“Madam, I respect you,” the Thunder Warrior lowered his head and knelt on one knee, trying to keep the lady in front of him from looking up at him. “This is our order; we cannot let you pass.”

"Whose orders are you following?"

“Madam, there’s no need to make things difficult for him. We are guided by Macardo and obey the Emperor’s will.”

The Imperial Guard, clad in golden armor, stepped out from behind the Thunder Warriors and explained all of Erda's questions in a single sentence.

“Macardo!” Erda raised her thin golden eyebrows slightly, secretly admiring Macardo’s keenness and wisdom. That hunched old fox was extremely annoying and a headache.

At the same time, he understood that Makado was on guard, but he didn't know what he was going to do.

"Hmph." Erda sneered. The Holy Lady showed no mercy at this moment, calculating her chances of successfully forcibly breaking into the laboratory.

Twelve Imperial Guards, several squads of Thunder Warriors, and countless mortals—Makado had really gone to great lengths, immediately arranging such a large-scale operation to satisfy a mere sliver of doubt in his heart.

"Too bad, you can't stop me!"

Without hesitation, the Imperial Guard swung his powered halberd, covering a short distance before stopping at Erda's neck. Then, he questioned whether he had misheard: "Madam, what did you say?"

A chill ran down their spines as Achilles and Ptolemy made their move. Their halberds hadn't even activated their disintegration field yet; the smooth blades sliced ​​through the air with utmost composure, making no sound whatsoever.

Three long halberds held Erda in the middle, their gleaming blades reflecting her fair, jade-like neck. Bloodstains slowly trickled down the blades, signaling Erda not to make any rash moves.

Before the surrounding Thunder Warriors could even see the Imperial Guard's movements, a flash of cold light, like blades slicing through the air, appeared in their eyes. In less than milliseconds, the Imperial Guard completed a series of actions and subdued Erda.

Exclamations of amazement rose and fell, and the Thunder Warriors couldn't help but marvel at the power of the Imperial Guard.

Erda smiled coldly, ignoring the Imperial Guard's warning. Her hands, clasped together on her lower abdomen, subtly pressed a mechanism, and the golden ring emitted an invisible shockwave.

"The creations of the Golden Age will tear you apart, Imperial Guard!"

As soon as he finished speaking, three Imperial Guards were the first to be attacked. In the instant they realized something was wrong, they swung their halberds at Erda, only to find that their bodies could not keep up with the speed of their thoughts. Their bodies were as if they were trapped in a swamp, unable to move.

The surrounding air became viscous, and a semi-circular transparent barrier erupted from Erda, covering a radius of thirty meters around him.

Time weapon!

The Imperial Guards were well-informed and had read extensively in the Imperial Library, so they immediately knew what had happened.

(End of this chapter)