Warhammer 40: Doom

Chapter 235 Nocturne Star

Doom's gaze pierced through the fog of psychic energy, and he saw a trace of divinity emerging from the pure and flawless radiance.

That tiny, insignificant trace, hidden within the pure and flawless blackness.

It was deathly black, utterly black.

He keenly sensed that the divinity contained a dark power that seemed capable of devouring everything.

"You'd better explain yourself." Doom's tone was icy cold, instantly freezing the atmosphere in the cabin.

The superhuman bodies of the Imperial Guard stiffened at the Primarch's cold tone, and their hands instinctively tightened their guard spears.

The inner tension made the guards feel ashamed; this subconscious action stemmed from instinctive self-protection rather than from their duty.

Yes, the Emperor's bodyguards felt fear.

The conflict tore the Imperial Guard apart, and the danger signals emitted by the Genesis caused the Imperial Guard's instincts to momentarily override their mission and duties.

They were filled with shame and fear that they were too weak to protect the safety of the Lord of Humanity.

With the King of Warriors so close at hand, the Imperial Guards could only grip their weapons tightly, using the hard, cold steel to dispel the weakness welling up from the depths of their souls.

The emperor remained silent for a brief moment, as usual.

The sharpness in Doom's eyes was undisguised; he needed an answer, an answer that could convince the god-slayer.

The atmosphere inside the cabin plummeted to freezing point; the warm glow emanating from the Emperor could not melt the frozen heartbeat.

"Divinity originates from worship." The emperor pondered for a long time before slowly speaking, explaining the origin of his own divinity: "Human beings' imagination of their worshippers is always glorious and magnificent, filled with all sorts of perfect definitions."

"God," a word originating from religious worship on ancient Terra, is rooted in human imagination.

"The savior is a god, the strong are gods, the wise are gods, and the filthy are gods too."

"In any case, whether in human imagination or outside, for whatever reason, the image of the worshipped always leans toward the divine."

"Many in the Empire believe that the Emperor is a god." The Lord of Mankind's brows were full of helplessness. "I have devoted myself to eliminating superstition and have invested an entire legion, but I have never been able to eradicate ignorance and the worship of the deification of individuals."

"Compared to following the cold, ruthless imperial truths and those merciless definitions, it is simpler and more vivid for humanity to build an idol to worship in their hearts."

After listening, Doom did not express his opinion, but instead asked the middle-aged man who was beginning to show signs of divinity, "Are you a god?"

For a powerful psychic like the Emperor, subjective factors outweigh objective ones.

If he wants to become a god, he only needs to shed his burdens and seek the opportunity to become a god over the long years.

There's no need to go to great lengths to shoulder the burden of the continuation and survival of the human race, doing meaningless things.

Emperors have long since attained immortality, transcending birth, aging, sickness, and death.

If he abandons his humanity and embraces his own divinity, becoming a god would not be difficult for him.

"I am not a god." For the first time, a vivid look of disgust appeared on the emperor's majestic face, revealing his undisguised aversion to the concept of "god."

The answer was decisive and without the slightest hesitation, carrying a sense of urgency in drawing a line.

“Then let’s wait and see.” Doom said expressionlessly. He believed the Emperor’s words, but he did not believe in “humanity.”

The emperor's current subjective factors may change in the future, leading him to become a god, whether voluntarily or involuntarily.

Let time prove everything and deliver on our promises.

The two men's conversation was brief yet dangerous; within minutes, they had finished discussing divinity and the path to godhood.

Strangely enough, these two people, who could easily become gods in the real universe, have a deep aversion to gods.

Because they all know the price of becoming a god.

God is merely a puppet driven by divinity and power, and has no noble qualities whatsoever.

Those who are pitied and loved, and those who are despised and rejected.

The gods deceive and attack each other because of their different powers, which is no different from the infighting among mortals.

After a brief inquiry, silence fell over the shuttle, and the tension between the two great beings eased slightly.

The Imperial Guard shuttle was efficient and stable, moving rapidly toward its destination. The pilot wanted to escape the suffocating oppression as soon as possible.

Doom raised his left hand, and an image was projected onto his arm armor, displaying real-time data from the Royal Majesty.

Their goal is a dead world, a planet with a surface covered in volcanoes and flowing lava, like a lava inferno from ancient legends.

According to Sophia's scans and calculations, the dead world called "Nocturne" approaches its massive satellite every fifteen years, their gravitational pulls tug at each other, triggering the eruption of the planet's volcanoes.

A look of amazement flashed in Doom's eyes as he marveled once again at the wonder of the universe.

The satellite of Nocturne is very massive, and the fact that it didn't collide with Nocturne during its once-every-fifteen-year approach is truly a cosmic miracle. "Sir, we can only take you this far for now," the Imperial Guard pilot apologized, as the shuttle hovered above the clouds.

Every fifteen years, a large number of volcanoes erupt, accumulating thick layers of volcanic ash in the atmosphere.

It is difficult for aircraft to pass through, and the slightest carelessness could lead to a crash.

The Emperor nodded silently, then used his spiritual energy to communicate with the Imperial Guards, and the rear cabin opened.

Doom's nostrils twitched as he smelled the pungent odor of volcanic sulfur in the air rushing into the cabin.

He stood up without saying much, walked to the cabin door, and looked down at the dust cloud flashing with lightning.

"Let's go." The emperor wrapped his long robe around himself, his body enveloped in spiritual energy, and a golden shuttle floated out.

Doom was immune to psionic attacks, and the Emperor's Light could not get close to him, so he had to find his own way.

So he leaped out of the plane with a calm expression, plummeting rapidly in freefall.

The left arm armor lit up with a signal, and the round shield was taken out from another dimension. Doom placed the shield under his feet.

It's not that I'm afraid of the damage from falling, but rather that I need a stable shape to compress the air downwards and break through the dust cloud.

Without any protection, a large amount of dust will enter your mouth and nose.

Doom, standing on his shield, pierced a hole in the dust cloud and, accompanied by flashes of lightning, free-falled from a height of ten thousand meters.

A golden light surrounded him, and the Emperor descended in sync with him. The two used their respective methods to parachute onto Nocturne Star.

Thud~~~~
With a muffled thud, the massive explosion was swallowed by the thunder, and Doom, with the force of a celestial being, smashed into the ground, creating a crater.

He took off his cloak and shook off the dust, only the hem of his clothes was slightly dirty. He then picked up the shield and held it in his hand.

Doom looked around, his eyes seeing only volcanoes and lava, while he stood on the obsidian lake.

“Go that way,” the emperor landed gracefully and pointed in a direction: “I sense his presence.”

Doom nodded and walked silently in the direction he was pointing.

He held a shield in his left hand and took a super shotgun from his waist with his right, his eyes frequently scanning several directions.

“The local creatures aren’t friendly.” He said in a low voice, loading his super shotgun, but his steps didn’t stop.

The emperor remained silent, but when he raised his hand, golden light shot from his fingertips, piercing the lava river flowing beside the obsidian lake.

The magma immediately boiled, and a huge beast, resembling a lizard from ancient Terra, rose from it.

It has a huge body, covered in scales that can withstand the high temperature of magma, and lies in wait in the magma for its prey to come to it.

Without hesitation, Doom ran quickly across the obsidian lake, stepped on the lava lizard corpses, leaped over the hundred-meter lava river, and landed on real land.

Then, a large group of strange creatures emerged from the lava.

Scorpions covered in scales and fire-breathing giant lizards rose up and stared intently at their prey with their crimson eyes.

Doom ignored them, and with a swift movement, disappeared from the sight of the native creatures, leaving behind only bewildered monsters.

They looked at each other in the lava river, wondering if they were seeing things.

The Emperor hovered in the air, saving a lot of trouble, and constantly pointed out the way forward for Doom, preventing him from walking into the lava.

Although he disliked psionic powers, Doom sometimes had to admit that they were indeed very convenient if used for good.

The two moved quickly forward, crossing the lava-strewn volcanoes and traversing obsidian land, approaching their destination.

Finally, after a three-hour journey, Doom and the Emperor stood on the mountaintop, gazing at the distant highlands.

They finally came to a human settlement; a town stood on the high ground, and outside the town were fertile lands planted with some unknown crops.

Outside the town, things are bustling with activity as dark-skinned people take up arms and fight the enemy.

In the human camp, a giant nearly six meters tall wields a massive iron hammer, eliminating agile alien invaders.

No explanation was needed; the two recognized him at a glance as their lost brother/son.

"Should we go and help them?" Doum stood on a boulder, his eyes fixed on the human tribe.

He recognized the intruders: the "Dark Eldar," who, after their fall, remained unrepentant.

The naked female spirits—the Witch Spirits—are incredibly agile and use poisoned daggers to slaughter humans.

“We need to observe,” the Emperor said, sparks flashing at his fingertips as a barrier appeared before him, obscuring their presence, “to examine his heart.”

(End of this chapter)