Warhammer 40: Doom

Chapter 253 Bridge
The servants were arranged by Doom, but he felt a little uneasy.

After all, if the Emperor and Vulcan found out about beating his brother and imprisoning him, it would likely damage Guilliman's and his own reputation.

Especially Vulcan—that dark-skinned brother was kind and righteous, and beating and abusing his brother might be a serious crime in his eyes, requiring a solemn apology and repentance.

To prevent further trouble, Doom struck first, nipping the crisis in the bud.

After leaving the prison deck, Doom hurried toward the medical room, his steps quick and slightly disordered.

The group entered the medical room, where the Night Guardian lay in the stasis medical chamber, severely injured by the thermal explosion.

Time stood still inside the medical pod, and his condition did not worsen. The mechanical arm that traversed the frozen time was peeling away the rotten flesh from his body.

A billion nanometer-sized fine forceps peel away dead cells layer by layer, continuously reconstructing damaged limbs.

The Night Guardian's situation is dire; his lower limbs and half of his body have been completely blown apart, leaving only half a heart, a third of a lung, and a small portion of a liver.

Most of the skin on the face was burned, and after the charred cells were peeled off, the facial muscles and ligaments were clearly visible.

Without the protection of eyelids, his eyes were devoid of any light, as if he were a corpse.

Such injuries would have killed an ordinary mortal or even a space warrior long ago; death would have already come.

However, the life monitoring equipment in the medical ward showed that this tenacious warrior was still alive, his indomitable spirit resisting death.

It's a complete miracle that he's still alive.

After being wounded and constantly moving around the battlefield for ten days, his body had long since bled dry, and his internal organs showed signs of death, decay, and rot.

Even the most advanced medical technology, which enables countless disabled veterans to return to the battlefield through "limb regeneration," could not save him.

The body and limbs are being reconstructed, but life is beyond saving.

Within the mutilated body, the only thing sustaining life is the will to defeat death.

Doom stood to the side, expressionless, watching the machine reconstruct the limbs until the reconstruction was complete.

After a while, the Legion Pharmacist entered the medical bay, carrying a cryogenic chamber, his expression quite serious.

"Pharmacist Hippocrates reporting for duty." The black-armored warrior was different from others; his power armor had an insulated box installed at the back of his waist.

Below Hippocrates' left arm is a dimensional light blade, used to break through armor and the body.

Legion Pharmacist. He bears a heavy responsibility: to retrieve gene seeds from the battlefield, a matter of life and death for the Legion.

Each Astartes has "gene storage glands" in its neck and chest, which are responsible for collecting the body's genetic information and producing new gene seeds.

The neck gene seed matures relatively quickly, within five years, at which point it can be surgically removed.

The other one is implanted in the chest and requires a longer development period, generally taking ten years or more to mature after implantation.

Because of the importance of Space Marines to the war effort, their entire service career is spent in combat, so often there is not enough time to perform surgery on them while they are still alive to safely remove the gene seed.

Thus, pharmacists were born. They roamed the battlefield, using tools to cut open the chests of their dead brothers and extract the gene seed.

In addition to their duties in battle, pharmacists are also responsible for storing gene seeds to prevent them from being contaminated or mutated.

Hippocrates walked to Doom, took a gene seed from the cryogenic chamber, and handed it to the Primarch.

Just in case, Doom had brought some gene seeds with him on board, and now they came in handy.

The gene seeds in his hand were as red as blood. Doom couldn't understand what technology the Emperor had used to create them.

A single gene seed, combined with a surgical implant, can transform an ordinary person into a fearless warrior with extraordinary power.

The Legion of Doom is different; it only requires implanting a gene seed to completely resurrect mortals.

However, the cost is high, the compatibility rate is too low, and people without a strong will cannot accept this gift.

Doom once asked his offspring: What kind of willpower is needed to survive the adaptation period?
The Doomsday Warriors remained silent, only saying, "Their will and soul are tormented; steadfastness is the only way out."

At this moment, Doom held the gene seed in his hand, his eyes filled with anticipation.

He saw a bridge, a bridge connecting the Destroyer and the Night Watchers.

The Doom and the Night Guard are now linked by Doom alone. The former is a descendant of Doom's genes, while the latter is a loyal warrior of Nur.

The Night Guard swore allegiance to King Norwick, the father of the Doomsday Gene of Loyalty, which at first glance seems perfectly reasonable.

But what if Doom no longer exists one day?
The Night Guardians still have a place to return to; they go back to Nur to continue fulfilling their duties of loyalty to the royal family. But the Destroyers, like homeless wanderers, where should they go?
Doom foresaw this and prompted the Doom Warriors to learn about Nur culture, thus achieving cultural acceptance between the two sides.

Let the two fight side by side and forge a camaraderie in battle.

Everything we do is for their integration and to generate genuine inner identity.

The integration of Legion culture and homeworld culture is a problem faced by every returning Primarch, and Doom knows he has done a poor job of it.

Ruth used violence to force the Space Wolf to accept Fenris, and all dissenters were killed.

Feralus did the same, suppressing the Legion's opposition with swift and decisive measures, and rapidly integrating Medusa and the Legion.

The Sons of the Emperor Legion was originally small in number and incomplete in its organization, which was perfect for Fugen to rebuild the legion.

The Shadowmoon Wolves and the Second Legion are in special circumstances.

Horus returned earlier and had no difficulty integrating the nascent Legion; while Solas let things take their course and did not intervene in the Legion culture for the time being.

In conclusion, Doom was indecisive in this regard, and there was no blood connection between the Legion and the homeworld.

Now, an opportunity has presented itself to him.

Despite being severely wounded, the Night Guardian, with unwavering will and resistance to death, is the cornerstone of the bridge, and it would be perfect for the bloodline connection to be born from him.

With a serious expression, Doom personally placed the gene seed into the medical pod and implanted it into the Night Guard's reconstructed chest cavity.

“Uh…” Hippocrates reminded him from the side, “My lord, we need to use the restraints.”

Upon hearing his words, Doom turned around and looked at him in confusion, only to see the Doom Warriors behind him all nodding in agreement.

Realizing the seriousness of the problem, Doom quickly waved to signal the medical staff to release the restraints.

The medical staff in white coats did not dare to delay and quickly took action, using leather restraints to bind the limbs of the Night Guardian.

“I suggest you leave,” Hippocrates advised when he saw that the Father of Genetics was unwilling to leave. “What happens next is entirely up to him.”

"During the roughly one-week adjustment period on Terra, there's nothing we can do to help; simply watching will only add to our heartache and sorrow."

His tone was weathered and hoarse, as if he had experienced many things.

Hippocrates did indeed experience this many times; deep within the palace, he witnessed the birth of many brothers.

That was the ultimate struggle of consciousness, the manifestation of the human soul's indomitable will to survive.

Despite his reluctance, Doom heeded his son's advice and turned to leave the infirmary.

“You stay,” he said to the pharmacist Hippocrates, “to take care of him with the medical staff.”

“This is my duty.” Hippocrates straightened his back, removed his black helmet to reveal a somewhat refined face, and solemnly promised the Primarch.

In the void, time and space are easily confused, making it difficult for people to perceive the passage of time, while space is constantly shifting.

The Royal Majesty adjusts its attitude with appropriate orbit and speed, and calibrates its time by rotating with the star.

After a week on Terra, and after a long wait, a star was born in Doom's mind.

He breathed a sigh of relief; the agonizing wait had tormented him, but now he could finally relax.

Doom smiled with satisfaction. With the foundation of communication laid, Night Guardians who were seriously injured on the battlefield would have more options in the future.

Limb reconstruction is one option, as is entering the Dauntless realm, or choosing to become a Doom Slayer and gain even greater power.

He got up from his chair, ended the holographic game on the table, put on his cloak, and left the bedroom for the infirmary.

Before he had taken more than a few steps, Doom looked troubled again. He sensed strong subspace fluctuations; a ship had entered the star system.

"This is really bad timing." He smirked, turned and walked toward the elevator to find Guilliman on the guest deck.

Guilliman, who was resting on the guest deck, also sensed something and slowly got up and walked to the porthole.

As far as the eye could see, besides the dazzling starry sky, there was also the light of subspace. A golden giant ship arrived in the real universe, its golden hull reflecting the starlight and appearing dazzlingly golden.

Guilliman immediately realized that his fate was about to undergo a huge change.

(Going to do laundry now)
(End of this chapter)