Kingdom Come: Deliverance, but Warhammer 40k

The two continued forward.

The closer you get to the hangar, the higher the air temperature becomes, and chaotic wails rise and fall all around you along with the flames.

The distant roar grew clearer, and two steel behemoths were devouring and fighting each other, their battlefield drawing ever closer.

Another loud bang.

The entire corridor shook violently, a new crack appeared in the ceiling, and rubble clattered all over the floor.

The hangar entrance is just a stone's throw away.

The thick alloy gate twisted outwards, as if a tremendous force was forcibly breaking it open from the inside.

Simon stepped through the gate first, but then stopped.

The spacious underground hangar had been reduced to a burning ruin. Thick black smoke billowed from the wreckage of the transport ship, and overturned ammunition boxes were scattered all over the ground.

Several engineering machines lay overturned at the edge of the wreckage, their metal tracks still spinning uncontrollably. Dozens of corpses lay scattered haphazardly across the floor tiles, the remains of loyalists, traitors, guards, and clergy intertwined and indistinguishable.

In the flickering firelight, a deformed silhouette knelt in the center of the ruins. It was tearing at the remains on the ground with its limbs, which were completely devoid of human features, and a hysterical roar burst from its throat.

"Damn it—why did you have to ruin my plans!"

A heavy punch slammed down, and the metal floor dented and curled up.

It howled, like a gambler who had lost everything: "We were just one step away!"

Henry looked down into the center of the destruction and saw the mangled remains of the mechanical priest lying on the ground. Only half of the gear-inlaid head remained, its prosthetic eye still flashing red.

Clearly, this is the origin of the ritual interruption.

The ascension ritual failed at the last moment, and what the mechanical priest did is now impossible to verify.

After venting its anger, the monster looked up and noticed the two people at the door.

Henry was able to see its entirety by the firelight.

Its body, nearly three meters tall, had a skin with a waxy texture. Its arms were completely disproportionate; the left arm was unusually long, reaching the ground, while the right arm had clusters of bony spurs protruding from its outer side. Beneath its high, bulging back, there were protrusions that looked as if something was moving around inside.

The most horrifying thing was the head. The neck was stretched and twisted, the left half of the face barely retained human features, while the right half was completely reduced to a writhing tumor. From the remaining human face, one could see some resemblance to Simon.

It stared at Simon, a strange smile curving its lips.

"Simon... my child..." A jumble of overlapping sounds came from its mouth, indistinguishable as male or female, "The last pride of the Carlos family... I'm almost there, the gods have already seen me."

It straightened its body, its tentacles clearly visible beneath its skin: "Help me. I need more blood, more souls, and more fear. Once the sacrifice is complete, we can leave this desolate land."

Apart from the crackling sound of flames burning, there was no other noise in the hangar.

After a long silence, Simon finally spoke, sounding weary: "Turning yourself into a monster, that's what you've always been pursuing?"

The half-human, half-ghost face froze, and ecstasy was replaced by rage.

"Monster?! I was just a step away from perfection!" The piercing scream caused the surrounding bottles and jars to shatter.

"It's all these foolish mortals! Believing in false gods! Preventing us from pursuing our true ideals!"

  

Simon drew his longsword and assumed a fighting stance.

"Incomprehensible, you were devoured by Chaos long ago."

Taking advantage of a lull in their conversation, Henry, knife in hand, stealthily made his way to the side and rear.

If he were facing a truly great demon, he could simply give his final instructions.

But the guy in front of me looks like nothing more than a human who has undergone a severe mutation.

Anyone who is stabbed in a vital spot will die.

Henry held his breath, his eyes fixed on the monster's unguarded back.

As long as Simon draws attention in the front, a fatal blow is not impossible, and they can easily end this farce.

Five meters, four meters, three meters.

As they closed the distance, a cracking sound suddenly came from the monster's bulging back.

A bulging mass of flesh split open, revealing two bloodshot eyeballs. The eyes rolled and met Henry's gaze directly.

Henry froze, and the scene became somewhat awkward.

"Oh no, that's bad."

The eyes on his back curved strangely, and the smile on his face in front of him also widened.

"Found you, you bug!"

"Your opponent is me, Father."

Simon did not hesitate at all.

boom!

The revolver roared, and a bullet struck the monster's side, turning its head to one side.

Flesh and blood exploded, but that was all.

The deformed tissue wriggled like a living thing, appearing out of nowhere and closing the wound again in the blink of an eye.

The monster tilted its head, as if it had just been hit by a pebble.

Why struggle in vain?

It spoke, "The gods are watching over me; you should feel honored..."

boom!

The second bullet, though fired, still failed to cause any real damage, but it interrupted its speech.

This time, the monster turned around completely.

Several tentacles curled out from behind, hanging in mid-air like venomous snakes.

Its bones and flesh intertwined, resembling the shape of a torture device, and its body began to expand.

Simon's face darkened; the warp had indeed granted him power beyond reality.

The guy in front of them was beyond his and Henry's ability to handle.

But there was no way out.

boom!

Sparks flew as the monster became completely accustomed to the bullets.

"Damn it!" Simon drew his sword.

Meanwhile, Henry had already rushed forward, his longsword drawing an arc as he slashed fiercely at the monster's side.

But just as it was about to hit, the monster suddenly opened its mouth.

Then—

A sharp whistle.

The piercingly sharp shriek seemed to drill into Henry's mind.

Henry's vision suddenly went black, and he felt a sharp pain in his eardrums.

Countless noises exploded in my mind at the same time: crying, laughter, prayers, screams, as if hundreds of people were clamoring right next to my ear.

His movements immediately slowed down by a beat.

not good.

The thought had barely formed when a tentacle pierced through.

Instinct precedes conscious action; with a clang, the sword narrowly blocked the attack.

The enormous impact made my hands go numb.

Before he could even catch his breath, a second tentacle swept across him.

How could it be so fast?

Henry didn't even have time to adjust his balance before the tentacle lashed out at his chest.

As if struck head-on by a battering ram, his breastplate could not withstand the weight, and he was sent flying.

The violent impact nearly forced all the air out of his lungs.

Time seemed to stretch out indefinitely.

He tumbled through the air, saw blood spurting from the corner of his mouth, saw shattered armor fragments flying everywhere, and saw something flung out of his arms.

The phonograph... the phonograph that Ian Carlos gave him

The phonograph carrying his last words.

It slowly tumbled in the air, reflecting the light of the sea of ​​fire, before disappearing from sight.

It fell into the distance.

it hurts.

It really hurts.

Henry felt as if his body no longer belonged to him, and the sounds around him grew fainter and fainter.

The collapse, the gunshots, Simon's roar, the monster's maniacal laughter—all faded into the distance.

My consciousness began to sink, like falling into a cold, dark deep sea.

So this is what death feels like...?

He suddenly felt a little lost.

Even though this isn't my first time encountering death, why does it feel so unfamiliar?

Then, everything before my eyes turned pure white.

……

The wind blows across the grass, and the soft green grass ripples at your feet.

The sky was so blue that Henry felt it was almost unreal.

Henry stood there blankly for a long time before looking down to examine himself. No wounds, no blood, no broken bones, nothing at all.

Again.

It's here again.

"Damn." Henry covered his forehead.

"What is the truth, really?!"

"Am I going crazy?"

No one answered; only the sound of the wind blowing through the grass could be heard.

Until a familiar voice rang out.

"Henry".

Henry froze, then slowly turned around.

Not far away, a blonde girl stood there.

Her white linen dress swayed in the wind, and sunlight fell on her hair, like a layer of golden light.

In the halo of light, the girl's face appeared even softer.

The wind blew up her skirt and long hair.

She is still the same as I remember her: clean, warm, like the first ray of sunshine in spring in Baitouwo Town.

Salia.

The girl waved to him, a familiar smile on her face.

"Henry, you're back. How's the outside world?"

Henry opened his mouth, but didn't know what to say. After a long while, he managed to squeeze out, "The outside world is terrible."

Salia smiled.

"Yeah?"

"It's really bad." Henry sat down on the grass. "Madmen, cultists, demons, and mad cultists who want to turn themselves into demons."

Salia listened quietly, just as she had countless times before.

"Do you want to go home?" she asked softly.

Henry remained silent for a long time before nodding.

"think."

Salia tilted her head.

"That's not right."

Henry was taken aback: "What?"

The girl squatted down and looked at him intently.

"You promised me."

You said you would take me to see the outside world, you said you would come back, come back with great success.

She reached out her finger and gently poked Henry's forehead.

"So you've only been gone a short time and you're already thinking of giving up?"

Henry opened his mouth, but couldn't find the words to refute it.

Salia patted her skirt and then sat down on the grass.

"come over."

"What are you doing?"

"Lie down."

"what?"

"Hurry up." She puffed out her cheeks, just like always.

Henry smiled helplessly and finally lay down.

My head rested on the girl's soft thighs, a gentle breeze blowing by, it felt so comfortable that I didn't want to get up.

"I wish it could stay like this forever," Henry said with his eyes closed.

Salia gently combed his hair, her movements as tender as when he was a child.

But after a while, she suddenly spoke.

"Henry".

"Um?"

"It's time to wake up."

Henry didn't move: "Lie down a little longer."

"No," the girl whispered, "you mustn't forget your promise."

"You said that one day, your kingdom... would come..."

The wind suddenly picked up.

The grass began to blur, the sky gradually shattered, and Salia's figure slowly faded into the distance.

Henry reached out, but couldn't grasp her.

The girl was still smiling, as warm as spring.

Don't let me down.

"Then take me to see the outside world."

next moment.

The world collapsed.

A blue feather fell in front of Henry.