Chapter 498 How difficult this is
"...This is the development of Olympia, Lord Perturabo."
Califon accompanied the Lord of Iron and sat under the iron-colored silk cloth , on the top floor of the Royal Palace of Lokos, overlooking the capital city of Olympia outlined by lights.
The evening mountain wind passed down the valley, blowing the gauze curtain towards the gloomy city, fluttering like several dark flags. The decorative satin that showed various colors during the day faded and simplified, turning back into pure black strips, reaching into the depths of the night. In the distance, the sharp fortress tops of those well-laid fortifications were faintly revealed from the mountains, appearing as if they were still there in the mist.
War blacksmith Kyle Valen, who was on duty today, couldn't help but focus more on the installations that were closely related to the war. If it were another time, his sight would be more focused on the garden-like city that was rarely seen in the Great Crusade.
However, standing outside the tent, quietly listening to the conversation between Governor Califon and the original body, his mind occasionally fell on the Iron Warriors skull badge marked between the tower and the main hall, as well as the military facilities themselves.
The Ironblood's return brought a grim and grim atmosphere. Every officer accompanying the Primarch maintained an evasive silence about them, and a few of them were missing.
When Warsmith Dantioch went to report to the Primarch about the Word Bearers' unauthorized departure and actions, Perturabo interrupted him directly, one of the warriors he trusted and relied on most. One word.
The anger and realization in his eyes at that time even gave the war blacksmiths the illusion that they were not sure whether they could get out of the command room safely - although they soon understood that the suppressed anger could not Made for them.
Kyle Wallen took a deep breath, letting the air mixed with the cold mountain wind tremble in his throat and roll down.
As Callifon and Perturabo's conversations that had not been kept secret from the Warsmith gradually reached his ears, their primarch's solo journey countless light years away gradually became clear to him...< br>
No, he could hear that Lord Perturabo still had reservations, but many of these things were being lifted out of the fog and becoming clearer.
“Is it necessary?” Kalifon asked, her clear voice becoming trance-like.
“This is my choice.” Perturabo said, enough to make one imagine his expressionless expression. “The current success of the human empire is not achieved by hesitation and hesitation, but by blood and blood. Sacrifice."
"But Olympia - yes, I understand, Abo. It is also blood and sacrifice, because the peace here is based on the stability of the entire galaxy that is maintained by conquest and power..."
"I'm glad you agree, Califon. No Utopia has ever been a garden in the sky. To ensure the secrecy of the first great battle, before news of the Warmaster's rebellion spread across the galaxy, within the Olympia Cluster , only our own home star will initiate war mobilization; but I need you to prepare for me to spread the communication to the entire administrative division immediately."
"This is not difficult to do, If you will organize a speech, Olympia will trust you, Perturabo, but there will be no one but me, no one but Olympia and your Iron Warriors..." A small scratching sound in the air, was it a wave? "How many people are still willing to believe in the justice of Warmaster Perturabo? You should not be Warmaster, you know your reputation in the empire..."
"Then reverse it and rely on Declaration, rely on violence. This is not the point. If I win, the Tribunal will know what they will do. If I lose, the galaxy will cease to exist." Perturabo paused, this pause was heartbreaking. , and then he continued: "But no matter what, the Olympia Star Cluster will definitely be involved in the war."
"Indeed." Callifon said in a low voice.
"I..."
The Lord of Iron seemed to have something to say, but his voice stopped suddenly.
After a long period of stagnant silence, Perturabo spoke again: "Let me look at Olympia today, Callifon."
Have any subtleties drifted over? The sound of electric current is mixed with the biting evening mountain wind and the subtle trembling of the blowing gauze curtains? And in the sound of the current, is there another burst of breathing of the original body, floating lightly and rapidly in the tent, and finally being submerged in the vast depths of silence?
Kyle Valen can imagine how Lord Perturabo would use his calm eyes to observe the hologram of Olympia, stretch out his hand, hold it in his palm with one hand, and turn the hologram firmly and softly with the other hand. The ball caresses the folds of the mountains and plains - no, that is the Perturabo of the past, the Iron Lord of the past, but it is definitely not the Warmaster Perturabo who is standing on the edge of the rebellion and staring into the abyss.
He felt a rumbling panic about this, which engulfed him in an instant, because he could not imagine Lord Perturabo's eyes and attitude. He couldn't confirm...what?
Facing the land in front of him that adopted him... Yes, he is not a soldier from Olympia, but this is his second home, the second mother planet that adopted him... Facing Lokos, facing directly What was there about this ideal beauty that he couldn't confirm?
Is it survival, or is it destruction?
After what seemed like a long time, Perturabo spoke again.
“I will leave part of the battle formation to guard here, Governor, and I will leave a theater president who can represent me-Trident. This level of the chain of command will not continue to be vacant. Olympia’s All is not without meaning, even if all construction lies within the realm of possibility of being burned to the ground."
"Your approval pleases me, my lord," Callifon said sadly, "then, Stop looking into space with hatred, Abo.”
"I have not -"
"I can see the look in your eyes. How have you ever become unfathomable in front of me?"
Calliphon said, did she catch Hold Perturabo's hand? A fragile mortal, placing her soft hands on cold steel?
"Don't let anger and resentment bite you, Abo. If we must lose a lot, if your ideal must be destroyed in your hands, then at least don't let us lose you again."
Kyle Wallen's heart clenched. Under the steel armor, under the links of the black carapace, under the bone plate in the chest, his two hearts beat nervously at the same time, one heart full of bitterness, and the other full of worry.
But then, a signal sent to his ears woke him up, and his surprise brought him back to reality.
He decided that after hearing the Primarch's next words, he would ask aloud from outside the tent for what he knew. He thought this should be considered good news. If possible, Kyle Valen hoped that Lord Perturabo could relax even for a moment because of this news. And the last words he heard were the primarch's calm reply.
"How difficult this is," said the Iron Lord.
——
As soon as they set foot on the surface of Medusa, no, before that, when they just arrived outside the atmosphere of Medusa, Akulduna had already felt that some changes had indeed taken place here.
Yes, when a miraculous golden light pierced through the subspace storm, when the navigators stood up in surprise, and the temperature dropped again in the hall of the Astropathic Choir, the Purple Phoenix Fulgrim ordered to go to Medusa, even if it was just for an illusion of Akul Duna, a dangerous crisis caused by the chaos in the warp.
Yes... a long time ago, the two of them had personally experienced the tip of the iceberg of what was hidden behind the subspace, and knew what a person who fell into the hands of darkness might experience... and Fa Bius Bile is still listed on the Emperor's Children's fatwa.
Fulgrim did not publicize this, nor did he intend to cover it up. Even if the Apothecary's defection was seen as a blemish on the Emperor's Children's perfect wings - Fulgrim decided that concealing the crime was the real ugliness.
No matter what, they passed through the subspace enough to identify the direction. Even though it was still dark and difficult to see, the beam of light was enough.
Medusa's atmosphere is always dark and gloomy, and starlight can almost never pass through the heavily polluted thick atmosphere, sending bright light to the ground through billowing sulfur clouds. This is why many clans in Medusa regard the arrival of Ferrus Manus as the light of the world.
However, at this time, this harsh and lightless realm was darker than before. It seemed that the sky had been filled by some dark shadows that seemed to have arrived here from the void near Medusa. The tiny sound of beetle bites mixed with ashes and steam rang in Akulduna's ears, making him I feel completely uneasy - they are still outside the orbit, how can the noise penetrate this vacuum?
The Iron Hands did not respond to their request to land, but the satellites and combat platforms did not hinder them. The Emperor's Children could only land on their own initiative.
As previously agreed, Fulgrim took Akulduna and his company with him. In addition, the 1st and 10th companies accompanied the original body.
Walking on this land full of metal ores and extreme climate, a certain potential sense of crisis intensifies the mainland's inherent hostility towards people. The large land train seems to be moving a clan's property to a certain location to cope with the ever-changing environment and possible natural disasters on the surface of Medusa.
The Second Company Commander was sitting in his own tank, staying in communication with Fulgrim along with Julius and Thor. Fulgrim seemed a little quiet during this journey. Perhaps this gloomy land was not suitable for the dazzling phoenix, or perhaps he just recalled the never-ending factory of Chemos.
About six hours later, they encountered their first battle. In the darkness, some strange species that seemed to belong to the land of Medusa appeared from the scattered and abandoned steel casting area and intercepted them in front of them. Under the illumination of the Emperor's Children, one could see a group of leaping monsters with bull-like horns on their heads and grotesque five-legged limbs supporting them from the earth.
They didn’t even need to leave the vehicle. With a few rounds of flamethrowers that didn’t require precise hits, these animals were wiped out in front of them. But the premonition of danger still pained Akulduna's forehead.
Yes, the wilderness of Medusa is full of dangers. He knew many of them when he led the Second Company to fight alongside Ferrus Manus in the series of battles in the Gardenar System. The stories about Medusa, the wild crises in the darkness and the xenophobic nature of the clan itself...
Oh, during that time, he remembered that Lord Ferus still wanted to compete for the rumored Warmaster. seats. Unfortunately, that battle didn't go well. It wasn't until Fulgrim led the expedition fleet and hurriedly rushed to support that things got better from the danger - and his life was also saved from that crisis. For him personally, that is quite worthy of celebration.
So, will it be the same this time? A successful aid?
Akulduna was in a daze until he saw those distorted but still roughly prototype outlines again. That should be the Iron Hand's base fortress on the home planet, if he remembered correctly. For a moment, he thought it was the influence of the Ral's Blade that was vaguely continuing on him, causing hallucinations to flash back without interruption, but he soon understood that no: that dull and weird outline was the reality he was facing now.
All of this almost made him feel some kind of unspeakable betrayal, not by the steel hand, but by reality - Could it be that this place quietly soaked in pus turned out to be the place where he had been with Fu? Is Lord Grim's beauty enough to complement the Gorgon's home?
During the time when the subspace storm blocked the light, those short few months were enough for a certain dark existence in the subspace to harm this tough and cold land. Is it to the point of blasphemy? So, if we continue to infer this, what happened to Chemos and what happened to the Golden Throne?
Too many things happened... too much. After Nicaea, it seemed that all the chaos was coming, so that they had no time to deal with it...
A second wave of tainted creatures approached, the rustling iron pincers closing in on the purple-gold battle vehicle of the Emperor's Children.
Those twisted things, embroidered on metal and flat stones, are like a group of many-legged spiders, deliberately forming a poisonous web around them and swallowing them in... This is only the second round, Akulduna's combat instinct told him that this was just an appetizer.
Where do these heresies come from? Could it be that the force that attacked them in Olympia is still obsessed with making a comeback?
Akulduna closed his eyes briefly and dismissed the distracting thoughts that were rising. If there was any remnant of the Blade of Ral's influence on him, it was only worry and a renewed anger and disgust at the filthy garden he had conquered so long ago.
And the Emperor's Children will once again defeat anything that can defeat them.
Live up to the eagle on your chest. Worthy of the throne of Terra.
His fingers brushed over the two knives placed on his knees, and he fixed them one by one on the magnetic buckle on his waist. He stood up and gave instructions to the helmet.
"Leave the vehicle and clear out the enemies. Then follow the Primarch forward, brothers."
(End of Chapter)