Chapter 626: The aftermath
Several days have passed since the fighting.
Silence filled the Black Legion's communication channel.
A depressing and decadent silence.
However, in this silence, Kayan truly found a sense of security - after many careful searches, Kayan had determined that the black-armored warrior had been sucked into the subspace rift created by the explosion of the subspace engine.
Back to where he belongs.
At this moment, the Black Legion is hiding in the depths of space, and the Vengeful Spirit is drifting in the space among the stars - it has lost the ability to jump through subspace. A significantly reduced number of frigates, cruisers, and captured swarms of warships from the Black Templars surrounded the Vengeful Spirit.
The previous dispersed retreat was so hasty that it took the Black Legion several days to regroup the separated fleet. Now they are hiding in a prearranged assembly point, drifting casually in tranquility, waiting for other legion warships. Arrive here one after another to join the large army.
At this time, on the medical deck of the Vengeful Spirit, Kayan stood beside Nagua, stroking the demon fur distractedly, listening to his master's speech about the future.
"This is a unique opportunity for us."
Abaddon said solemnly.
His rough voice came from a speaker installed next to the culture cabin where he was. Abaddon floats in the center of the life-sustaining fluid. Whether it is the shadow cast by the liquid or the color of blood, it looks very similar to the artificial amniotic fluid in the life-sustaining tank of Enamenesses.
A breathing mask was strapped to his face, providing him with oxygen while also delivering his words. Abaddon took off his armor, and his huge pale body was soaked in the hazy liquid. A scar started from his cheek, gradually thickened and extended to his collarbone, and finally stayed in the mess on his chest. Sigismund's blow was truly powerful, destroying so many organs in Abaddon's body that the Apothecary had to clone and replace them.
A group of Aphotic Blade Terminator Guards are guarding outside the cabin. No one, including Space Marines, is allowed to set foot on this deck, otherwise they will be killed.
"what chance?"
Kayan played the role of admiration.
"Between the freedom of the Black Legion and the death of Daravik." Abaddon's eyes became fierce and full of ambition. "It shows that there has never been an opportunity. The Black Templar will return and no longer act alone." , followed by the wrath of the Empire, what will they see?"
"They will see the world in flames, the outposts razed to the ground, the shipyards plundered, and the waterways repeatedly invaded...the mess we left behind."
Kayan continued what he had said.
"That's right."
Abaddon nodded and said:
"But they will also discover who staged this drama - scattered warbands and independent warlords, not one army, let alone nine legions."
Kayan continued to think along his train of thought, and soon understood Abaddon's intention, and suddenly said:
"But Daravik is dead..."
Abaddon laughed and said:
"There has never been a more suitable time to unite the various legions than now - in the name of our common hatred. After we complete the fleet assembly, we can force these parasitic legions to disband through temporary alliances and individual invitations to fight. The warbands obey us instead. Some will betray us, some will rebel against us, but we need unity now, Khayon. The Black Legion must rise above these petty piracy and wage war openly again!"
What a confident statement.
What a great plan.
Kayan's heart surged when he heard this.
But that's not all the plan.
"Don't forget that prophecy, Ezekiel."
Void Prophet Moriana reminded.
"Of course, I feel that Draconion is calling me, and this magical weapon will definitely belong to me."
Abaddon said confidently.
"You reacted correctly, Kayan."
Abaddon turned his head and said in approval:
"Regarding the decision to disperse the fleet, your prompt decision was very timely. Brother, this preserved the vast majority of our effective strength, and you allowed the expedition to continue."
Kayan nodded.
Although he also knew that this decision was definitely correct in hindsight, he still felt very relieved that Ezekel could agree with his decision at the time.
"but."
Abaddon's conversation suddenly changed:
"As for your other decision, to expel the black-armored monster by detonating the subspace engine of the Spirit of Vengeance, many soldiers in the legion have some complaints."
"That thing..."
Kayan was about to explain.
Abaddon raised his hand and pressed it:
"Because of your decision, Anamenesis suffered heavy losses. The Vengeful Spirit was unable to make subspace jumps and could only move slowly at sub-light speed, which greatly delayed our progress and forced us to attack a An industrial world or a forge world with a space dock can restore the Vengeful Spirit and continue our journey to find the magic sword."
Kayan was speechless after hearing this.
Abaddon said and glanced at the star map:
"Let me see, the forge world closest to us is... Oh, Agrippina, the riddled star, this is a hard bone, very, very hard to chew."
"Is it really necessary, Kayan?"
Moliana is also questioning:
"It's such a big price to pay."
"You didn't see..."
Kayan said with a serious tone:
"He banished three Chaos Demons."
"How is this possible?"
Moriana said with doubt on her face:
"Are you sure what you saw was not a psychic hallucination?"
"but……"
Abaddon changed the topic again:
"I support your decision, brother."
Kayan was slightly startled when he heard this.
"He and I looked at each other."
Abaddon said in a low tone:
"With just one look, I knew that I would not be his opponent, at least not yet. His confidence in killing me was so strong. From that look, I could feel that he firmly believed... He was sure that he could Kill me."
"Indeed."
Kayan also sighed and said:
"Ezekiel, with all due respect, it is indeed the case. You are wise, you listened to my warning, that is not something in the real universe. Speaking of which, we have to thank him, he killed Daravik, And I saw it with my own eyes.”
"You can also kill Daravik, Kayon."
Abaddon said in a deep voice:
"I have this confidence in you."
"But I can never be that easy and straightforward."
Kayan shook his head and said:
"Daravik's magical attainments may not be as good as mine, but he has the blessing from Nurgle. I have to fight for at least a few rounds before I find a chance to kill him with one blow. What about him? He suppressed Daravik the whole time. Ke, it only took less than a minute to kill the leader of the army, it’s terrible.”
Moriana stopped talking after hearing this.
"No matter what, Daravik died on the Vengeful Spirit, then we killed him. I will nail his body to the ram of the bow, and I will let the Nine Legions and the Eye of Terror Look at all the Chaos warbands, this is the result of disunity, this is the result of resisting us."
Abaddon said loudly.
After speaking, he changed the topic again:
"We brought back Sigismund's body."
Kayan was silent. He guessed that Abaddon might want to use the body as a trophy and nail it to the collision angle with Daravik's bones, or he might have desecrated Sigismund's body to please some god, he didn't know.
After saying these bold words.
Abaddon seemed to be growing extremely weak.
So Kayan asked for permission to leave.
Abaddon nodded slightly in agreement.
\u0026quot;I have something I have to do,\u0026quot;
Before leaving, Kayan turned around and said:
“There’s one last thread that needs to be cut.”
Abaddon remained silent and did not answer, and his eyes did not look at Kayon but drifted away. It was as if he was looking at Sigismund again, pondering how to answer, the brother who could never have a conversation again, the brother who he once admired but who despised him when he died.
…
At this time, there was a secret cabin of the Vengeful Spirit.
A bald Space Marine stood here.
On both sides of the shoulder pads of his power armor, there is a wriggling black monster face with curved horns and a long tongue, which is tightly bound by several iron chains.
Sargon Arigesh, a powerful Dark Apostle from the Word Bearers Legion who chose to defect to Abaddon. He was once the chief chaplain of the Brasshead Chapter of the Seventeenth Legion, and is now the nominal second-in-command of the Black Legion, as well as the chief priest and supreme leader of the Black Legion.
Sagan gathered a group of Space Marines in his cabin suite. They stood in the prayer room lit by candles, talking to each other and waiting for the chief priest to perform the ceremony. It was Kayan who asked Sagon to summon them to this private secret room. The oath-taking ceremony was held in the palace. If Kayon summoned them in person, it might arouse their suspicions, which is not what Kayon wanted to see.
Eleven people in total.
Eleven warriors survived to this day after witnessing the duel between Abaddon and Sigismund.
Eleven warriors saw Abaddon fleeing from the black-armored warrior's attack.
Sagan asked the eleven warriors to recite the oath silently - they had sworn at the end of the battle never to tell what they saw, and no one who was not at the scene of the duel would be allowed to know the following facts: Abaddon was there Nearly fatally wounded in a duel with Sigismund, Abaddon was forced to flee by a black-armored warrior. Such unwelcome facts could never be allowed to exist in the legend written by the Black Legion.
They all followed the instructions without objection and renewed their vows. This ceremony was a great honor for them all. Each of them knew that breaking a promise would mean death, and keeping a promise would bring Abaddon's attention. This is truly a God-given opportunity - the status of team leader and even warband deputy is not a problem. Being so lucky that they rose to prominence and gained access to the leadership of the Black Legion, they definitely didn't want to let this opportunity slip away by proving they were worthless.
This is what Kayan felt when he used psychic tentacles from a distance: ambition, impulse, and hunger...Kayan knew in his heart that no one among them intended to break their oath, and they all valued their loyalty.
Sargon blessed them one by one, and gently drew the symbol of the Eight-Pointed Star of Chaos on their foreheads with his blood-stained thumb to express his blessing. He dipped his fingers into a bowl filled with minced slave entrails and whispered that the gods would look upon them favorably for keeping their master's secrets.
When Sagan completed the ritual, he raised the iron bowl to his lips and drank the remaining blood-stained contents. With great care and patience, he put the empty bowl down steadily, waved to indicate that these soldiers could leave, and thanked them again.
They lined up through the hatch and walked out of the corridor to the metal deck. They hadn't started talking to each other yet, but their faces were already full of pride. They felt that they had entered a secret circle that was not allowed to be known by other brothers.
Then the heavy iron doors on both sides of the corridor began to close along the friction track, and finally closed completely with a harsh and loud sound of metal collision. While the front and rear gates at both ends of the passage were completely closed, Kayan stepped forward alone in the shadows and appeared in front of the eleven warriors.
Kayan watched them quietly without saying a word.
This fake show ends here.
Many immediately realized what was about to happen, as two Chaos Space Marines reached for their chainswords and activated them. Meanwhile, four others drew bolters and opened fire. However, Kayan just raised one arm slightly and opened his psychic field shield to block the flying bombs, causing them to explode in front of him.
Kayan did not ask them to surrender and accept the inevitable outcome. He could indeed promise them that if they would accept their fate, everything would be quick and painless. But Kayan didn't want to lie and cheat - whether they gave in or not, the pain was still inevitable.
"Ceasefire, ceasefire!"
one of the team leaders yelled.
He pressed the muzzle of the other man's gun.
"Lord Kayon!" He looked at Kayon with sincere and trusting eyes and said, "Lord Kayon, there is absolutely no need for you to do this. We have sworn an oath and will never tell what we have seen. Please believe it. Our loyalty.”
Kayan admired his clear mind.
But I don't appreciate his naivety.
The demon lynx leaped out of the shadows.
The size and weight of the giant tiger directly pushed the sergeant down on the deck, completely covering him like a moving giant shadow with claws. The ceramic armor was twisted and cracked, and the splattered blood gave the air a fishy smell. The remaining ten soldiers moved in a chaotic manner, shouting and shooting while charging, trying to find a way to escape.
Kayan sent out a psychic shock, pushing them in all directions. The high gravity acceleration simulated by the psychic power caused their backs to slam against the iron bulkhead, and then they were firmly fixed to the wall. Every attempt to twist an arm or leg to free itself from the heavy pressure only ends up causing the limb to be pulled back into place by psychic force.
"enough."
Kayan said lightly.
The demon lynx immediately stopped eating.
The sergeant was still alive, but his throat no longer worked and he had lost half his chest and an arm. But he was still alive, and in his broken chest, the exposed internal organs were beating smoothly and slowly.
"Sir..." The warrior's mouth was full of black smell and blood, and he tried to squeeze out the words from his lips, "Please... don't leave us... to your... Dark Eldar..."
Kayan smiled at his dying request, at least he could still fulfill his last wish.
"You are not traitors." Kayan replied calmly, "naturally, you will not suffer the same fate as traitors. Then I regret to say goodbye forever, Sergeant Havelock."
"grown ups--"
Sergeant Havelock's effort and struggle to speak was suddenly interrupted by the blackening and swelling in his body. His armor was torn into pieces, and his unformed words melted into a long and powerful roar from the mutated vocal cords in his throat. A pair of feathered, broken and thin wings suddenly burst out from his back, and a long and sharp beak pierced his face and stretched out, covered with bloody saliva.
Kayan uses his soul and body.
A Tzeentch Daemon was summoned.
"Come here, Nagua."
Kayan waved his hand and said.
"Owner."
The demon immediately followed Kayan.
Kayan left the cabin with Lynx and Sagan. The door behind him was sealed again, and Kayon released the psychic grip that held the ten warriors against the wall. They were imprisoned and scratched the walls and doors desperately, making dull and sweet sounds.
Bolter fire sounded like distant thunder, then the sound of bodies on metal, the Chaos Space Marines shouting, and then silence.
"I'm very sorry."
Kayan looked at Sagan and said slightly apologetically:
"For the mess inside."
Sa Gang blinked and said he didn't care.
Kayon nodded and turned to attend to his other duties. This is cruel, but it is a necessary thunderous method. The image of Ezekel is that of the new Chaos Warmaster who is victorious and never fails, rather than a weak coward who flees hastily in the face of the enemy. With the Black Legion now scattered and weakened, Khayon must ensure that its first expedition does not become its last.
…………