Warhammer: I don't want to become a stinky can!

Page 318

"Don't think about those things anymore, Magnus."

The cold words rang in his ears. Hades' previous methods were all about isolating the warp from the gaze of the warp and then trying to do things that conformed to physics and psychology, but Magnus's situation meant that he could never completely isolate the warp.

"Accept the harsh reality, and then atone, Magnus. This is my most sincere advice to you: only do what the Emperor commands, and don't think about anything else."

Magnus tried to force a dry, bitter smile to prove that he was indeed numb, numb enough to accept it all, but he could only feel blood seeping from the corner of his mouth.

[...My story ended from the very beginning, didn't it?]

Hades stood up and paced restlessly in the cramped cell again. This was one of the things he hated about Tzeentch: when killing the other side wasn't the solution, you had to think of something else, but whatever the plan, it would fall into the Lord of Change's calculations.

Judging from the Emperor's posture, Hades guessed that he wanted to use Magnus as a one-time bomb, throwing it out at a critical moment to detonate the pony, but the question is, is this reliable?

Hades initially thought there was no problem with this, but he realized that Magnus himself already had a cunning side, and this was a high-stakes gamble.

Moreover, he couldn't be sure whether Magnus was a decoy or the real key point, because Prospero, the anchor point, had been removed, and the crucial turning point in Magnus's destiny had passed.

The emperor clearly had this in mind; in fact, he was already summoning Hades away, as this was the last day Hades was holding Magnus captive.

"Alright, let me try one last time... Magnus, would you be willing to give it a try, even if it's just a small one?"

Hades saw Magnus raise his hands in vain.

Is this an order from the Emperor?

Hades remained expressionless. He turned on the channel and increased the volume.

"Your Majesty, I want to beat Magnus."

"Please."

The channel disconnected indifferently, and Magnus looked like he was about to scream silently again.

"It is now."

Hades said calmly,

"You'll have to cooperate with me from now on."

[You're going to cooperate with me in beating me up?!]

"Yes and no."

Hades said,

"Now... you have to hand over the authority of your soul to a soulless being."

Before Magnus could respond, the black domain surged up.

------

Magnus screamed and thrashed in the sea of ​​consciousness, desperately trying to escape into the distance. He didn't want that thing to touch him!

But he was too weak. The Emperor's psychic suppression and the fall of the Thousand Sons greatly weakened Magnus's soul light. In the past, he could have left directly, leaving the cursed thing far behind.

He watched helplessly as the monster devoured him, as if swarms of insects were crawling all over his skin, as if he had fallen into a bottomless, foul-smelling swamp. His soul was in agony, as flames hotter than the fires of hell burned it.

He instinctively resisted, but heard a roar from afar.

"Magnus—you fucking have to hold back! Macado is better than you!"

Magnus suddenly remembered why he was there, and what that foul-smelling cursed thing was. He might as well just die!

Knock me out and get away from me!

"I'd like to just knock you out!"

Then Magnus saw that blue before his eyes—there—he remembered! The magnificent waves of the vast ocean seemed like yesterday, and at the top of the Great Pyramid of Prospero, the great power of the warp descended from the altar and signed a pact with him.

Darkness twisted and tried to penetrate the depths of his soul.

A piercing scream rose from the depths of his soul, and he saw Prospero burning fiercely, the souls of the people burning to provide him with strength.

Darkness and a scythe pierced him together, and a strange light suddenly burst forth! After a moment of dazzling light, everything returned to its original position, as if nothing had changed.

Immediately afterwards, Magnus heard a thud, followed by retching. The wave of powerlessness began to recede, and he slowly regained his grip on the boundaries of the physical world.

He smelled blood, but it wasn't his.

[…It was successful?]

He asked, trembling.

"Failed."

Hades silently wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth. As expected of Tzeentch, and as expected of a psionic Primarch, Hades felt that the mark Tzeentch had implanted in Magnus was stronger than the psionic energy of an entire planet. Coupled with the resistance of Magnus's soul itself... Hades had been too hasty. He had been too impatient.

In the distance, the emperor's hand, which was studying the map, paused slightly.

"So that's where the fireworks are."

He said softly, "No wonder," as the Emperor opened a channel.

"Don't waste your energy, Hades."

Hades took a deep breath.

"It's still somewhat useful..."

He spoke in a low voice, glancing at Magnus.

"I finally tore a small wound in your soul, Magnus... Don't try to heal it; it marks where He is. Do you understand what I mean?"

I will stay away from there.

Magnus spoke weakly, as if he were still immersed in the dizziness brought on by the Dark Domain, although Hades did his best not to harm him... the harm was not great, but the feeling of nausea was extremely strong.

Hades frowned.

"I mean if you feel something is wrong with that area, go find the Emperor or Macado immediately."

This essentially gives Magnus the ability to receive advance warnings, but in a sense, it also facilitates communication between Magnus and Tzeentch.

However, Tzeentch can communicate with Magnus without any obstacles if Magnus wants to, so it can be considered as giving Magnus a self-warning function.

The channel emitted a hissing sound of electricity. Hades paused for a moment, and then a light, cheerful voice rang out.

"Okay, I guess I have to go in the end."

As if nothing had just happened.

"I wish you a pleasant prison life, Magnus. Don't think nonsense or concoct heresies."

"Go back to labor camp as soon as possible, start anew, listen to the emperor, and don't mess things up on your own. Maybe you'll be able to turn your life around and start anew in ten thousand years."

The sound of iron bars opening, followed by footsteps, the sound of doors closing, and the clanking of armor joints.

Magnus smelled the blood in the cell, and for the rest of his life, he would realize that this was the last blessing he had heard, a blessing that even contained a hint of trust.

He examined that soul, he gazed at Him, just as He had always gazed at him silently.

Magnus finally found the peaceful life he had always longed for.

Beep be ...

Chapter 385 Emperor? Neos?

Hades was finally released from prison—no, he was finally free to supervise Magnus.

Who will be in charge of Magnus next? Lemanrus or Macardo? Hades didn't know, but he was certain the Emperor would give Magnus a suitable supervisor.

Hades walked with a light step. Since the Nicaea Conference, he had either been supporting the Emperor or staring blankly at Magnus in the prison. The Emperor was a workaholic, but that didn't mean Hades was too.

Hades followed the route the Emperor had given him on the Dream, his destination likely to be another private room for conversation.

He walked through the dimly lit prison area, the candlelight reflecting off Hades' armor. Then he smelled the scent of rain and gunpowder, which made Hades pause, but he continued onward.

The pale, eerie starlight streamed through the porthole, illuminating the floor. He saw Macado standing there, hunched over, waiting for him, and behind the old man, in the darkness, was…

Mortarian and Lemanrus.

Bloodstains and bullet holes splattered on the armor of the Lord of Death, the blood seemingly freshly congealed, while the fur of the Lord of Winter reeked of psionic stench. Hades suspiciously detected Magnus's scent on Lemanrus.

"coming."

The old man calmly opened his eyes, preparing to lead Hades into the secret chamber. Hades blinked, staring at the two Primarchs, but it seemed that Macado did not intend to give him time to talk to them.

Mortarion slammed his giant scythe down, blocking Hades' path.

A hoarse voice rang out.

"You've been on this ship all along, Hades?"

Hades nodded.

"I'm guarding psionic prisoners. Is the war over?"

Mortarian glanced at Makado's retreating figure behind him, and drew out his words.

[Thanks to the psykers, the warriors no longer have to fight crazed warp creatures in the rainy night—]

A psionicist? Makado is in the fight?

Hades then realized that Mortarion was referring to the Emperor.

The sound of Macardo's scepter striking the ground rang out simultaneously with Lemanrus's snoring.

“Motalian, if no one expects you to speak, then you don’t have to.”

The old man's weary voice rang out, and Hades could already imagine Macado frowning deeply.

Hades coughed a few times.

"Old Ma, I also want to ask about the progress of the Death Guard construction plan."

Macardo turned his head, his eyes beneath the hood practically spitting out a barrage of blows at Hades.

"First of all, my name isn't Lao Ma;"

"Secondly—my lord has important business with you."

Mortarian chuckled, then raised his scythe. Doom did not descend, and the Lord of Death spoke in a low voice, as if answering Hades' question.

Hades sighed, “Get the infrastructure in order, get the infrastructure in order!” His voice faded into the darkness that Macado had led him into.

Lemanrus muttered something, his hand unconsciously reaching for the fur around his waist, where Magnus's single eye was hidden.

------

Hades stared at the tea in front of him. The scene was familiar; it seemed like the last time was on the Ultramarines ship.

"Is Prospero alright?"

Hades asked tentatively,

"Nothing's wrong at the moment."

The emperor spoke calmly, staring at the map of the empire's territory before him, deep in thought.

"The One of Changes showed me some insignificant illusions; He is still trying to play tricks."

"You've gone against Him?!"

The emperor raised his eyes and stared at Hades.

"No, He escaped."

"It is unwise to waste one's own strength in vain. Chaos has its own laws and wars, and it will not be so generous in dealing with the Empire."

Hades sighed. So Tzeentch didn't want to suffer a defeat himself, right? He needed the other three gods to join the fight against the Empire.

"What about Magnus? I still don't think that's safe at all."

"Nothing is certain to happen, Hades, and nothing is certain not to happen."

The Emperor casually remarked, and Hades realized that this man was determined to gamble. He recalled the Emperor twisting his finger bone earlier... It turned out that everything had been foreshadowed, but Hades hadn't understood it at the time.

If it weren't for the fact that there wasn't anyone more conscientious than the Emperor in this damned cesspool, Hades would have had to run away sooner or later, avoiding any association with gamblers. That was Hades's understanding.

"Currently, the Empire is imprisoning a total of 999 Thousand Sons. Those who are skilled in using psionic energy will be incorporated into my ranks."

Makado, who was standing nearby, promptly added.

"Grey Knight".

The old man said this while taking a sip of tea, as if weary of the endless related work he would face in the future.