Warhammer 40k: I Refuse to Be a Slaanesh Marine Chapter 21 21: 21: The Predator’s Trap

"You're here."

Enkidu leaned back against the silken cushions, offering the Genestealer Magus a casual, indifferent glance.

"Praise be to you, my Master," the Magus murmured, her head bowed. Her tone was significantly warr, almost intimate, compared to their previous eting. "The filth of the Star Children has been punished by the Director. Surely, that was your doing."

"And?"

"We shall present a grand performance for your amusent. It will more than satisfy your requirents." The Magus spoke with clinical directness, pulling a stack of vellum schematics from her satchel. "This is our proposed itinerary. Do you find it... acceptable?"

Enkidu scanned the "itinerary"—the cult's ticulously drafted invasion plan. He committed every detail to his enhanced mory, overlaying it with the tactical map Adelina had sent him to form a third, superior solution.

"It is... adequate. But far from perfect."

With a sharp crack, a decorative candle nearby flared with a psychic spark, incinerating the papers into fine ash. He "disdainfully" tossed his data-slate toward her. The Magus lunged to catch it, the montum of the heavy device forcing her back several steps.

She ignored the slight, greedily activating the screen. Her eyes darted across the data-streams.

"Thank you!" This ti, her gratitude was genuine. "Those dregs have no idea we've anticipated their counter-strike. They actually think they can surprise us! My Master, give five minutes. In five minutes, I will provide a plan that is truly flawless."

She closed her eyes. The temperature in the receiving room plumted. A fine dusting of frost crystallized on the fur rug. Enkidu felt a massive surge of psychic energy bridge the gap across the ship, rging the Magus's power with a far more ancient, alien presence.

He didn't "look" too closely. He knew the entity on the other end was the Patriarch.

After a mont, the Magus snapped her eyes open and began frantically punching data into the slate.

Enkidu reviewed the revised plan. The scale of the conflict had escalated. This was no longer a skirmish; it was a decapitation strike intended to shatter the Star Children. To achieve this, the Bronze Cog was deploying a significant number of Aberrants, several Purestrains, and even their Primus units.

The Patriarch's personal location remained hidden, but with this level of commitnt, the two small cults were clearly going to war for total dominance of the lower decks.

He wiped the plan from the slate, scrubbing the data-stream to ensure no digital ghosts remained, before looking back at the Magus.

"When does the play begin? And where is my seat? I am growing impatient."

"Four days," the Magus purred. "Above the western sector of the lower decks, there is a perfect observation gallery. We have prepared so long for this mont... We shall provide you with a spectacle you will never forget."

Once the Magus had departed, Enkidu sat in silence for two minutes. Then, he activated his vox-link.

The final piece of the puzzle was in place. It was ti to brief the Host.

Following the visits of the "maid" and the Magus, the small receiving room was now crowded with giants. A dozen Astartes sat in a circle around Enkidu, watching the tactical patterns projected in the center of the air.

"This is... the route for the lower-deck uprising?" Pius stared at the map, eyes wide. "Boss, how did you get this? And what does this have to do with what Telax wants?"

"The Boss has his reasons. Just shut up and listen," Bellator snapped, though his eyes never left the projection.

Enkidu smiled faintly. He tapped a command, and the blue territory of the Star Children was suddenly overlaid with a twisted, distorted version of the Imperial Aquila. Simultaneously, the red territory of the Bronze Cog was marked with a jagged gear.

"It has everything to do with us. I conducted a personal investigation of the lower decks. Those shrines we've been purging? They were all built by the Star Children. Now, due to a 'religious dispute,' the Bronze Cog Clan is launching an all-out offensive against them."

"I... I don't know what to say," Sebastian whispered, his hands clasped as if in prayer. "Telax makes us do these things... I just hope the innocent find peace."

"It isn't your fault, Sebastian. Survival in this place has a cost," Enkidu said gently. "But you should know—they aren't worshipping the True Emperor. Sothing has hijacked His image. During our purges, you must have noticed: the regular people hide their faith in the corners of their hos. They don't hang Aquilas in the open."

"So, who built those shrines? I asked the Director to find out."

The projection shifted to a grainy image. A crowd of humans and purplish mutants knelt before a statue of the Emperor—but this statue had a second pair of talons erging from its ribs. Beneath the idol, a bald Magus was presiding over a "conversion" ritual.

A man hung suspended before a massive, bloated alien. The monster's mouth opened, revealing a barbed tongue that punched through the mortal's chest.

In the deeper shadows of the image, distorted Aberrants and multi-limbed Purestrains watched with predatory, multifaceted eyes.

"Xenos filth!" Sebastian snarled, his face flushing with a righteous, incandescent rage. "They dare... they dare commit such sacrilege! I will grind them into the deck plating!"

"Enough! Do you want to shout loud enough for Telax to hear us?"

Truen's growl silenced the room. He turned his silver eyes toward Enkidu.

"You called us here because you have a plan."

"I do."

Enkidu reset the display to the first tactical overlay. Red and blue arrows were locked in a complex, lethal dance. He pointed to several abandoned vaults and vertical shafts marked in orange.

"These xenos are lethal. Do not think we can simply stroll in and purge them all by hand yet. I intend to use this 'controlled riot' to break them both. The mortal officers will assist us. Our role is that of the referee. We are observers. We are guests. We are not to be gladiators in this pit."

"Point one," Truen said, his voice like grinding stone. "If we are just observers, why the briefing? We could just watch from the gallery."

"Point two," he continued. "You have their exact routes. That shouldn't be possible unless you have a direct line to them. If you can talk to them, why not just lead them into a trap and end it?"

"Because I cannot control them directly," Enkidu admitted, eting Truen's suspicious gaze with a weary sigh. "I used a very dangerous trick to get this information. And the reason I called you here is because I am afraid."

In this universe, too many tragedies were born from silence. Enkidu had sworn to be honest with his brothers.

"I cannot estimate the maximum combat strength of these xenos. Nor can I predict how they will react to us. I have to assu the worst: that they will try to drag us into the fray. In that scenario, soone could be hurt. Soone could die. I cannot accept losing even one of you."

"From the mont we woke in those vats, you beca my family. My only reliable allies. I won't lose you to a bunch of bugs. But 'everyone survives' isn't a miracle; it's the result of a plan. Here is how we move. What do you think?"

Truthfully, the plan felt fragile to Enkidu. If he had twenty suits of Cataphractii Terminator plate, he'd feel invincible. If he had Mark IV power armor, he'd be confident. But they had nothing but scout-carapace and combat knives.

"Varangis has the sharpest senses; he stays on the high ground as a lookout," Truen analyzed, his tone shifting to one of grim approval. "The spacing between Bellator and Vitaly is good—close enough for mutual support. But..."

Truen frowned, looking directly at Enkidu.

"You've put yourself in the most exposed position. That is unacceptable. You are the commander of this Host; you cannot be the first to fall. I am anding the plan: I am your shield. I stay by your side throughout."

Truen stood, his massive fra casting a long shadow. "You care for us, Enkidu. We care for you in return. Whatever deal you made with Telax, whatever link you have to the bugs, rember one thing—don't you dare die."