The ship shuddered, its Machine Spirit let out a long, tallic wail, and pillars of fire erupted from the deep shafts.
There was no ti for the Patriarchs to evade. The two titans, locked in a lethal embrace, were instantly consud by the expanding bloom of the explosion. Their diamond-hard claws, which could tear through tank-grade plating, offered no protection against the concussive force; instead, once shattered, the shards of their own chitin beca shrapnel that shredded their internal organs. One attempted to flare its psychic defenses, only to find its will suppressed by the other's suicidal madness—the rival's eyes held no fear of death, only the singular focus of taking its enemy into the dark.
Both Patriarchs plumted into the inferno.
Enkidu dropped into a braced tactical crouch, allowing the shockwave to wash over his fra. The disorientation of being forcibly ejected from his psychic vision, coupled with the concussive roar of the blast, left his head ringing. Molten tal sprayed from the shaft's mouth before cooling and raining down like black hail.
Then ca the psychic backlash.
A tsunami in the Sea of Souls rippled outward, igniting the minds of every organism linked to the cult's gestalt. Astartes and mortal officers alike watched in shock as the previously frenzied hybrids suddenly froze. Thick blood began to leak from their eyes, noses, and ears. Thousands fell to their knees, a collective scream of mourning rising from their throats. The less human xenos simply lost their minds, scurrying like mindless beasts until they were mowed down by heavy weapon fire.
The Genestealer Patriarchs were dead.
"This is your idea of a 'minor complication'?!"
Telax stared at the smoldering ruin of the shaft, his jaw tightening as fury bubbled up from his chest. It didn't matter if the shaft had been decommissioned for centuries—it didn't give this brat the right to blow a hole in the ship's internal structure.
This was his ship. His!
"Explain yourself," Telax hissed, his hand resting instinctively on the handle of his neural whip. "Tell how 'purging loyalists' resulted in the demolition of my deck."
Great. Telax is actually pissed.
"I offer my deepest apologies, Lord Telax." Enkidu chose the path of imdiate submission. "Due to my own naivety and errors in my initial investigation, I drastically miscalculated the nature of the target. These 'remnants of the False Emperor' were never mortal slaves. They were a xenos infestation."
"Xenos."
Telax spat the word as if it were poison, his gaze shifting back to the rubble.
A swarm of mortal slaves were working frantically under his shadow, using heavy lifters to haul away the debris. As the wreckage cleared, the violet remains were revealed. The two massive alien corpses were tangled together, impaled by a buckled ceramite support beam. Even in death, their posture spoke of a struggle that only ended when their hearts stopped beating.
The acidic blood of the Genestealers hissed against the deck plating, releasing a toxic, foul-slling gas.
Telax's eyes narrowed. Physically, these creatures dwarfed an Astartes. Their speed and lethality would have been a death sentence for a squad of raw initiates.
The brat was right to use explosives, Telax thought bitterly. Though the warband was destitute—lacking supplies and a proper Tech-Priest to repair the hull—sending his new blood into a frontal assault against that would have been suicide.
But he also felt a sting of resentnt. His disciple—the most rational and capable initiate since the Legion's fall—had chosen to face this lethality alone rather than ask for his aid.
There was no trust between them.
Since the Crusade broke, there is no brotherhood left, a cynical voice whispered in Telax's mind. You crave sothing that no longer exists.
"Don't think this excuses you," Telax growled. "Tell , what do these things have to do with the False Emperor? If you can't prove the link, you'll spend the next decade hanging from the ceiling next to Noel."
Enkidu was prepared. He pulled a tattered, scorched banner from his pack, depicting a distorted, four-ard version of the Imperial Aquila.
"Lord, these xenos worshipped Him. This was their standard. They possess a horrific ability to contaminate human genetics, hiding their true form and using the 'Four-Ard Emperor' as bait to lure mortals into their cult."
"Four-ard? Sacrilege! I didn't know the skeleton grew extra limbs while I wasn't looking." Telax snarled, the image offending even his corrupted sensibilities. But the ntion of genetic contamination gave him pause.
"Yes... interesting. Very interesting," Telax grinned, his mood shifting to one of dark curiosity. "Xenos worshipping the Corpse. I must see this for myself. But do not think you are off the hook."
"I intended to grant you further privileges if you succeeded—your own slaves, and perhaps the power armor you so clearly crave. But you have disappointed . You failed to cleanly purge the heretics and you damaged my vessel. Therefore, those rewards are revoked. Now, you have a new task: extract samples of these xenos and deliver them to The Velvet Abyss. I want the Apothecaries there to tell how to turn these things into specins for my collection."
A wave of nausea hit Enkidu as mories of the flagship surfaced: the skin-carpets, the screaming tapestries, and the depraved Astartes who called that hell ho.
He felt Telax's eyes on him, cold and malicious. He couldn't refuse.
"...Understood. But Lord, may I confirm—will our current status remain unchanged?"
Telax's smile widened. If he couldn't have brotherhood, then inspiring dread and resentnt was a fine substitute.
"The things I have already given you will remain. If you want more, you must earn it through service. I know you value your 'brothers,' so while you are away, I will see to it that no harm cos to them."
"I will move quickly then," Enkidu said, his voice level. He reached into his pocket and pulled out the crystal he had taken from the Magus. "I recovered this from the xenos. A gift for you, Lord."
Telax took the crystal, examined it for two seconds, and tossed it back with bored indifference.
"Useless to . Only the bookworms of the Thousand Sons care for such toys."
"The Thousand Sons?"
Enkidu's expression was one of genuine confusion, which seed to satisfy Telax's vanity. He puffed out his chest and spoke like a proper ntor.
"It's a Psi-Resonator. A relic of ancient technology my pathetic cousins in the XV Legion hunt for. It focuses and amplifies psychic energy. To a man without the Gift, it's just a pretty rock."
Perfect. Since I am a psyker.
Enkidu tucked the crystal away. He planned to visit his brothers in the d-bay and then have a servant fashion a pouch for the resonator.
After Enkidu departed, Telax returned to his throne.
"Brother Virsuto, I have a task for you."
The shadows shifted as a veteran marine stepped into the light.
"What is it?" Virsuto asked, his voice smooth and pleasant. "You know I am always on your side."
"I want you to follow the boy to The Velvet Abyss. Secretly. I need to know his thoughts. I want to know how he views , and how he views Varex and his lapdogs. If he shows any sign of defecting to the warband leader... I give you permission to ensure he ets with an 'accident.'"
Telax would have preferred the blunt Armand for this, but Armand was too crude for espionage and loathed Varex too much to go near the flagship. Only Virsuto had the subtlety for such work.
"He is your finest pupil. You would truly discard him?"
"If he is not loyal to , then he is nothing."
"Then it will be my pleasure."
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