The Beyonder powers of a "Lawyer" consist of three main abilities. The first is spiritual enhancent. The second is superior logical reasoning, extending to the skill of sifting through information to pinpoint key details. And the third, the core ability of a "Lawyer," is "Beyonder Eloquence."
This power grants supernatural persuasiveness, the ability to sway others, and to a certain extent, distort or guide a target's thoughts, making them feel inclined to trust and believe the speaker.
As a Primarch, it was inevitable that he would conquer Vostroya.
Of course, not all Primarchs sought to dominate their howorlds. Before Horus awakened his genetic mories, he had been nothing more than a gang youth, never unifying Cthonia.
Only after his awakening did he return to the Imperium.
Regardless of the circumstances of the other Primarchs, Nareth had already resolved to conquer Vostroya and, given the opportunity, expand to other worlds.
At the sa ti, he needed to ascend the Path of Sequences, beginning with the role of a "Lawyer" to digest the potion.
rely drinking the potion was not enough to fully absorb its power. To unlock its hidden potential, one had to act in accordance with its nature.
To do so, one had to interpret the potion's na, deciphering its core symbolism and conceptual imagery.
Nareth believed that playing the role of a "Lawyer" did not necessarily require literal legal practice.
Exploiting rules for personal gain was itself an act of "Lawyer" role-playing. And if one could identify loopholes in the rules and manipulate them, the effectiveness of the role-play would be even greater.
Whether his interpretation was correct would soon beco apparent; the digestion of the potion through the acting thod was sothing all Beyonders could unmistakably sense.
'Based on my past life's understanding and what I've seen and heard in Tizca, the only rule in the Underhive is that matters within the dos are judged by the Arbiter. Outside the dos, there are no rules.'
With this thought, Nareth imdiately formulated his next course of action.
'As before, swiftly seize the factories. If the Arbiter intervenes, use "Beyonder Eloquence" to persuade him.'
Having decided, he summoned Roslov and inquired about the situation in the Hantman West Do.
His target was the largest factory in the do, Magnitogorsk Steelworks. Every factory in the do relied on its steel production.
The plastic steel composite produced by Magnitogorsk, Mittal Steel, even found its way into the Upper Hive, where it was used in the manufacture of carapace armor.
The steelworks were controlled by "Ironfist" Gorsk, whose gang commanded over a thousand enforcers.
Nareth also learned about Tizca's tikeeping system. Like all hive worlds, a full day on Vostroya was called a work cycle, lasting 33 hours and divided into three shifts: White-Night Shift, Curie Shift, and Night-Kay Shift.
Upper Hive workers adhered to a strict three-shift rotation, while those in the Underhive had more irregular hours, though universally longer than their upper counterparts.
Nareth decided to strike at the end of the Night-Kay Shift. Though workers' schedules varied, the guards operated on fixed rotations.
Their final hour before switching shifts, when the sun rises, obscured by industrial dust, is when they are at their most relaxed.
Two hours before the Night-Kay Shift ended, Nareth stood atop a high platform, lightly tapping his forehead twice as he surveyed the crowd below.
A person's emotional state, their "Astral Body", manifests subtle external signs.
Those with spiritual vision could discern an individual's health and emotional condition through variations in the thickness, brightness, and color of their aura.
He had previously examined his own condition, but now, he observed the collective emotions of his followers.
Most psykers possessed this ability as well—the Thousand Sons referred to it as Aetheric Sight.
As expected, the dominant hue in the auras of his n was a heavy black, fear of him.
Among them, however, particularly in Roslov and others who had previously enjoyed his "generosity," streaks of pale orange anticipation flickered.
He tapped his forehead twice more, deactivating his spiritual vision, then spoke.
"Over the past two days, you've learned one thing: more effort brings more rewards. But you don't yet know just how much you can gain."
"In the past, you followed your bosses, fighting and bleeding, only to scrape by on scraps—most of the ti, not even enough to fill your bellies."
"But now, things are different. Prove your worth, and you'll eat whatever you desire. Today, I've brought back rat at… and Vostvoth."
Lowering his voice, Nareth wove temptation into his words.
"Imagine it—a mouthful of rat at, washed down with a swig of Vostvoth vodka."
His n, enthralled by the newly ascended "Lawyer's" vision, unconsciously swallowed as vivid images filled their minds.
Roslov was the first to raise his head, his eyes burning with hunger.
The others, influenced by his reaction, followed suit.
Soon, every man stared at their leader with hope blazing in their eyes.
Nareth raised his hand and swept it forward.
"Move out!"
"Take Magnitogorsk Steelworks—feast on at and drink!"
The crowd roared back in fervor:
"Take Magnitogorsk Steelworks—feast on at and drink!"
As they turned to march, Nareth tapped his forehead twice again.
Just as he expected, their emotional auras had shifted, now dominated by the red of fervor and excitent.
One hour later, gunfire erupted through Magnitogorsk Steelworks.
After gunning down the gate guards, Nareth charged inside, only to lock eyes with a hulking, unkempt man standing atop a tal scaffolding.
The man's right sleeve was rolled up, revealing a chanical arm.
"Nareth."
Gorsk's voice was steady. He spat.
"You killed the 'Vulture', I'll give you that. But I'm no weakling like him."
"Today, I'll break you, have my fun, then sell you to the Upper Hive."
Nareth's response was a searing lasbeam.
Gorsk barely raised his chanical arm in ti; the shot tore through it, exposing wires and steel plating beneath.
"You little—!"
With a furious swing, Gorsk detached his own fist, sending it spiraling toward Nareth like a projectile.
This hidden weapon, purchased at great cost from the Fender Clan, had slain many strong Underhive enemies.
Knowing Nareth's marksmanship was deadly, Gorsk had resorted to his trump card imdiately, the Iron Fist.
Nareth, gun in left hand, drew his chainsword with his right and revved it up with a roar.
The internal layout of chanical constructs he had recently acquired flashed through his mind. He raised the sword, jabbing it directly into the linkage between the connecting rods and joints of the fist.
The montum of the iron fist was redirected into the chainsword, jamming it in place.
Two high-speed forces collided at near-perpendicular angles. Seconds later, the Iron Fist separated from the linkage and dropped to the floor.
Gorsk's eyes widened. He turned to flee—
But after just one step, a lasbolt burned through the back of his skull.
One work cycle later, Nareth controlled Magnitogorsk Steelworks.
His forces had grown, after absorbing so of Gorsk's n, he now commanded nearly six hundred fighters.
Leading two hundred of them, Nareth hunted down over four hundred giant rats in the tunnels, trading fifty for a hundred bottles of Vostvoth.
As the at stew boiled, he addressed his followers:
"As promised, every man who fought today eats his fill of at and drinks his share of liquor."
"New recruits get only broth. Want at and drink? Prove yourselves next ti."
Activating his spiritual vision, he observed their auras.
His veterans radiated warm orange satisfaction—their fear of him replaced by awe.
The newcors, anwhile, were a mix of fear, hope, and envy.
Nareth nodded in satisfaction. His spirituality felt more vibrant.
'The "Lawyer" role-play is working. The potion is being digested.'
Locking himself in the control room, he willed black mist to rise as his spirit grew lighter—his Astral Body separating, instantly arriving in the "Kingdom of Disorder."
Digesting the potion ant absorbing its Beyonder characteristics, enhancing one's spirituality and supernatural abilities.
For example, a "Lawyer's" digestion relied on exploiting rules, especially their loopholes. Gaining others' recognition also accelerated the process.
A powerful Chaos Demigod like Malice, despite imnse power, was inherently disordered. Such a being could never digest the "Lawyer" potion, no matter how much they drank.
In contrast, an ordinary lawyer might digest it after resolving a planet-scale case.
A mber of the Adeptus Arbiter could do so in weeks, while an ordinary Administratum official might take months.
User Comments
0 comments from readers