40k: Midnight Blade

Chapter 286 6. Meeting with the original body (End)

Horus picked up a bronze goblet and drank the liquid in it. He drank it all in one gulp without any hesitation.

The machine servant responsible for pouring him wine had no idea what kind of responsibilities he had. Its monotonous programming made it unaware of the jealousy that the servants in the corner of the high platform were staring at it. .

Horus straightened his arms, allowing the servitor to continue its work.

He didn't focus on it, but on the distance.

The sky in Ullanor is a gloomy deep blue, with clouds rolling in and rain brewing. Promethium torches soared into the sky, and the pale heads of the orcs stared at the victors' display of power on both sides of the road.

The imperial troops arrived at their positions in their neat uniforms. The marching formations of men and women in various uniforms were gathering order amidst the bustle. Heavy vehicles and Titans stayed silently behind them, the wall of steel, the unrivaled god's machine, representing the most powerful and primitive power.

A hint of gloom flashed across Horus's face unconsciously. He turned his head and showed a fleeting smile to Jaghatai, who was standing side by side with him.

He seemed to be trying to say something, but failed. Khan didn't ask any questions, he just raised the wine glass in his hand and took a sip.

The clear liquid flowed into his throat, causing a feeling of scalding heat. The Chogorian put down the wine glass calmly, giving a low evaluation in his heart, and then placed it on the edge of the high platform, which was as thick as a city wall.

The breeze blew by, bringing damp rain, and the wine glass stayed where it was, without wavering at all. There was a murmur of conversation behind them, the rapid, urgent voice of Corvus Corax being prominent among them.

"He has never spoken to me in this tone." Horus sighed softly, turning a sentence without a reference into an iron hammer that broke the silence between him and Jaghatai.

"oh?"

"Corax," Horus said with a half-smile. "After all the times I've helped him, this is what I get in return."

"Your words sound jealous, and your smile is full of falsehood, brother." Jaghatai stretched out his fingers and placed them on his wine glass.

He narrowed his eyes, and instead of staring at Horus with his sharp gaze, which was far beyond the scope of a weapon, he used his gaze to hurt the lifeless wine cup. He tapped it gently with his fingers, making it make a crisp sound, and the wine vibrated in it, making circles one after another.

"Is this also called jealousy? I'm just describing a fact." Horus said with that unpleasant smile.

"You are just jealous." Chagatai expressed his attitude in a neutral tone. "The situation of Khalil Lohars is what you dreamed of, and you worked hard for it, but you didn't get it, at least not as much as you wanted."

"What are you talking about?" Horus asked, his smile gone.

He put down the wine glass, followed Jaghatai's example and placed it on the thick edge of the high platform, and smoothly drove the servitor away, indicating that he no longer needed its services.

The irrational semi-mechanical creature nodded dully, followed the preset procedure, and walked away with impeccable manners.

Chagatai watched it go away, with compassion in his eyes.

"You will dismantle it," Khan said in a determined tone. "Sooner or later, you're going to tear the poor guy apart."

"Why should I do this?"

"You know the answer yourself. Everyone has a moment when they need to vent their anger. But I would rather know why you are so upset. What made you so upset today, brother?"

Jaghatai withdrew his gaze and looked at Horus. He was still reserved and his gaze was still mild. There was another smile on Horus's face, very shallow and weak, as if he wanted to avoid answering, but Khan did not choose to give in.

He narrowed his eyes and finally let the sharpness fully bloom. Such a gaze silenced Horus. He clenched his right fist. The power armor followed the movement of the palm and began to passively increase his strength. The hand armor creaked.

A wave of depression surged from the depths of the demigod's bones, causing the wolfskin cape on his shoulders to tremble. But this gathering of power was not to attack or harm Chagatai, but to muster the courage to tell the truth.

After a few seconds, the primarch closed his eyes and sighed.

The raindrops of Ullanor fell at this moment.

It came very quickly and hit the top of the high platform, causing a crisp sound like shattering.

"My anger has nothing to do with Khalil Lohars, I am just venting my anger on him. It's shameful, but I can't stop." Horus closed his eyes and told Jaghatai in a low voice. "My father told me something, and his words were the source of my anger."

"That's strange. Are you angry at him?" Chagatai asked thoughtfully. "Is this really what happened, Horus? Would you be angry with the Emperor?"

"Why wouldn't I?"

The Shepherd God opened his eyes, and the conversation began until now. The first real smile finally began to bloom on his resolute face. It was a smile that was mixed with bitterness and anger. Khan saw it very clearly, taking in all the emotions.

"I respect him and obey him. I want to make him proud of me from the bottom of my heart. His ideal is my lifelong goal. I understand his greatness and his pain. Those thirty years have made my ideal and His ideals have long since merged into one."

"But that doesn't mean I won't be angry with him, Jaghatai. You know what kind of person our father is. It's difficult to work with him. His demands will keep people awake day and night just to achieve them." A certain short sentence. And now, what he asked of me, he——"

A shadow passed over Horus's face.

"How is he?" Khan asked softly.

"-He asked me to take on a greater responsibility."

"Sounds like a good thing. Isn't this what you have been longing for? To be trusted more and used more by him."

"Yes, I do desire these things, but not in this way!" growled Horus.

He raised his hands and placed them heavily on the edge of the platform. Even though the original body had consciously controlled most of his power, the little anger that leaked out still caused his hands to smash into the rain curtain, and the surface of the pearly white gauntlets began to be washed by the rain at this moment.

"Which way?"

"Don't ask knowingly, brother."

Horus lowered his head and stared down. His legion was lining up solemnly in the rain. The Luna Wolves stared at their father proudly, unaware of the turmoil hidden under the calm expression of the Wolf Shepherd God at this moment.

"You can definitely guess that you are an eagle and can see farther than all of us. What's more, this matter was leaked a long time ago. It is not a secret, at least not among us. ”

"Warmaster?"

Khan spoke the word flatly, as if it was nothing special. He mentioned it in a normal tone, no different from ordinary things like 'water', 'cup', and 'chair'.

After a few seconds, Jaghatai smiled.

"I'm already imagining Perturabo's reaction when he heard this, and Ferrus. What a coincidence, both of them happened to be away. But the Lion is here. Have you figured out how to deal with his possible doubts? ?”

Horus raised his head and looked at him: "Don't you think."

"What do you think?"

Horus fell silent again, not knowing what to say, his mind went blank. Khan spoke leisurely at this moment, his tone was gentle, but his words were extremely sharp.

"I know what you are thinking, Horus. You do not want this position. You prefer to be the eldest son among brothers. You do not want the power to command us and our legions. You know that receiving this title will make you speak out in the future. Many words passively change their meaning, thus causing discord between brothers. But you don’t want others to ascend to the position of war commander, am I right?”

Horus looked at him blankly and suddenly smiled bitterly.

"Yes." The Wolf Shepherd nodded, his jaw tense. "You're right."

"You know I respect you, brother?" Khan asked again, his tone still soft.

"Yes I know."

"But I have to say now, I'm tired of it." Chagatai finally changed his tone and spoke coldly.

"I'm tired of you extraordinary Primarchs acting like characters in a play, inconsistent and fragile. Anything related to him is enough to keep your extraordinary brains thinking for a long time."

"The writers of the play do this for the sake of dramatic conflict, and what do you do for that? Whenever these topics are mentioned, the usual magnanimity is gone, and they become like children and start fighting with each other for some things that are not precious at all. thing."

"You just acted like a child, a child who got a glass marble from his father. This thing is extremely cheap, and even contains toxins because of the raw material, but you held it tightly in hand."

"You don't want it, but you don't want any of your father's other children to have it either. It's not jealousy that makes you do it, it's not vanity that makes you do it. There's only one reason that makes you do it."

Jaghatai laughed, and the smile could not be suppressed and began to spread on the Chogoris face. Is this a mockery? Probably not, because there was no smile in his eyes.

"You want to enjoy his love exclusively. The generosity and excellence you show in daily life are actually all for this. You want him to love you more."

"What?" Horus was stunned, and then he actually stuttered. "No, no—Jaghatai, you misunderstood me!"

"Really?" Khan chuckled. "Maybe, but I don't care about his so-called love at all. All emperors in the world are the same. Horus, look at yourself, take a good look. Where did the general I once respected go? He Why can’t you even speak clearly?”

"I--"

"——Think about it." Khan interrupted ruthlessly. "You are still my brother, and I still respect you, but I don't want to see you like this again."

He turned around and left. Horus lowered his head and began to think about the words of the Gathering Platform in shame. Because of this, he missed the Chogorian's figure walking towards the high platform without hesitation. He had known Khan for years, but not well enough to know him.

Far from enough.

There is one more chapter.