40k: Midnight Blade

Chapter 368 88. The Burning of Five Hundred Worlds (7, 5k)

"This is absolutely impossible, do you hear clearly?" Valentus Dorlo said sternly. "There is no way the counter-psionic forces will leave Macragge, especially now that the warp storm is getting more severe."

"but--"

"——No but! By the way, Terra, Wharton, who made this suggestion to you?"

"Does this matter still need to be 'brought up'? Lord Valiant? The Undermount needs counter-psionic troops! The capital of the Southern Division is under siege by the damn Word Bearers!"

"I can only assign you five more battle groups at most." Valentus said. "Five, plus ten battle barges, and that's all, Volton. Macragge's defenses are empty enough."

"You'd better ask them to come here quickly, sir." The person on the other end of the communication replied gloomily. "We'll need a lot of men to drive those Aurelion bastards away."

Tarasha Euton leaned on her cane and shook her head helplessly.

She had heard too many similar arguments over the past few days. And Valentus Dorro, one of the Four Heroes of Ultramar, was present every time

He is a brave and fearless man, like all Ultramarines, but he is also stubborn.

Yudon especially disliked this. Just like she didn't like Robert Guilliman's occasional stubbornness, but what could she do to change it?

The housekeeper could only make suggestions, but she clung to this area without taking a step beyond it for so many years. After a few more minutes, Valentus and Wharton on the other end of the communication finally finished arguing.

Yingjie angrily left the array of thinkers in the study, clenching his gauntlets suddenly, and his color-switched Seiko MK3 actually showed a dull gray under the setting sun.

"How is the situation around Macragge, Lord Valentus?" she asked aloud, her right hand still on her cane.

She has not aged very obviously in recent years, but she is still thin and thin. Her white hair is neatly styled and tied back.

The beauty of her youth has not been worn away by time, but has become more and more impressive with the passage of time. For example, her blue eyes are extremely bright due to willpower. Sometimes, they look almost like Robert Guilliman. Exactly the same.

"We have almost lost contact with most of the world." Yingjie said seriously and slowly, and came over and helped her to a comfortable armchair.

The housekeeper made no objection and even made himself sit a little more comfortably. She placed the cane flat on her knees, stroked the lines on it with both hands, and waited.

She understood that Valentus had something worse to say.

"Conor, Veridian, Masari," the hero of Okruda said, shaking his head. "This is a nightmare, ma'am. We only have half of the southern sector and the Macragge system left. Damn warp storm."

He looked worriedly at the sunset outside the window and stopped talking. Yudun followed closely and stared at the window. It and the scene outside it once belonged only to King Konnor, but now belong to Roboute Guilliman and many who have access to his study.

Tarasha Yuton is one of the few people who has seen two different landscapes at the same time. During the time of King Konnor, there were not so many high-rise buildings and there were no Ultramarines.

At that time, Macragge was more primitive. People were passionate about things in the sky and did not know what dangers existed in the universe.

Thinking of this, Yudun couldn't help but smile.

"What makes you smile, madam? You haven't smiled in days." Valentus asked.

"Don't pry into my thoughts, sir, it's not polite." Yudun suddenly said seriously, her joke made Yingjie helplessly laugh - although helpless, he did laugh.

Eudon picked up his cane and stood up from the chair. Valentus stared at her intently, his smile fading as worry took over again.

"I'm almost sick these days," said the housekeeper, half joking. "Our mutual adult is not here, and I don't even have a schedule to report. Although I can handle those things myself, it does feel weird to be without him."

She raised her head and looked at Valentus, and suddenly said: "Can I ask a question, sir?"

"It's your fault, ma'am."

"I heard that some people in the empire don't like our lord staying in Macragge all the time?"

"There is indeed such a saying, madam." Valentus replied with a little hesitation. "Most of them are from Terra's Ministry of Government officials, or some people from the Ministry of Military Affairs. They feel that the Primarch has spent too much time and effort on the Five Hundred Worlds."

The housekeeper was silent for a moment and nodded clearly: "I understand."

"Madam?" Valentus looked at her in astonishment. "What do you understand?"

"They are wary of Robert Guilliman, Lord Valentus, obviously," Jotun said. "In other words, they think it is abnormal for a Primarch who is well versed in politics and has five hundred Primarchs far away from the world of Terra to spend too much time on his homeworld."

As she was speaking, she suddenly burst into laughter: "Okay, this does sound a little abnormal. From this description, he sounds like an ambitious conspirator."

The corner of Si Yingjie's mouth twitched, and his expression became very strange.

Youdun looked up at him and frowned: "Wait, sir, there won't really be anyone -"

"——Let's talk about other topics, madam." Valentus said stiffly.

Eudon looked at him in shock.

"Really?" The old housekeeper suddenly became serious. "What are they thinking? Can't they see how much Five Hundred Worlds has contributed to the empire?"

"Actually, madam, they can see it," Valentus reminded cryptically. "But our contribution may seem a little too much, I mean, our numbers."

He coughed and made a gesture.

Yudun paused his cane angrily but helplessly: "It is our fault that we are so enthusiastic about recruiting! They can see our hundreds of battle groups, but why can't they see those who disappeared into the sea of ​​stars and never returned? Where are the young people? And their crying parents."

"Most people only see the most superficial parts. It's not their fault, madam. In fact, many Primarchs have expressed their disgust at this statement." Valentus spoke quickly and changed the topic.

In Macragge, few people are willing to face an angry Ms. Jotun, even if the anger is not directed at themselves.

Robert Guilliman's housekeeper is widely respected for his outstanding abilities. There are even rumors in the market that when it comes to handling government affairs, Robert Guilliman alone can match fifteen Thinkers, while Jotun Ladies can at least hold up to six stations.

This is of course an exaggeration, but it somewhat reflects people's views on her. However, the Macragge people's respect for her does not entirely come from her ability, but more probably from her fairness.

"Really?" As Valentus expected, after he raised this topic, the housekeeper's attention was diverted.

"Do you mind talking to me about this?" Yudun asked, his expression actually seemed a little impatient.

Valentus secretly laughed in his heart - it seems that mothers all over the world are like this, they always want to know the current situation of their children, want to know who their children are close to and who they are alienated from.

But he soon stopped laughing because he remembered that the mother's son was still out of contact at this time.

"Of course, ma'am." Yingjie suppressed his emotions and nodded calmly. "For example, Lord Angron, Lord of the War Dogs and Son of the Mountains, has publicly opposed this argument many times."

"However, this also seemed to make him angry. Some idiots in the Ministry of Military Affairs actually wanted to take advantage of the situation to transfer the War Dogs' auxiliary troops elsewhere. The Lord of the War Dogs personally went to Terra for this purpose. It is said that he only brought Two senior officers of the Gladiator Force were arrested, and then the people from the Ministry of Military Affairs changed their tune.”

"What do they think?" Yodon asked in disbelief. "If I remember correctly, all the gladiator troops are Lord Angron's brothers and sisters? At least they are also young Nucerians who failed to participate in the selection of war dogs?"

"You remember correctly." Valentus showed an indescribable and strange smile. "Some people in the world are just that stupid."

"Then, the second person to openly support the Primarch was Lord Konrad Curze, Lord of the Blades. However, his opposition was closer to a threat than the Lord of Warhounds."

"I'm not surprised."

"Then those people turned against him along with him."

"What?"

"Yes, ma'am, they later thought not only that our Primarch was ambitious, but also that the Lord of Blades had a piece of the pie. They even called him a corrupt judge."

"Are they crazy?" the housekeeper asked, leaning on her cane, with a very confused expression, mixed with a bit of sympathy that shouldn't be there - she knew the way Konrad Curze and the Night Blades acted. .

Although this necessary evil is unpleasant, it is definitely a necessary means. With the Night Blade around, careerists throughout the galaxy need to weigh whether they will be pierced through the heart by a sharp blade in a dream at midnight one night.

"Conrad Curze is probably the most unlikely person in the entire galaxy to do such a thing. Rather, if Robert really had that idea, he would be the first to stop it." Yodon said. He said, shaking his head. "They can become officials, but can they be so stupid?"

"I'm not sure about their intelligence level, ma'am. Maybe they just think differently from us, or maybe they don't know much about the Lord of Blades." Valentus shrugged. "This is normal. After all, the Night Blades are always elusive and rarely show up. Nostramo is too remote."

"Why are you helping them talk?"

"I'm just analyzing things rationally, ma'am," Valentus said. "I have to do this to temporarily understand the logic of their thinking, otherwise I will collapse like a meditator whose program has gone wrong."

"What you said is too serious." Yudun shook his head. "But, as far as I'm concerned -"

She suddenly stopped talking, and a piercing alarm began to buzz in the room. Valentus's expression immediately changed, and he stretched out his hand to hold down the sword at his waist, his whole person became stern.

The study door was opened, and the two victorious soldiers looked over silently. The eagle-covered helmet sparkled with golden light, and the weapons in his hands buzzed and danced with electric light. The Champion of Okruda gestured to them and nodded to Tarasha Yudon.

"Please take shelter quickly."

"Be very careful, Lord Valentus." Amid the piercing air-raid sirens, the housekeeper did not resist and allowed the victorious troops to protect her, but her expression was very worried.

"I will." Yingjie said seriously.

Half an hour later, he rushed outside the city.

This place was originally a farmland, but now it has become an accident scene with thick smoke billowing from it. The local defense forces who were putting out the fire were busy, and the farmer stood at a loss on the field ridge not far away, looking at his field with a confused expression.

Valentus withdrew his gaze, looked at his adjutant Casmir, and opened his mouth with a question.

"Why didn't the orbital outpost sound the alarm in advance?"

"I don't know, my lord," Casmir said, handing over a datapad containing detailed records of Macragge's orbital outpost from this morning until just before the crash.

Through this data, Valentus keenly discovered a brief ups and downs. To be more precise, he found a sudden explosion reading, so sudden that it was like an orc suddenly appearing in the palace of Terra.

"Is this impossible?" Valentus said slowly, put down the data pad, and looked up into the depths of the smoke ahead. "If the data reading is normal."

"Absolutely normal." Casmir interjected. "I have checked it twelve times before you came. The servo engineer at the orbital outpost even protested against me. There is no problem with this data. If there is a problem with it, it proves that our system has been invaded."

Valentus looked at him, then at the data pad.

"In other words, this meteorite - or something like that." He hung the datapad on his belt. "Appeared out of thin air in Macragge's atmosphere?"

"Yes, my lord."

"In the name of Ultramar, this is really crazy." Yingjie suddenly smiled and pulled out the sword from his waist. The decomposition force field buzzed, and the sound of swords being drawn continued to be heard. The farmer on the field ridge immediately widened his eyes.

Valentus had no time to care about his surprise for the time being, and just walked into the thick smoke with his sword in hand.

It is the harvest season now, and the crops in this field are growing quite well, but now they are just ashes. The fire was still spreading, but the flames could not harm the Ultramarines wearing armor. They followed the heroes and cautiously entered the wheat field.

After advancing 622 meters, Valentus was the first to stop. A deep pit appeared in front of him, and a half-destroyed shuttle.

The bright paint is now covered with mud, the left wing is broken, and the rear half is completely missing. The fracture is extremely smooth, as if it had been cut off by a knife blade - something even weirder is coming now, here. What was exposed at the break was not the interior of the cabin, but a whole piece of smooth silver metal.

Yingjie withdrew his gaze and began to observe the fuselage. He was keenly aware of a emblem. To be precise, half an emblem. He recognized the black dragon head. It had become very abstract due to the crash, but this did not prevent Valentus from using his imagination to get the answer.

He put down his sword, called his adjutant and five Ultramarines with an ugly expression, and jumped into the pit. He split open the hatch with his power sword and a body slid out. It was a salamander, no doubt, but it had been dead for a long time.

There was a huge wound on his chest, as if he had been injured by a sword, and the bones were visible.

Valentus took a deep breath, hugged him with both hands, and tried to take him out of the pit - but before he could finish this action, a big black hand suddenly reached out from behind the hatch and grabbed the man. The left hand of a corpse.

Casmir and a group of Ultramarines immediately raised their guns.

"Don't." In the cabin, a deep and hoarse voice spoke out a single syllable with difficulty. His voice sounded terrible, rough and weak as if he had swallowed a dozen razor blades.

Valentus listened for a moment, and the hand holding the sword suddenly trembled. He had a guess, which was not very possible, but...

"Sir?!" After a few seconds, he made a decision and shouted anxiously. "Lord Vulkan? Is that you?!"

"it's me."

"Damn it, get him out!" Valentus immediately put down his sword and roared. Half a minute later, the almost human-shaped Fire Dragon Lord was lifted out of the cabin by them.

He has lost one eye, his armor is shattered, and there are many cracks on it, all caused by weapons. Yingjie looked at this giant among giants in horror, wondering who could hurt Vulkan like this.

"Send a medical team over and notify the hospitals in the city to prepare to the highest standards." Valentus told his adjutant seriously. Casmir saluted and left the pit.

He bent down and tried to continue communicating with Vulkan, but the seriously injured original was faster than him.

"Get ready, Ultramarines."

"What preparations, sir?"

"Sky." Vulkan said with difficulty. "Fall - we will fall. Steel, fire dragon, death guard."

Valentus looked at him confused. He should not have understood what Vulcan meant through such abstract words. However, he made eye contact with the one eye, and everything was solved.

A thought flashed through his mind like lightning, causing his brain to restart briefly.

"Falling." The Fire Dragon Lord raised his hand, grabbed his shoulder, and said this word.

He is obviously a dying man, but his strength is beyond comprehension. The only thing about him that can be associated with death is his voice, that kind of whisper, Valentus has heard it countless times.

He half-knelt on the ground, took a deep breath, and activated the legion broadcast.

"Level 1 warning, global martial law. I want every city to be prepared. We may encounter large-scale falls. All orbital towers are prohibited from attacking and switched to observation mode. Let the rapid reaction force and medical team be prepared. , and notify all hospitals that they will enter wartime status."

"Falling." Beside him, Vulkan was still whispering, tears slowly flowing out of his one eye. A few seconds later, his hand fell heavily and fell into the dirt, causing a name that he wanted to pronounce but couldn't to dissipate into the air.

"Sir? Lord Vulkan?! Your Majesty, Your Majesty, how much longer will the medical team take?! He is dying!"

Mortarion

Just one update today, and all the updates will be made up tomorrow.