Warhammer 40k: Shattered Steel Soul

"Horus Luperkar, an hour ago, the initial negotiations between the Iron Warriors and Interex just came to an end. Even if I am happy to receive your contact, I am afraid I can only use my ability to recover from the edge of sleep. I woke up from my sleepy state and came to talk to you.”

This sentence was read aloud by the voice model made by Perturabo, while the Iron Lord himself barely shook the data cable at one end and propped his head up from the table.

He raised his eyebrows and rubbed his face with both hands, then slowly opened his eyes, turned on the holographic image hanging on the table, and showed a standard calm face to Horus.

Horus Luperkar was radiant and full of energy, even the top of his head was shining. He was slightly surprised by Perturabo's reaction, and then apologized: "I didn't know the time was such a coincidence. You rest first, and I will come back in ten hours."

"No," Perturabo said, fully awake, and at the same time branched off a line for the servitor to get him a glass of water. "Ten hours later is the second round of negotiations. We will enter the socio-legal level, and the Iron Warriors will try to convince Interx to recognize the title of Emperor. Is there anything you would like to share with me?"

"Actually, it's nothing." Horus remained reserved for a few seconds, then turned his head away in a covert manner, as if he suddenly understood that his sudden request for contact was not only unnecessary, but also undignified.

Perturabo decided not to tell him that the huge-span astrological holographic communication between them no longer relied on the astropaths praying silently under the dome, but Morse himself.

"You know I am on the edge of the Ullanor sector, Perturabo," Horus said. "We have just completed the coordination of several armies. Robert Guilliman and Angron have agreed to go and take back the system. The outer planets, and I will go straight into the core of Ullanor as soon as possible, with the purpose of beheading the leader of the orcs. "

"Angron is here too?" Perturabo noticed one of the names.

"Indeed, originally Jaghatai was coming, but he went to clean up the remnants of Nephilim with Sanguinius, so Angron came to Ullanor with Robert.

"Unexpectedly, Angron made many very targeted and excellent suggestions. His knowledge of the green-skinned orcs was an eye-opener for me." Horus shrugged in the armor, his eyes Glittering slightly under the dual illumination of the Vengeful Spirit and the holographic projection.

"He was responsible for nearly half of our offensive game," he said. "It seems that my previous estimate of our brother was still a lot lower."

"Each Primarch has a different story. If you need more advice on finishing the war against the Orks, you can contact Rogal Dorn."

Perturabo suggested kindly, which was met with a knowing laugh from Horus. "He and the orcs are really destined to intersect!"

"Destiny!" A strange singing voice came into the channel. Horus was stunned for a moment.

Perturabo shook his head, "As a sign of friendship, Interex gave me a few 'parrots'. It is said that they are a special breed based on the birds of the old earth recorded in the classics. Now there are only a few of them." Simple words like..."

He drove the newly installed automatic feeding equipment and dropped a few pellets of food to the birds.

"Lord of Iron!" the bird sang, pecking at the bird's food.

Perturabo simultaneously sent Horus the image of the red-feathered golden-crested parrot hanging in a steel cage in the air, which aroused the curiosity of the Wolf God, who stared at the long crimson tail feathers of the small animal. And the shiny red wings, which are like burning golden flames, cannot be moved away for a long time.

"I want to change places with you," he said sadly, "even for these little gifts."

"Their envoys said it could eventually grow to several meters long. Does the Vengeful Spirit have room for it?"

"Don't underestimate our flagship, even though it is an order of magnitude smaller than your Iron Plains!" Horus shook his head, "So, how about Interex?"

"Their friendliness is unexpected, and Mors is present. Maybe the Emperor's craftsmen will bring a little extra trouble, but he can ensure that the general direction of the entire negotiation does not deviate." Perturabo said.

"He is indeed trustworthy," Horus said. From unknown time on, his opinion of Morse had grown increasingly high.

"Where's Ullanor?" Perturabo asked politely, while distractedly processing the file directory sent by the Interex people, which mainly included scientific and technological cooperation and sharing. He was no longer used to letting his thoughts run in a single line for a long time, which would only make him feel like he was missing something.

"After the supplies are in place, we will prepare for battle. Except for Robert and Angron himself, Lorgar..."

Horus's expression changed slightly, and a look of seriousness flashed across his face.

"What the orcs will get is a visit from Harhabat. Lorgar said that they have faced too many battlefields that are too easy, and they must regain their own tempering to train the spirit to face the enemies of the Emperor.

"So Lorgar sent half his legions, along with their commanders, to Ullanor."

"Commander, is it still Erebus?"

"Yes, he has not changed the leader of the cult for over a hundred years. Lorgar himself took Mullistan to the Holy Grail Expansion. The name Conrad gave him is very attractive to our True Speakers."

"His trust in you is also extraordinary." Perturabo was surprised by Aurelion's decision. Even Rogal Dorn would not be able to hand over half of the Imperial Fist to him to lead; Magnu Sri Lanka is particularly cautious about personnel transfers.

"We finally talked about why I came to chat with you." Horus's expression was once again illuminated by the light. "Lorgar did not hand over the legion to me. My father also came to Ullanor. Lorgar asked The Emperor offered up half his army to assist in the battle."

He waved his hand, "Father decided to lead the army to complete a feint attack, and let me take charge of the final blow."

"Calm down and drink some water," Perturabo said leisurely, taking his water glass from the servitor's tray and taking a sip, "I knew that the thing that could make you so excited must be ours. Father’s involvement.”

"Hey!"

"Did I say something wrong, my brother?"

"You have seen through me, but I have not seen through you." Horus raised his eyebrows and his smile became helpless.

Horus had become much more receptive to mentioning the matter since he had been exposed to his psyche by Leon El'Jonson long ago.

"Have you seen through me since the day we first met two hundred years ago?" Wolf Shepherd God said with a smile.

"Same as you." Perturabo replied calmly, with deep meaning in his words. "What else is bothering you, my brother?"

Horus was simply flattered by Perturabo's sudden address, and was also surprised at how Perturabo could see through his deeper thoughts.

He rubbed his hands and lowered his head: "I wonder what this means, Perturabo. And I think these words can only be spoken to you."

"We are all aware of the recent rumors regarding my father's heir. Many feel that the outcome will be decided between you, me and Robert Guilliman, but Robert's odds are not good."

"Yeah." Perturabo listened quietly.

"I'm not very sure...whether my father's willingness to feint for me instead of letting me assist him means some kind of implicit...choice," Horus said.

"This is recognition of your merit and status, Horus."

"But this is not a good thing." Horus raised his head again and could see the Wolf Shepherd God truly thinking seriously in private, which was rare for the Council of Four Kings. "No one wants to be above other brothers. "I can't imagine the disgust and protests that followed."

"Many think you are destined for this position, Horus."

The Wolf Shepherd shook his head slightly, "I don't think any Primarch needs an additional leader, Perturabo."

"But the Empire needs it." Perturabo said calmly and objectively.

The Iron Lord did not yet know why the Emperor insisted on withdrawing from the Great Crusade, but Morse assured him that it was necessary - he had rarely seen the craftsmen look so unhappy, and Morse's emphasis remained in his memory. new.

"The Emperor needs an absolutely trustworthy successor, a reliable pair of hands to carry his will, and an honorable person to complete his cause. You are the best choice, Horus, only you can Everyone is convinced.”

"Oh..." Horus sighed, "Okay, how can I prove that I'm not here to listen to your praise?"

"Then you have to find a way to deserve my praise," Perturabo said, smiling, "You promised."

Horus laughed, his voice clear and loud, echoing in the limited space. "Thank you, Perturabo! No matter who ends up being the heir, I will remember your encouragement - and, of course, I will have to find a way to live up to your praise."

——

"We are united, Naud," said Kyle Valen, the warsmith of the 77th Battalion. "The Emperor, like Interrex, was born to protect humanity. If you still have to deal with the Dark Ages, Help and join under the protection of the Emperor will be the easiest and most in your interests. The era of neither enemies nor friends has passed. In the years to come, peace will be the main theme of the human empire."

"Melody," Commander-in-Chief Yevta Naud smiled, the runes floating on his handsome cheeks, "we would like that wording. But what does it mean, friends of the Empire?"

"We can hear the hints in your words, Iron Warriors. In the past two weeks, we have been focusing on a key core dialogue. Even if you do not want to offend our Federation, you have not yet spoken out the core of the problem: the Empire of Man is demanding We surrender our sovereignty and Interex is willing to fully cooperate with the Imperium of Man, but this is still too high a request."

"No, Naude, what we need to confirm is a more stable alliance." Kyle Valen emphasized the emphasis in his voice to ensure that his words were clearly conveyed, "And recognizing the emperor's identity is this After all negotiations are concluded, the Great Crusade fleet will leave the Interex, your original government officials and social structures will not be interfered with, and the Interex will retain its glory. culture and its economic independence…”

"Will the imperial army be stationed?" Naud gently interrupted the war blacksmith, "Do we need to pay taxes to your empire?"

The war blacksmith took a breath and gradually exhaled, "Yes, but the purpose of garrisoning the army is to protect rather than occupy, and taxation is an indispensable part of empire governance. Considering the specific circumstances, we can sign the lowest tax level."

Naude shook his head: "A permanent peace alliance agreement is something that all of us are willing to sign, respected friends, but we cannot easily give up everything we have established for thousands of years.

"Our people have transferred their precious public power to us, and we cherish this trust and use taxes for our public affairs to ensure that the people can obtain greater practical benefits after the transfer than before the transfer. But can the Empire guarantee that it will value our Federation as much as we value our own Federation?"

"The planet where the war blacksmith in front of you was born was also extremely hesitant when making a choice." The Iron Lord, who was sitting opposite the commander-in-chief, opened his eyes and spoke in a deep voice.

"Meru, a planet once occupied by aliens hostile to humans, was liberated by us during the Great Crusade. They were in urgent need of shelter, so they had to join the human empire, and they were later proven to have made the right choice. Based on Meru's original social structure, its economic level and stability have rapidly improved, and it has since been away from the invasion of external forces and has gained a long and precious peace."

"And the children of Meru have the same promotion rights as anyone else, whether they go to the Imperial Ministry of the Interior or join the Space Marines and become important leaders in the expeditionary force. Our country is called the Empire, but to some extent, it is an extremely large federation. If you value yourself, the Empire will not reduce this importance. At least, the Iron Warriors are willing to ensure that your rights are protected."

Perturabo emphasized the last sentence. Both sides knew that the Iron Lord was beautifying the human empire. What can really reassure Interrex is only Perturabo's personal reputation and power in his hands.

"What about the Emperor?" Naud said in confusion, "Isn't this a synonym for a centralizer?"

"The Emperor is our leader, an indispensable ruler in war and conflict. His courage brought about this expedition, and his ability allowed humans to reconnect. But..."

Perturabo lowered his voice, "The Emperor is already considering withdrawing from the center of power, and the power structure of the entire human empire will also undergo a huge change. I can't make any guarantees in advance, but I can share this prospect with you."

Naud was shocked by the information given by the Iron Lord, and the music played by the surrounding translators also rose and fell, openly showing the commander-in-chief's inner turmoil.

Perturabo was sure that for a moment, the other party thought of the greater potential benefits that Interrex could gain from the turmoil of power with its extremely high basic qualities.

And his generous gift of this ambiguous message also moved the other party. This once again proved that Interrex did tend to maintain goodwill in general character.

"We will consider this again, Iron Lord." Naud said politely, blinked, and decided to move on to the next topic that had not been shaken. "However, Interrex still has one factor that it attaches great importance to, and we are not sure whether the human empire agrees with us."

"Please speak."

"Chaos." Naud said the word openly with a slightly strange accent, "Does the empire think that chaos is the enemy of mankind?"

"Without a doubt," Perturabo said, nodding slightly to the war blacksmith who looked puzzled at the unfamiliar words as a comfort, "Considering the imperial decree, we can discuss this topic in private."

"Then why are there wizards in your team?" Naud turned his head and looked at the black-robed man sitting at the head of the memoir, "I don't want to make malicious assumptions, but Interrex must eliminate the risk of corruption.

"You know, when we first met, Interrex was so happy to be able to return to human society, but the era of strife and darkness changed everything, making us understand that we must be vigilant against everything.

"Iron Lord, we have to ask, do you really use sorcery? What does your Emperor think of this?"

Before Perturabo responded, Morse pointed at himself and held back his smile: "I heard someone was looking for me, even though I'm just a memoirist... Well, I want to know how the last person who questioned my identity in front of Perturabo is doing now, Interrex?"

"How?" Naud asked, raising a firm alert. He read the obvious threat from the wizard, which made him feel a chill on his back.

"He became one of the best friends of the Iron Lord." Morse laughed.