Warhammer: In the Name of Ashes

"tomorrow?"

A faint sneer came from under the ancient Colchis sculpture in the dark hall.

Belorun suddenly raised his lowered head, but it was difficult to find the source of malice in the dim figure.

No, too many.

The Dark Apostles are practitioners who serve the Power of Destruction, and the chaos caused by internal strife and disputes on the road to power is naturally one of the ways to please the Power of Destruction.

Malice is commonplace among these people with chaotic beliefs. As for this kind of mockery that does not involve bloodshed, it can be called a kind of "warmth".

Eugenio, who was kneeling next to him, was stronger than him, and the armor on his body was more solemn and gorgeous.

But the label of being a loser made the more senior shepherd no different from him, and even looked more embarrassed at this moment.

"Tomorrow?" The questioning voice from directly in front made Belloron lower his head again.

The person sitting in the middle of the seat had not spoken yet, but the noncommittal tone of the leader of his faction made the newly promoted shepherd instantly withdraw his thoughts and calm down.

The jeers also died down after the superior spoke up. It was not a big deal to ridicule a newly promoted apostle, but to continue to jeer after Black Jazz opened his mouth was undoubtedly a provocation to Jazz himself.

No one dares to do this, because they are the only two people who can stand in the lower position of the chief priest and the archbishop in the legion ceremony, and stay out of the struggle between the two and have not fallen for thousands of years.

There are not many people who have challenged him over the course of thousands of years, but just seeing that he is still sitting here today, you can know the fate of those challengers.

The Power Scepter and the Molecular Blade Rapier are his favorite weapons, and as these two weapons symbolize:

Once you are regarded as a threat by him, you will face a fatal blow from the darkness under numerous conspiracies.

Another such veteran apostle, General Yurik, was sitting on the other side of the chief priest.

Unlike Blackadder, who is always responsible for coordinating and planning, Eugenio's status is just like his "nickname", which is obtained solely by his military exploits.

This is a rare professional soldier who is good at maneuvering, and the faction formed by him and his subordinates is also a powerful group among the Dark Apostles that specializes in frontal battlefields.

The pocket of logistics and the sharp edge of the battlefield are the core functions of Black Lord and General.

The reason why the two factions were able to maintain and not be annexed by the Chief Priest and the Archbishop was because they controlled the political affairs, but the core reason was still the functions of their two groups, which was that the Word Bearers Legion was incompetent. missing part.

The darkness returned to silence again, and many cold eyes once again focused on the two losers.

Everyone is waiting for the judgment of the superior. Gain's sharing of the losers is also a cruel but indispensable ritual among the dark apostles.

Can the knights and generals keep their vassals?

If so, at what cost?

If not, does it mean that the authority of the two is no longer stable, and thus there is an opportunity to challenge?

Careers wait for orders from their leader, like greedy hyenas watching for their injured companions. But until the chief priest made a statement, no one dared to challenge the knight's dignity. The malice in the darkness was churning and surging like substance, but there was not a single unnecessary sound.

Tuk...tuk...

Erebus finally paused his cane with satisfaction, and the eyes of many dark apostles followed the power and focused on him.

This is the scene he is most happy to see. No matter how sweet the taste of power and power is, it needs to be set off by this silent solemnity from time to time.

Under his management for thousands of years, the Word Bearers Legion's dark, chaotic, bloody, yet obedient order of authority can now be seen at a glance.

"Continue." Sensing the pleasure of the chief priest, the knight turned to look at the general sitting opposite him. This kind of "tolerance" was rare among the chief priests, and he certainly would not let go of this opportunity.

"Yes! The Imperial Navy does not have heavy capital ships, so there is nothing to be afraid of. I have forced them out of the central area of ​​the Alto 1 galaxy, and the conditions for a full-scale war on the ground are ready.

As long as you give me another 24 hours, I will dedicate that damn planet to you! "

Belorun assured the chief priest with a hoarse voice, but his eager eyes were suppressed by reason and he stared at the ground;

The clenched fist armor left dim carvings on the obsidian floor, and the steaming water vapor on the power armor silently reflected his embarrassment...

"What about you? Eugenio, what do you have to say?" The general spoke after Belloron finished speaking. While finding an opportunity for his apprentice to express his position, he blocked the opportunity for any third party to join the discussion.

"20 hours." Eugenio's tone was as cold and hard as his mentor's, without any room for guarantee. It became a breath of fresh air among the dark apostles who were full of intrigues.

The general's eyes left the apprentice after receiving the answer. He also looked at Erebus who was sitting at the top, waiting for the verdict of the helmsman of the legion.

One second...

Two seconds...

Three seconds...

"27 hours."

The embarrassing silence was finally broken. The chief priest looked at the time on his armband and said to the two people.

"You still have 27 hours from now until the end of Alto 1's next rotation cycle."

"Your will!" Belorun's hanging heart finally let go. After the fear darker than death passed, the flame of ambition burned from his eyes again.

He couldn't wait to express his attitude to the superior, but before he could get up from the ground, Erebus's voice made him fall into depression again.

"Also... let me correct you, it is not my will, it is the will of the Lord of the Legion."

"Yes..." Belorun lowered his head again, knowing that his little mind had been seen through. His overeager tone betrayed his weakness, and his sycophancy to the chief priest betrayed his faction.

But no one cared. The short war review ended here. Amidst a series of armor scraping sounds, Erebus had led a group of dark apostles away.

Belorun raised his head and looked at the leaving crowd, but all he got was the meaningful look from the Jazz in the crowd...

Boom...boom...boom...boom...

On the central avenue of the Three Holy Prayer, Erebus was leading his subordinates to walk on the central avenue leading to the first-level deck.

He didn't care about Alto's victory or defeat in the battlefield, but he felt a rare pleasure from playing with this ambitious man.

In his eyes, this war is like a carefully prepared banquet. When the desserts before the meal are tasted, he should lead his fleet towards the most valuable "meal".

Only victory is allowed, no defeat is allowed.

Gloom rose from the corners of Erebus's wrinkled eyes, and the smile he had just now was replaced by a cold gaze.

Luojia's change made him have some doubts about this inevitable war, but Erebas, who was well prepared for the war, had no room to retreat after the war began.

Even if he wins, he will still be the son of Chaos who single-handedly led the fall of the Luna Wolf, and the scepter of the Chief of the Dark Council will naturally remain as glorious as ever.

If he loses, under Luo Jia's extra "generousness", he completely loses the reason to defend himself. As for the outcome, he no longer dares or wants to imagine...

The defeats of Alto 1 and 2 had no impact on the situation of the battle, or on the contrary, the stalemate on the two battlefields was within his expectation.

The resistance encountered here confirmed his guess about the deployment of the empire's troops. After confirming the deployment of the enemy's troops, Erebus no longer had any doubts about Moro's invasion.

Ten large warbands have exceeded the strength of a complete warband during the Great Expedition. Excluding the two warbands invested in Otto's front line and the one warband stationed in the three systems behind him, he still has in his hands There are fully eight thousand warriors available.

And the sacrilegious rituals at the rear continued.

The two war gangs sent out to kill and plunder across the galaxies will continuously bring back the population used for sacrifice. The blasphemous sacred objects that he personally placed among the three galaxies will also continue to accumulate the death and hatred brewing and accumulating here.

When the turmoil, chaos on Jan Moro, and the hatred and death they bring reach the next high point, the millions of demon army belonging to the Word Bearers and the accompanying Titan Ark will be able to smoothly descend from the subspace. Reality.

And even more important is the erosion of Moro.

Without a noble bloodline like Horus as a sacrifice, if you want to open the great portal to the land of the gods, you need to use massive sacrifices to please the gods.

The opening of this portal is even more important to Erebus than the outcome of the entire war.

Whether he is using it to lead the corruption ceremony of Calvin to fulfill his promise to Luojia; or to use it to complete the sacrifice of a high lord and the life of the entire sector, and finally achieve his own goal, this portal is not allowed. lose.

But somewhere, there was a force reminding Erebas that the rituals there might undergo unexpected changes.

So after thinking carefully, the chief priest finally decided to listen to his instinct and follow the prompts of fate.

"Zarulak." Erebus stopped and said softly.

"I'm here." A tall warrior from the crowd jumped out and walked up to Erebas.

On the scarlet almost black Terminator power armor, in addition to the gorgeous Colchis inscriptions, there are also real demonic documents flowing like blood.

The Dark Apostle, the glorious and blessed Zarulak, a warrior given a demonic form by the Destroying Power, and the leader of an established warband directly affiliated with the demonic Primarch Lorgar.

"Take your men back and take over Padilla's defense."

"Yes! But as far as I know, Cole is in charge there now." Zarulak's tone contained subtle emotions, because the dark apostle named Cole happened to be his political enemy in the Legion.

The same origin as Colchis, the same devout Marche city-state, the same origin from a conscription in the middle of the Great Crusade, and even the upper-class nobles of Marche, and they are old enemies of each other...

"Just say it's my order." Erebus obviously also knew the background of the two people, or in other words, what he wanted was the competition between the two war gang leaders.

Zarulak, who had no doubts anymore, saluted and turned to leave. However, Erebus, who watched his figure leave, seemed to have an illusion, an illusion that the situation was out of control...

renew.