Warhammer: In the Name of Nirvana

Luther docked his flagship in Caliban's low-Earth orbit. The shadow of the huge battleship was facing the spire of the Legion Monastery, announcing the return of his beloved to the entire dead world.

Everything went much smoother than he expected: Thinking of this, Luther couldn't help but sigh, both with emotion and lament at the sight before him.

Forty years have passed since the former Knight of Caliban left his home planet: from Jonson's return, the forty-eighth year after the start of the Great Crusade, to the present, the eightieth year after the start of the Great Crusade. Seven years, exactly forty years.

Forty years, which is half a lifetime for most mortals, is enough to contain countless joys, sorrows, and joys. But for Luther, these forty years are like a book that is too hasty, and he has not yet waited for him to read it carefully. If you look carefully, you have already turned to the last page.

There seems to be no difference between Luther forty years ago and Luther now: except for his stronger body and the changed appearance before him...

Caliban.

"..."

Standing on the bridge of his ship, Luther sighed again. He seemed like an old man attending the funeral of his friend, feeling lonely about the cruelty of time.

Luther remembered the first time he saw Caliban: At that time, he and thousands of knights of the Grand Knights of Caliban, following Jonson's footsteps, embarked on the ship of the Human Empire. Ship, eager to become an Astartes warrior and continue their hunt.

Before that disastrous physical fitness assessment, Luther took the opportunity to glance at Caliban, which was enveloped by the fleet: his cruel and beautiful hometown was like a green cat's eye hidden in the darkness. Exuding a deadly and noble smile, the forest sea all over the world is constantly swaying under the caress of the sun and mist, filling the whole world with the breath of life and tenacity.

That was the first time Luther looked at his hometown in the void. Even though there was a distance that could never be crossed, he could still feel the sound of wind and the friction of leaves in the Caliban forest in the coldness of the void. Those ancient honors and heroic legends touched my heart with enthusiasm and inspiration.

He and countless Calibans, with the inspiration of their hometown in their hearts, broke into the galaxy full of war, and then broke into the great hell opened by the Lord of Mankind. After they left, their The primitive and beautiful hometown of Caliban began to transform into a standard [Imperial World] with the arrival of a large number of Terran officials.

Luther never thought there would be a problem when he first heard about this.

Until today, forty years later, he returned to his hometown, to the place where he had first glimpsed the whole picture of Caliban: this time he was no longer passing by in a hurry, nor was he immersed in documents and orders. Regardless, during the preparations for the landing ceremony, Luther stood on the bridge of his ship, looking at his hometown as a returning traveler.

A hometown riddled with holes.

"..."

The old knight's pupils were trembling unconsciously, and his face became stiff due to instinctive distortion and exertion of control. His fists were clenched and making a crunching sound: whether it was heavy official duties or from Morgan. Or Jonson's words, Luther had never been so out of control, but Caliban could.

Just one glance is enough.

From his former position, Luther saw everything clearly: he saw that the once luxurious cat's eye stone was now like a weathered veteran, decayed and withered, and the dense forests across the entire continent were visible to the naked eye. It disappeared at a rapid speed, and was replaced by the bare, pale yellow surface, as well as factories and hives rising from the ground.

The fog that used to surround the entire world like a gauze skirt is now being swallowed up and expelled by the billowing industrial waste gas. Several obvious traces of flames can even be seen from the void, telling how terrible it was. Atrocities befell their beautiful homeland.

The rumors did not lie, those Terran officials were indeed diligent in completing their mission: to drag Caliban out of its former primitiveness and simplicity, and turn it into an arsenal worthy of the name of the Legion's home planet, an arsenal for A perfect screw that served the Great Expedition and was indistinguishable from countless industrial towns.

one! normal! Empire world!

"..."

Luther's big hand slowly covered his cheek: he couldn't bear to look any longer, couldn't bear to see the beautiful dreams of the past become the terrifying reality of today, but he didn't know what to say or what to do. Something.

Luther knew that he could not blame the Terran officials who caused all these tragedies, because they were only executing orders, executing a simple order that came from the Empire and was allowed by Jonson.

Jonson allowed all this, and the Primarch had witnessed Caliban's changes over the past forty years, but he remained indifferent.

What could Luther say?

What could he do before Jonson's authority, the urgency of the Great Crusade, the Emperor's orders, and Caliban's honor?

He can't do anything.

The old knight realized this, which undoubtedly made him feel painful. He did not stay on the bridge any longer, but walked back to his office in a daze, and instinctively responded to the salutes and greetings along the way: no matter what he said, What kind of storm is there in his heart? In the eyes of the outside world, he is Jonson's plenipotentiary representative, a big shot who can shock Caliban.

In the funny state of mind brought about by this contradiction, Luther dealt with the remaining official documents half-heartedly: The task Zhuangson gave him was not easy, but it was not too difficult either. The target of 10,000 people and the target of three The deadline of three months is indeed scary, but considering that the Primarch began training new recruits on Caliban as early as the end of the Second Randan War, as well as those scattered warriors who were gathering from all over the galaxy, their There were enough people to meet Jonson's requirements.

What Luther really wants to do is to build a functioning chain of command and turn [10,000 Dark Angels warriors] into [10,000 Dark Angels troops]. After all, Jonson has no time to take care of such trivial matters on the front line. .

But despite this, this task is still very important and arduous: when Luther began to invest in it, countless data and Caliban's current situation quickly occupied all his thinking space, forcing him to be simple and crude. to deal with some unimportant matters.

Take, for example, a data note from the Lord of Avalon.

"Request to open the library storage room in the Legion Monastery..."

This brief message from Morgan occupied Luther's thinking time for a second. He approved it almost without thinking: Although he was curious why Morgan specifically sent such an application, no matter whether it was Jonson The Dark Angel's trust in Morgan and Luther's view of the Lord of the Second Legion left the old knight with no reason to hesitate.

but……

Books in a monastery?

Is there anything important there?

"..."

Luther couldn't figure it out.

Maybe he forgot.

——————

[After all, when it comes to secrets, forgetting is the best way to hide them. 】

[My brother obviously knows this. 】

Walking deep in the Legion Monastery of the Dark Angel, looking at the libraries that were no different from the meditation rooms, the Lord of Avalon couldn't help but marvel. She snapped her fingers and floated past thousands of ancient walls. The bookshelf smelling of dark wood leads all the way to the forbidden book area hidden in the darkness.

After knocking on those secret doors, dodging those traps, and entering the password that Zhuang Sen told her personally, the Spider Queen finally got what she was looking for: a row of bookshelves hidden in the deepest part of the forbidden book area, with other bookshelves on them. The books on it all have no names, and are wrapped in unknown brown book covers. You can even smell a little bit of blood on them.

Morgan pulled out a book. She saw that there was only a simple logo on the cover, and recognized that this logo belonged to the "Knights of Sirius", one of the many knights of Caliban in the past, because they firmly opposed Jonson's strangulation of all Calibans. The plan of the giant beast was completely annihilated by the other knights led by the Primarch: all this was told to her by Zhuang Sen.

But what is interesting is that it is said that after Jonson read the collection of Sirius Knights, which is the books in front of Morgan, he not only sealed these collections, but also forgave some of the Sirius Knights who were at large: Think of the current Cypher The mysterious origin of the lord, the Spider Queen easily connected everything.

Obviously, the Knights of Sirius have been guarding a certain secret that is correct but cannot be made public, and were strangled by Jonson in the disastrous misunderstanding caused by it. After knowing the secret, the Lord of Caliban and the only remaining The Sirian Knights reached a settlement and appointed him Lord Cypher.

Considering that Lord Cypher has a very close relationship with these robed men called Black Watchers, and even shows obedience, then these robed men must also know this secret, and what's more, they are the main force guarding this secret. military.

And this secret, obviously easy to see, is one of the three subspace artifacts imprisoned on Caliban: Ouroboros.

While flipping through the books, Morgan was constructing a logical chain in her mind. At her feet, the little man in robes who had been following her silently was hovering uneasily around her steel boots, looking like he wanted to Help, but don’t know where to start.

"..."

The little man in the robe raised his hands and covered his head, as if he was thinking. After a while, he suddenly disappeared and reappeared quickly. As he came and went, a broad An unusually bright oil lamp is connected to the cuff of his hand.

It looked around, and finally chose the shelf containing the books of the Knights of Sirius. It ran over with the lamp in hand, and like a hard-working koala, climbed to the top of the bookshelf with difficulty: this was the only place it could reach. , a little higher than the Spider Queen.

Then, it raised the lantern, and the bright light made Morgan, who was originally reading in the dark, look up: Although for a Primarch, such changes in brightness had no impact on her vision, Morgan could still read from In this seemingly meaningless move, some information about her was read.

For example: maybe this little man in a robe whose mouth is a series of riddles is not as complicated as she thought?

The Spider Queen's pupils moved. She lowered her head and focused on the books. These carriers that recorded Caliban's secrets were the most important thing now.

Perhaps due to the characteristics of the world, the books of these knights are often obscure and full of meaningless riddles and references, but the information is often pitiful and inconsistent: just like the inner circle of the Dark Angel, in the eyes of outsiders The image is average.

But after spending some time, Morgan successfully found the information that was useful to her. This information was hidden in the most ordinary corners and pointed to the most distant past.

She connected them together, and looked at the black watcher sitting on the bookshelf, holding a lamp, and the hem of his robe kept shaking, as if shaking his legs.

[To put it simply: You guys are the jailers guarding Ouroboros, and you don’t want it to escape or combine with the other two warp artifacts? 】

The little man in the robe nodded.

[But on the other hand, as time goes by, Ouroboros is constantly attacking its seal, and the power of subspace is gradually spreading on Caliban. You cannot resist the power of Ouroboros, you can only Can I ask for help from outsiders: like me who came here? 】

Nod again.

[So, although we have differences on the issue of Ouroboros, you see me as an ally in a sense against Ouroboros? 】

As soon as he finished speaking, the little man in the robe looked straight at Morgan: Although the Spider Queen still couldn't see the scene under the hood clearly, she could still feel a pair of shining pupils of expectation.

To this, the Primarch responded with a cruel sneer.

[Forgive me for disagreeing, little guy: Even if I help you settle the Ouroboros, you won't let me take it away. I don't think I have any benefits in this transaction. 】

[In other words, have you expressed any goodwill for cooperation to me? 】

"..."

The little man in the robe tilted his head. When he heard the word [goodwill], he instinctively raised his lantern and shook it. The scattered light seemed to remind a certain Primarch of the existence of goodwill. .

【……】

[Your kindness is too small. 】

"..."

The little man in the robe lowered his head, and a certain aura of loss floated out of its shadow.

On the contrary, it was the Primarch who, after reading every book about the Knights of Sirius, was recalling the contents and conceiving the next plan, with high-spirited emotions flowing in his blue pupils.

She rolled her eyes.

[However, we can sit down and talk: Why are you insisting on imprisoning Ouroboros? You may feel that whether it is the Tuchucha Engine or the Heart of Plague, they are both here with me, and I have not encountered them. Watchers who have been associated with them. 】

[In other words: Why does the gathering of these three subspace artifacts make you uneasy? 】

Questions with ulterior motives were revealed in the air, and the low temperature in the forbidden book area caused these words to rise into white mist, which was reflected in the interesting pupils of the Primarch.

She watched the robed figure's reaction.

As she watched, this strange creature became serious because of this question. It retracted its lantern, crossed its hands in its sleeves, and the voice without any characteristics, as always, came directly from the sea of ​​souls to Morgan. next to the ear.

"According to ancient legends, before the Dark Angels spread their wings and descend..."

【stop! 】

The Spider Queen raised a finger, a look of displeasure flashing across her face.

[Speak clearly: tell me in a normal human tone. Don't tell me that you don't know how humans talk. If you can't do it, I will go find the Ouroboros myself. 】

"..."

Obviously, the little man in the robe had never thought about this unexpected situation. Its entire body paused for a second, like a tin soldier doll with rusty joints, and staggered back to its actions: lowered its head, and started think.

Morgan ignored the little guy, but lowered his head and continued to flip through the books, waiting for a clear and coherent explanation.

She waited, waited, waited...

【……】

Until even the Primarch felt that this time was taking too long.

When Morgan raised her head again with confusion, she saw every move of the little man in the robe clearly: this mysterious creature opened its mouth, lowering its little head in distress, its hood Shrugging, as if to show the depression in his heart, the two wide cuffs were entangled together, and the constant friction reminded Morgan of the mortal children she saw on Avalon, twiddling their thumbs in distress.

The Spider Queen blinked.

Didn't she just want the other person to speak clearly? Is it so difficult?

Obviously when she assigned the more outrageous tasks to Lana, her guards general could complete them very well: even every Dawnbreaker could complete them very well.

Brief doubts surged in the Spider Queen's mind, but when she remembered the verbal expression of the little robed man in front of her and looked at its current state, a somewhat bold but logical idea came to Morgan's mind. Through rapid reasoning, it gradually took shape.

[Tell me, little one. 】

[Do you only use riddles as a way of communication? 】

"..."

The Primarch raised the corners of his lips: The little man in the robe did not answer her, but the confusion at that moment was the best answer.

【Why don’t you tell me? 】

A bad thought that had been suppressed for too long, at this moment, resurfaced in the heart of the original gene. The smile on the corner of Morgan's mouth was terrifying enough to cause Astartes to suffer cardiopulmonary arrest. She snapped her fingers and interrupted. The little man in the robe teleported in a panic.

After witnessing this strange teleportation several times, although Morgan still has not figured out the principle, there is still no problem in using his psychic power to interfere a little.

The little man in the robe stood there blankly. He looked at the approaching Primarch, shrouded in the malicious shadow of the Spider Queen. He stiffened for a moment, then bent his knees and formed a trembling ball. .

Hold your head and squat to defend.

——————

The Lord of Avalon, who is beautiful and kind-hearted, will certainly not embarrass this poor little guy: although it is an alien that does not deserve a good death, when Morgan discovered that she could not feel the breath and shadow under this robe, she The hostility towards the little man in the robe has left the highest level and reached the barely tolerable level.

She named this class the "Trazin Class" and the most hostile class the "Comorian Class" to show that she had never forgotten the Yemenga Monolith and everything that happened there.

"..."

In front of the Spider Queen, the robed man who had just been promoted to [Tarrazin Class] had been taken off the top of the bookshelf and placed in front of Morgan. The Lord of the Second Legion knelt down and guaranteed Get your eyes and face as close to it as possible.

Under such tremendous pressure and persuasive words, this strange creature finally began to answer Morgan's questions: just like the Primarch said, it is just a private matter and does not involve the real interests of both parties.

[So, tell me, why do you keep telling riddles? 】

"Because... I have to be responsible for guiding... the humans in Caliban. If I say it too clearly... problems may easily arise... if I say it more vaguely..."

[To put it a little vaguely, let the Calibans guess the riddles themselves. If things go well, it is your guidance. If things go wrong, it is because the Calibans guessed the wrong meaning? 】

"..."

The villain nodded.

[...a simple but effective method. 】

Morgan laughed, but her brain was running very fast: According to previous conversations with the Black Watchers, the Primarchs knew that they had the ability to sense the future. This must be why they dared to guide the Calibans and obtain The basis of respect.

But now it seems that the ability of the Black Watchers to detect the future may not be able to see the complete future, or in other words, they can see many futures, but cannot know which one will happen, so they need to use These riddles are used to cover up the lack of ability.

In other words, the Black Watchers weren't stopping her from taking Ouroboros because of a bad future.

Morgan thought this way and felt a little more confident.

But then again.

In this way, Conrad's prophetic ability is extremely powerful: not only can he see an almost complete future, he will not make mistakes in the general direction, but he can even empathize with it.

Um……

He is indeed her brother.

A strange sense of pride increased!

Morgan laughed. She stretched out one of her fingers and gently touched the edge of the hood of the little man in the robe.

[If you are so bad at communicating with other people, why were you selected by your companions as a representative to contact me? 】

【Are you excluded? 】

"..."

Shaked his head.

【why? 】

"because……"

The little man in the robe lowered his head, looking ashamed to speak.

"Because I am responsible for... diplomacy..."

【……】

[How can you still be responsible for diplomatic work?]

The contemptuous laughter did not arouse the anger of this strange creature, but only caused it to ball up again, like a large group of fungi growing silently in the corner.

"Senior asked...if I should be responsible for diplomacy..."

[You didn’t refuse? 】

"...I can't say it..."

【……】

[Because I couldn’t speak, I became a diplomat and had to be responsible for guiding the Calibans, and I also learned to be unable to speak without speaking in riddles? 】

"..."

He held his head and crouched on defense again.

Morgan smiled. Her laughter was a mixture of comfort and viciousness. As she slowly stood up, it spread throughout the room. Wandering in the dark forbidden book area, it was enough to support a terrifying ghost story.

The Spider Queen put the books in her hands back on the bookshelf. She had obtained enough knowledge and reference from here to support her in completing her activities on Caliban.

first……

Morgan bent down, she easily picked up the lost figure in robes on the ground, and smiled at it.

【I hate red tape. 】

[In this case: please call your compatriots. 】

[Let’s go find the Ouroboros. 】