Warhammer: In the Name of Nirvana

0000948.M30

This is the first day of the 948th year of the 30th Millennium, the 150th year since the Emperor of Mankind began his Great Crusade on the land of Holy Terra: the zero at the very beginning indicates that this time is very accurate as a record of the solar system.

On this day, the message of war swept every piece of land covered by the Double-Headed Eagle, and the alarm and conscription orders sounded on thousands of imperial worlds. The moment of transition between the old year and the new year will be the death of countless people, and their king is calling them to sacrifice their lives.

So, they went to the battlefield: the first official confrontation between the Human Empire and the Ullanor Orc Empire started on this day. The warriors wearing the banners of thunder and eagles and shouting the name of the Emperor rushed to the last opponent standing in the way of the eternal galactic hegemony.

The news of victory and death invaded every tower of salvation with the cold wind, and the rustling trumpets spread throughout the compartments of the bridge and orbital space station. All the busy people put down their work and personal affairs. In the command room, in the communication station, and in those newly built fortresses, fear and expectation spread with the invisible war.

People spread it by word of mouth. The most exaggerated rumors became the most accurate front-line intelligence after being exploited by eighteen layers: thousands of sentry towers were attacked at the same time, hundreds of fleets handed in reports seeking credit and assistance, and the first batch of real victims and triumphant people had already written their respective names, but in the blink of an eye, they covered half of the world.

And the most important batch of intelligence had spread to the lounges of all participating legions within an hour of it happening, because it was the honor that the Angels of Death valued most, and even the descendants of the Emperor would be quite curious.

They all wanted to know which Primarch and which Legion would be the first to strike the Ullanor Empire: this was destined to be a place in history and the most glorious footnote of the entire Great Crusade.

Hundreds of bets were made.

The Luna Wolves, Blood Angels, Imperial Fists or Ultramarines, the most powerful Legions, became the hot candidates, but none of them were the right answer.

When the first victory message was delivered with the skinned and boiled skull of the Ork Warlord, people discovered that on this trophy, which was almost the size of an Astartes warrior's chest, there was already a series of spirited declarations engraved.

——————

Torhan, the White Scars Legion.

With this victory, we pay the highest respect to the Emperor of Mankind, the Khan of the Ice and Blue Sky, and the Undefeated Wolf God.

The declaration was written in blood, leaving a series of beautiful traces on the ugly skull of the Ork Warlord: elegant and barbaric.

——————

【Unexpected, but reasonable. 】

When she received the first intelligence of the Ullanor Expedition, the Spider Queen only gave the briefest evaluation: the Dawnbreaker's Genetic Father did not care who won the first prize, nor was he surprised by the White Scars' victory. She was even too lazy to care about how Tolhan's troops did it all.

After all, the Genetic Father of the Victor was standing next to Morgan at the moment, and he would explain it clearly to his blood relatives: and even if Chagatai Khan kept silent, the White Scars' fleet had already given the real answer.

Compared with the number of pre-announced numbers, the number of White Scars ships that actually joined the Second Legion was obviously wrong, lacking the scale of two or three Brotherhoods: Chagatai Khan's Legion had never been formally assembled, and he scattered those sons with high autonomy and brought the rest to meet Morgan.

Therefore, the White Scars' Ullanor Expedition had actually begun a long time ago.

They naturally won the first prize.

【Maybe I should congratulate you, my Eagle brother? 】

Standing in the newly renovated Universal Command Room of the Aurora, the giant curved star map covering the entire northern galaxy occupied every inch of the two Primarchs' vision, while the Knights of the Round Table and the Keshiks stood ten meters away to ensure that no one would stand closer.

Under such circumstances, the communication between blood relatives was naturally more relaxed.

"I don't think there is anything worth celebrating about a company-level conflict, Morgan."

Although they hadn't seen each other for a long time, Chagatai Khan gave Morgan the same feeling as when they first met: he was still like a mist, as if he could grab the proud beard as long as he stretched out his hand, and as if he was standing at the other end of the galaxy and would leave the world of the Primarchs at any time.

Before this, no one had ever given Morgan such a... sense of mystery.

Not even the beginning of Jonson.

[Don't say that. ]

Morgan smiled.

[You know, your Legion will go down in history for its role in the Great Crusade: even in history books ten thousand years from now, children will recite poems about the White Scars warriors firing the first shot of the Ullanor War. ]

[Everyone will remember you. ]

"Yes..."

The Khan's voice was like a sigh.

"It's like torture."

[...]

[Do you think it's torture to have everyone remember your name, Chagatai? ]

"At least, it's a punishment."

"Eagles should exist in invisible poetry and oral traditions, flying in the sky beyond the edge of the field of vision, rather than locking them in huge cages and hanging on landscape trees in order to show off their bravery. Perform tricks to catch hares for the audience.”

Khan's voice was decisive.

"What's wrong?"

[No, nothing: I just suddenly felt that maybe you and our Conrad brothers would have something in common. 】

"This doesn't happen often."

Jaghatai Khan didn't seem to be interested in Morgan's hint. His eyes focused on the flickering of the star map, and on the gradually unfolding Eastern Front Army: the first batch of Imperial Auxiliary Army troops scattered had already joined forces with the Green Army. Pi's vanguard took fire, while the Astartes warriors were staggered across the battle line, like the pillars holding a dike together.

The White Scars and Night Lords are scattered behind the enemy's rear and flanks, and the most accurate information is sent back by Khan and the Dread Lords; the Raven Guard under Corax are looking for fighters as a separate group, and their fleet is heading towards a heavily armed The greenskin fortress world advances.

A mixed force composed of the Dawnbreakers, the Emperor's Children, and the expeditionary forces of other legions are now at the forefront. The star map symbols of Morgan, Fulgrim, and Jaghatai Khan have also been nailed here, and The army of Ultramarines is arriving one after another, gradually taking over the most difficult frontal defense line. There are more densely packed Macragge symbols than everyone else combined.

Moreover, this is not the main force of the Thirteenth Legion. Their main force is currently under the command of Guilliman, and it will take at least nine hours to reach the frontline battlefield: Fortunately, the greenskins are slower than these ultramarines.

"So far, I have only shared a common language with three of my Primarch brothers."

[Including me? 】

Morgan's smile only received a silent look from Jaghatai Khan.

I don’t know why, but this look made Morgan feel very hurt: she hadn’t faced such pure contempt for a long time, and the last person who dared to look at her like this was Conrad, who had just crawled out of Nostramo.

No! More outrageous than Conrad!

Morgan felt that her breathing seemed to be a lot heavier, but in the next second, she successfully suppressed her anger. Her absolute calmness that never stopped made the original body turn her blue pupils to the stars on the star map. A shining point, in order to relieve the embarrassment given to him by his blood relatives.

The Spider Queen did not see that at the moment when she lost control of her emotions slightly, but quickly adjusted her mentality and temper, Chagatai looked at her with a glint of appreciation in his eyes, as if he was appraising a good bender. Knife: Although it was quickly covered up by sweat.

Now, instead, the Khan looked at his spider sisters with a smile.

"But now, I have changed my mind."

"Maybe we do have something in common when it comes to temper control, Morgan."

"Your [generosity] is worth learning from me."

【What an honor...】

The corners of Morgan's mouth were slightly pursed, covering the clenched teeth on both sides. Jaghatai Khan's words sounded like a song of praise, but paired with the meaningful smile on his face, the irony penetrated people's hearts. Even Morgan's thick defense almost failed to hold up.

And as soon as the blow hit, Dahan had no intention of continuing to entangle. He quickly moved his eyes away from Morgan's face, not giving the Spider Queen any chance to fight back, and guided the topic back to his own hands.

"If you want to ask me about my friendships among our fellow Primarchs, there are not many answers I can give you: my best friend is undoubtedly Magnus, with whom I enjoy discussing knowledge and the mysteries of the universe. , and both of us are outsiders in this great expedition.”

"Other than that, my relationship with Horus and Sanguinius is good, but this is nothing to boast about. Whoever has a relationship with Horus and Sanguinius will be very good: And the friendship between these two men is truly legendary.”

"I like to discuss various ways to end the battle quickly with the Wolf God. His Gastarins are experts in this field. The Luna Wolves' Terminator beheading tactics are unparalleled even if you look at the entire galaxy. They may There is a lack of talent in strategy and internal affairs, but there is no shortage of genius in tactics.”

"Besides that, the common topic between Sanguinius and I is the Think Tank plan: before we would discuss Magnus' plan, but now the two of us prefer to discuss your plan, and my progress is always faster than that of the Archangel. Going deeper, after all, our angel brother has always been deeply worried about his own legion, and he instinctively rejected any changes and temptations."

"But compared to these two people, Magnus and I have a true friendship. We have many common topics, and our positions in the empire are also the same: as I said before …”

"We are outsiders."

[Maybe me too? 】

Another look, but at least this time it wasn't contempt, but...

mercy?

"You have a Far Eastern frontier, so you can't be an outsider, Morgan. I used to think that only that stupid guy Guilliman didn't understand this simple truth. I didn't expect that you were making the same mistake as him. "

【……】

# Teeth creaking #

[Stupid guy? 】

Morgan adjusted the topic to give his wounded heart some time to breathe.

[Your evaluation of Guilliman sounds really strange, Khan. After all, when our other brothers evaluate Guilliman, they usually like to use...]

"Ambitious?"

The Khan interrupted him.

"Or are you planning something evil?"

The man on the grassland chuckled.

"Obviously, most of our blood brothers are born kings, children of destiny who have never experienced betrayal. They don't know what a true careerist is like: and Guilliman doesn't even have the worst ambition. He’s not even a family member, he’s just a programmer who doesn’t know what’s going on outside the window.”

[Have you ever experienced betrayal? 】

"And lost my adoptive father over it."

【Ah...sorry...I...】

"nothing."

Khan shook his head. During his exchange with Morgan, Chagatai was surprisingly sincere at this time: he could tell that Morgan was sincerely apologizing, and he did not intend to put his blood relatives under psychological pressure.

"The eagle will eventually fall, and dying from conspiracy is just the norm on the grassland. The intrigues in the big tent are no less than those in the royal court, and precisely because survival is more difficult, the struggle in the grassland will be more cruel: My adoptive father died For the murder of my opponents, I brought utter slaughter to all involved.”

"Their women and subordinates hung their heads on spears, and their cattle, sheep and pastures became the property of my tribe. My adoptive father once dreamed of planting the tribal flag in every inch of land where the eagle can spread its wings. And I did it in revenge for him.”

"He died with no regrets: that's enough."

【indeed. 】

The Spider Queen nodded.

[In comparison, my adoptive father stopped breathing in peace. 】

"And you don't miss him?"

【……】

For the first time, Morgan felt that her head turned was so stiff: Sure enough, Chagatai looked into her eyes again. The eagle's vision easily penetrated the blue pupils, and saw through Morgan's words when she told her adoptive father's death. There is no ripple in the ancient well, not even the slightest fluctuation.

That’s not the way anyone should frame themselves when discussing the death of a loved one.

The Spider Queen sighed.

[Keep some secrets from me, brother. 】

"My fault."

The Khan spread his hands.

"Okay, let's move on to our ambitious careerist."

[Alright... why did you say that? 】

"It's just the truth in life."

Khan's eyebrows were sharp.

"An eagle does not scream before swooping, and a wolf does not howl before hunting. A true careerist will do his best to keep a low profile until he is killed in one shot: a man who spreads his reputation of ambition to passers-by. Everyone knows that he is either the worst kind of careerist, or he is a peasant without any ambition at all."

"Guilliman is more like the latter, isn't he?"

[He will like this review. 】

Morgan responded with a smile.

[Maybe you should tell him in person? 】

"No: I don't like him."

【Why? 】

"The riders on the grassland and the farmers in the fields may not be enemies who fight each other, but they will never be friends who drink and chat with each other: the riders will only drink kumis with the riders. The most I can accept is to dare to step out of my comfort zone and walk on the grassland. Businessmen who resist wind, snow and disaster, rather than farmers who huddle in their mud houses.”

[…It’s understandable. 】

Morgan was silent for a moment, and then nodded in relief. Every time he met a Primarch, it was like entering the inner world of a child again. Compared with others, although Jaghatai Khan's views were slightly weird, But they are already the easiest group to accept.

At the very least, he can express what he is thinking and saying clearly: unlike some maddening steel.

[But you just said, you think I am making the same mistake as Guilliman? 】

"That's right."

The Khan nodded.

"Why do you think you and Guilliman are not the same people now, Morgan? In the eyes of other people in the empire, what is the difference between you: whether it is luxurious or low-key, the throne is always a throne. You sit on the throne, Do you still expect that you won’t attract everyone’s attention?”

"You have written your name in the history books, and that is what I have been trying to avoid: that is why I say that Tolkhan's achievements are not worthy of boasting, although I will not deny his Credit.”

【I can’t help myself. 】

The Spider Queen coughed and adjusted her thoughts secretly. She was annoyed to find that she was in a delicate state of being suppressed during the conversation with Chagatai: she could not find any obvious flaw in the soul of the Great Khan. And Khan's words always stung Morgan.

Even if it was only for a moment, the slightest loss of control was enough to make Morgan furious.

[When the Emperor came to me and handed over his power to me, it was not only a reward, but also a responsibility and mission that could not be refused: I am different from Guilliman, Five Hundred Worlds It is based on his absolute subjective consciousness, and my Far Eastern Frontier is more or less urged by the Emperor and Terra. 】

"I agree with that."

Khan nodded and pointed to a certain position on the star map. He didn't even need to give any more instructions. Someone from the Qixue Guards behind him took the order to retreat and adjusted the various brotherhoods on the front for the original body. Trends: The Great Khan used this kind of authority and tacit understanding to control his legion at will in the star field.

But Morgan feels that this is not safe. Although it is indeed very convenient, the Spider Queen will not let any Dawnbreaker company leave her sight for too long. She will ensure that every Dawnbreaker company will be released every few years or months. You can truly feel her presence, thereby strengthening the bond between the original body and his descendants, and ensuring your control over the legion.

"But I don't want to make the same mistake again."

"I ran from power, Morgan: Terra's voice never reached my ears."

【This is not something that can be escaped. 】

Morgan stretched out his finger and guided his and Jaghatai Khan's sights to the lower left corner of the giant star map: the depression of the maelstrom was clearly marked, and there were the hometowns of several Primarchs: Horse The homeworlds of Gnus, Fulgrim, Vulkan, and Jaghatai Khan are not far from each other.

[But even so, the area around the maelstrom is still enough to divide several vast primarch kingdoms. Magnus and Vulkan's kingdoms within kingdoms have already taken shape, although their looseness is visible to the naked eye. But they can't escape Terra's command: I don't think any miracle will happen to you. 】

Morgan finally caught his first point of attack in this difficult meeting: When the topic shifted to [Domination], Khan's expression finally turned serious, and his words were more like sighs than sighs. Complaining is a helpless self-mockery of fate.

"I came to the Great Crusade just to escape the responsibility of governing."

"But now, the Great Crusade has thrown greater governance responsibilities onto me."

[From the khanate and royal tent on the grassland to the khanate and royal tent among the stars. 】

Morgan smiled: for the first time in this conversation, she genuinely smiled.

[Have you ever thought about how to rule the great khanate you are destined to have? 】

【My world is sweating? 】

"Of course I have."

Jaghatai nodded, a gloom crossing his face.

"But, Morgan: trust me."

"You don't want to know how a real khan manages his steppe khanate: I know how to be a great khan, and I also know how to be a successful great khan, but I also know the relationship between a successful great khan and His khanate may not be a good thing for the current empire."

【……What do you mean? 】

Morgan raised a brow, and Jaghatai's smile frightened her.

"You should have read history books."

"In other words, no matter which history book you read, whenever a new Great Khanate rises on the grassland, the next direction and result of the story will only point to that one path, not "?"

"A successful khanate?"

"Then just pray, Morgan."

"Pray for the Empire."

"Pray that there will be no gods in charge of death, plague, war and famine in this world."

——————

[…You’re kidding, right? 】

"Maybe."

The Khan did not take back his smile.

"After all, it's like I said."

"I hate power and dominance, Morgan."

【In order not to bring disaster? 】

"Yes."

"For them."

"And for...myself."