"Execute Order Thirteen!"
As Grand Master Corwin gave the command, he activated the mechanical box on the ground and then stepped back.
Amid flickering arcs of electricity, the box unfolded and extended into a mechanical structure over three meters tall.
It looked like some kind of signal transmitter.
After that, more than a dozen Grey Knights Techmarines removed heavy mechanical packs from their backs and installed them into that signal transmitter, forming an even larger mechanical installation.
It looked extraordinarily complex.
"Defend it!"
A number of heavily armed Grey Knights then moved forward and formed a defensive line to protect that precious machine.
The Grey Knights of the Seventh Brotherhood had no intention of assaulting the fortress directly, nor did they pay any attention to the Duke of Sadism or the Chaos daemons atop the infernal fortress walls.
Right under the gaze of Chaos, they calmly and methodically assembled a large Warp device.
"Could that be some kind of siege weapon?"
The Duke of Sadism watched the Grey Knights' strange actions from afar, unable to make sense of them.
Even if they somehow managed to set up a heavy cannon, or some kind of special offensive device,
it would still be impossible for them to breach the infernal fortress walls.
The flesh-walls and warp-shields of this fortress had been built precisely to resist military assault.
"Smiths, destroy that human machine!"
Though the Duke of Sadism did not understand what the Grey Knights were doing,
he knew that whatever they were trying to accomplish, he would be better off not letting them do it.
The Grey Knights had now entered the attack range of the flesh-wall, making this the perfect time to strike.
With the Chaos Lord's order given, the engines of delight embedded in the flesh-wall slowly came online and aimed themselves at the Grey Knights' position several kilometers away.
A few seconds later, artillery mixed with warped flesh screamed through the air toward the Grey Knights' line.
Those shells were alive, covered in twisted tentacles, jagged fangs, and clawed limbs, while their swollen bellies were packed with explosive foul fluid.
Once they burst, they could blanket an area over a hundred meters wide and cause massive casualties.
Some of the more specialized shells could even unleash sonic attacks.
The living shells launched by those Chaos engines quickly blanketed the Grey Knights' position.
But the barrage did not destroy the machine.
Instead, it was temporarily held back by the Grey Knights' silver-white psychic shield.
"In the dark there is Aegis. Within the soul there is flame. Darkness shall not prevail, corruption shall not enter.
In the name of purity, I am the shield!"
The Grey Knights' Chief Librarian led the Librarians in chanting the incantation, combining their powers to create a mighty and solid psychic dome.
Although every Grey Knight was a psyker, these Librarians ventured deeper into the Warp than the warriors of other Brotherhoods and possessed far greater mastery of occult knowledge.
Their command of psychic force far surpassed the Librarians of other Chapters.
After all, within Titan's sanctuary were recorded every known sigil and incantation for every kind of Warp energy the Imperium had catalogued.
Including some forms of forbidden knowledge.
The hemispherical shield covered the airspace above the position, blocking long-range bombardment and shielding them from the dangers of the environment.
As the Chaos shells slammed into the psychic shield, they were either hurled aside by unseen force or burned away by crackling arcs of power.
More screaming followed.
However, while the psychic dome could block ranged attacks, corruption, and even maintain purity within,
it could not stop close-range assaults or prevent other living things from charging in.
Many of the shells, once they hit the ground, still screamed as they rushed toward the Grey Knights.
Fortunately, those living shells were quickly stopped by concentrated Grey Knights fire.
They failed to break into the position and threaten the Warp machine still under construction.
"What exactly are they trying to do?"
A faint unease began to rise in the Duke of Sadism's mind.
He used the eyes growing from his twisted tentacles to observe the Grey Knights' position, and rows of ears had even sprouted around those eyes.
He wanted to gather as much information as possible.
The more importance the Grey Knights placed on that machine, the more that proved its value and threat.
The Imperium's daemon-hunters would not have come all this way merely to assemble some trivial little mechanism.
Perhaps they were trying to send a distress signal?!
But this was Chaos territory. How many uncorrupted human troops could the Imperium possibly send here?
That was the Duke of Sadism's line of thought.
Within his field of view, the great psychic shield the Grey Knights had erected was already trembling under the bombardment, crack after crack beginning to spread across it.
Even though they had powerful psykers among them, the barrage from the Chaos engines was simply too intense.
In truth, this was partly because the infernal fortress' long-range firepower was insufficient.
The children of delight preferred building implements of sadistic torment rather than large-scale artillery engines.
"Perhaps I should recruit some Chaos smiths from the Blood God's domain and have them build more heavy Chaos artillery engines."
The Duke of Sadism thought this to himself. Until now, no large human or daemon force had ever come here.
The few conflicts that had happened were mostly slaughter and close-range charges on the ground, and the daemons under his command preferred using blades to torment and execute their enemies.
That had led to the flesh-wall having too few long-range Chaos engines, and those it did have were not powerful enough.
The Grey Knights' sudden raid had made him cautious.
Once he had destroyed these human invaders, the Chaos Lord decided he would further strengthen the flesh-wall's defenses and firepower.
"At most two more volleys, and the Grey Knights' psychic shield will completely collapse. Their position will be obliterated under artillery fire!"
Watching the battle unfold, the Duke of Sadism arrived at that conclusion. Those human troops would not hold out much longer.
And that strange human machine did not carry much of an aura of threat. It was not an offensive weapon.
It was merely some sort of signal-emitting device, not a forbidden weapon.
More importantly, he had already scented the heavy odor of decay in the air. Other Chaos beings were on their way.
Under such conditions, even if the Grey Knights managed to send a signal and summon reinforcements, they would still be unable to withstand the combined slaughter of the Chaos daemonic hosts.
Judging from all the signs, victory in this war already belonged to Chaos. There would be no surprises.
"Grey Knights, whatever pathetic machine you are assembling is utterly meaningless.
You are doomed to fail, and to become raw material for my tortures..."
Having gathered enough intelligence, the Duke of Sadism only grew more smug.
He continuously used sonic disturbances and whispering mental interference to mock and harass the Grey Knights.
"Daemon, your howling will not change the coming of judgment. His Majesty the Savior shall bring thunderous wrath upon any existence that dares violate Imperial territory!"
At last, Corwin responded to the Chaos Lord, and his voice was utterly firm.
When the Duke of Sadism heard those words, his pupils contracted sharply.
He had clearly heard of the Savior, the Devourer of Daemons, and of how many Chaos daemons that figure had mercilessly killed.
Yet words of threat alone were not enough to frighten him.
The Duke of Sadism burst into laughter and projected images of the forest of bodies, along with scenes of Space Marines being tortured.
"Look well. So many humans howl beneath my instruments of torment, but what has it changed?
The great Lord of Sadism still stands here before you, perfectly unharmed."
The Duke of Sadism jeered.
"Could it be that the Savior deliberately sent you here to die?
Perhaps after I finish torturing you, I'll send him a recording of your screams."
If the Savior himself had been standing below the wall, the Duke of Sadism might indeed have been afraid, or even fled.
But that being was not here. He was out in the galaxy.
The Savior might be powerful, but the Chaos Gods were far more terrifying. The Duke of Sadism believed that the so-called human Emperor would never dare step personally into Chaos territory.
Because the moment the Savior set foot within Chaos territory, he would inevitably be hunted by the Chaos Gods themselves.
And he would fall.
"He does not dare come here. And even if he did, I would already be under the protection of the Chaos Gods."
That was what the Duke of Sadism believed.
That was also the reason he dared provoke the Savior and send him images of tortured human warriors.
By the time that being could arrive, he would already have fled into the domains of the Chaos Gods to seek divine protection for his miserable life.
"No. In just a moment, you will witness the presence of His Majesty the Savior and the thunder of his wrath."
Corwin said that with deep meaning.
He looked toward the intricate Warp machine before him, now already four or five meters tall, and could not help feeling a surge of awe.
This mechanical creation before him was the truly terrifying weapon!
Several years earlier, His Majesty the Savior had begun funding the Grey Knights, hoping that these daemon-hunters would be able to strike the realms of Chaos more effectively.
He had wanted the Grey Knights to produce a complete battle doctrine capable of carrying the war into Chaos territory.
The Grey Knights had then submitted several battle plans in succession, all of which were rejected by the Savior.
The reason he gave was simple:
Insufficient firepower.
In the end, the Grey Knights bit the bolt-round and boldly submitted a large-scale armament proposal.
It represented, in their own imagination, the maximum level of firepower with which one could fight within the Warp.
The proposal involved large vehicles and heavy bombardment. It was practically a Legion-style model of warfare.
Their thinking was simple enough:
If the Savior dared to provide it, then the Grey Knights dared to ask for it.
Yet even that proposal, which the Grey Knights themselves had considered aggressive, was rejected by the Savior once again.
The reason was still the same:
Not enough firepower!
Corwin could still clearly remember that scene. It had taken place in a meeting chamber.
The Grand Masters had exchanged glances and whispered among themselves, deeply incredulous.
Meanwhile, His Majesty the Savior had simply shaken his head, seeming faintly disappointed.
This was what he had said:
"Gentlemen, that is not how you fight a war. Your Grey Knights simply lack imagination."
The Savior pointed toward the projected file hanging in midair and added with greater emphasis:
"With that little firepower, how are you supposed to wage war?
If the Chaos daemons saw that, they'd think our Imperium has no firepower and can't afford to fight.
How are we supposed to intimidate them like that?!"
Then he knocked twice against the table with his Ring of Authority.
"The Grey Knights are being too conservative. Leave this matter to the Departmento Munitorum. They will design a complete combat doctrine..."
After several years, the Departmento Munitorum had finally designed the relevant plan and had the equipment divisions forge specialized Warp devices.
These allowed the Grey Knights to retain their mobility while also gaining terrifying firepower strike capability.
Crackle!
The Warp machine, now four or five meters tall, suddenly erupted with fierce psychic arcs.
Then a beam of light shot into the murky sky and disappeared.
Bzzzt... bzzzt...
Seeing that the Warp machine had activated successfully, Corwin's eyes filled with even greater anticipation.
Then the vox-array channel connected successfully, and a faint burst of static could be heard.
Corwin drew in a deep breath and spoke into the vox-array installation:
"Savior above, coordinates have been transmitted. Grey Knights Seventh Brotherhood requesting cross-dimensional long-range firepower strike!"
As he spoke, he entered a sequence of complex authentication directives on the mechanical display built into his vambrace, including occult verification sigils and rites.
That was to verify his identity.
Once the authentication passed successfully, Corwin entered the requested fire-support classification -
Right, up, down, down, right!
That was nearly one of the highest grades of cross-dimensional fire-support requests available.
After finishing everything, Corwin looked at the screen on his vambrace.
It displayed the message that the command had been approved and the strike had been launched.
At that moment, Corwin and all the Grey Knights held their breath and stared at the Warp machine before them.
They waited for the incoming strike, and for an instant the entire position fell into silence.
Boom!
The Warp machine erupted once more, projecting brilliant golden light, followed immediately by deep, sacred music filled with the overwhelming majesty of the Savior.
Accompanied by that hymn, a vast half-body holographic image of the Savior appeared in midair, clad in golden armor.
It was a virtual projection generated by the Warp machine.
In truth, at least half of that machine's components had been built solely to play the holy hymn and generate large-scale visual projection.
It was, by any practical measure, redundant design.
But the tech-priests of the equipment division had insisted that it was necessary, indeed one of the most important modules of the Warp device, because it would provide enough psychological intimidation to the enemy.
The low, sacred music reverberated. The Savior's immense projection was crushingly imposing.
He gazed down upon the infernal fortress in majestic silence, then lifted a hand and pointed toward it, as though heralding the coming of thunderous wrath.
As the Savior's projection pointed forward, a giant vortex began to form above the infernal fortress.
The strike had arrived!
"Prince of Pleasure..."
Upon the flesh-wall,
the Duke of Sadism stared at the enormous projection of the Savior, his pupils constricting, his whole body going stiff.
He had never expected the Savior's image to suddenly appear and point at him in such an overpowering posture.
More importantly, he had already sensed a fatal threat.
Something horrifying was coming.
It was not only this Chaos Lord. The other Chaos daemons also fell into panic beneath the Savior's projected form.
They realized danger had come, but had no idea what sort of fate awaited them.
The Chaos daemons did not even know where the attack was coming from, much less how they were supposed to defend against it.
They could do nothing.
Such helplessness.
The mere appearance of the Savior's image had already brought an aura of destruction with it. How terrifying was that?
...???
The Duke of Sadism slowly lifted his head and saw the gigantic vortex in the sky. Something was pushing through from the far side of the veil!
The next instant, he saw a radiant warhead.
The missile was nearly a kilometer long, covered in sacred runic engravings, with the Savior's sigils gleaming brightly across its surface, emanating the aura of death.
It slowly punched its way into the Warp and hung there directly above the heads of the Chaos daemons.
The distance was absurdly close.
The missile was practically kissing their faces.
Damn it!
The Savior had projected a weapon of destruction directly above the infernal fortress. Who the hell fought wars like that?!
The New Imperium's equipment division had applied Warp engines, psychic sorcery, and xenos technology to the newest inferno missile.
That allowed the inferno missile, like a voidship, to break through the veil and reach a designated point in the Warp.
The Duke of Sadism looked at that horrifying inferno missile, almost as massive as a starship, and his soul nearly left his body.
Only one thought remained in his mind:
Run!
The Duke of Sadism did not hesitate for even a moment. Every tentacle on his body sprang into action as he fled from the fortress at top speed.
The other Chaos daemons did the same, screaming as they fled in all directions.
But it was already too late.
Whoosh -
The inferno missile activated in an instant and smashed toward the infernal fortress at near-relativistic speed, tearing the warp-veil apart under its terrifying kinetic force.
Then it struck the fortress, erupting into red-gold fire. Dreadful flames and shockwaves engulfed everything.
Everything began to collapse and die.
BOOOOM!!!
A red-gold mushroom cloud rose into the sky as the shockwave spread outward.
"For the Savior!"
Corwin and the Grey Knights ignited their spears, slammed them against the ground, and saluted, their cloaks whipping wildly in the gale born from the shockwave.
Such loyalty!
At the same time, the Chaos beings rushing toward the battlefield through the Warp also witnessed all of it and fell instantly silent.
(End of Chapter)
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