Boom! Boom! Boom!
The Emperor's Scythes' bolters hammered away. A grenade landed squarely on the Genestealer Patriarch, engulfing it in a massive ball of fire.
The creature roared in agony and charged the Space Marine warriors. Its yellow eyes were blazing with pure malice. This was an ancient malice, older than the Milky Way itself. Behind it lay a mind more terrifying than the void, vaster than the universe, and utterly unfathomable—the Hive Mind.
This mental assault got under the skin of Selesian and the others. It sought to utterly crush the will of the Emperor's Scythes, to shatter their minds and turn them into its puppets.
While Selesian and his brothers were equipped with internal inhibitory devices, they couldn't completely block the terrifying influence of that psychic will.
Not until Daniel cast the Purification Blessing, successfully suppressing the Hive Mind's control, could they finally act on their own terms.
"For the Emperor and Sotha!"
Selesian roared, "Take it out!"
The other Emperor's Scythe warriors ignited their chainswords. Seeing red, they charged the Genestealer Patriarch. They were all in a frenzy, roaring like madmen and oblivious to the pain, hacking hysterically at the alien leader.
One Emperor's Scythe was snatched up by a muscular limb and had his helmet ripped clean off amidst the alien's triumphant shriek. Blood sprayed everywhere as the headless body hit the ground.
The other Scythes didn't bat an eye. They continued their mad assault on the Patriarch, determined to finish the job no matter the cost.
"Since when do Ultramarines descendants catch a case of the Black Rage?" Yuji muttered over the player comms.
"What's the beef? They're really going for broke," Rigby observed, surprised by the intensity.
The other players were equally stunned. The Emperor's Scythe warriors were truly playing for keeps. Under their desperate, suicidal attack, the Genestealer Patriarch was finally laid low, collapsing with a heavy thud.
As soon as the leader died, the remaining Genestealers shrieked in terror and scattered.
Selesian and the surviving Emperor's Scythes smiled grimly as they looked at the corpse of the Patriarch. They had finally avenged the tragic deaths of their Chapter.
After the battle, Selesian expressed his profound gratitude to Daniel. Without Daniel's help, they would never have been able to exact their revenge.
Selesian then revealed the secret the Emperor's Scythes had been keeping under wraps—a secret long considered their deepest shame.
During the Second Tyrannic War, the Kraken Hive Fleet invaded from the Eastern Fringe of the Imperium, gnawing up planets along the way. Sotha, the Chapter's home world, was right in the fleet's path.
The Emperor's Scythes Chapter had planned to resist with all their might, defending their home to the death. However, they discovered a desperate truth: most of Sotha's residents had been thoroughly contaminated by Genestealers.
When the Hive Fleet finally arrived, Sotha was ripped apart by civil unrest. Fleets turned on each other, orbital defenses were shut down, and the garrisons descended into chaos. Sotha had essentially opened itself up to the Tyranids, leading to its devastating fall.
Even the Chapter's own gene-seed was compromised, and the Astartes candidates showed symptoms of Tyranid contamination.
This was the reason why the Emperor's Scythes refused to accept Imperial supplies or rebuild—they couldn't even keep their own house clean. The few remaining recruits were all contaminated and had to wear inhibitors just to resist the Hive Mind's control. This was an unbearable shame, scarring the entire Chapter.
They had vowed to fight to the last man to atone for their failure and prevent the contamination from spreading, ceasing all new recruitment and supply requests.
Their sole focus was revenge against the Tyranids and avenging their dead. They had returned to this specific spot for one purpose: to eliminate the Genestealer Patriarch who had paved the way for the Tyranid invasion.
Though they all wore mental suppressors to combat the Hive Mind's control, they still couldn't overcome the psychic urge that prevented them from firing upon the Patriarch. They were lucky to run into Daniel.
This was their one opportunity to wash away the shame and take revenge with their own hands.
"Thank you for your kindness, Saint." Selesian led the remaining warriors in a final salute to Daniel. "If I survive this mission, I will explain the whole story to the Imperium. We will face any punishment head-on."
Daniel nodded, choosing not to interfere with their decision. The players sighed, lamenting the brutal fate of the Emperor's Scythes Chapter.
"Man, what a trainwreck of a Chapter. Only seven guys left."
"Tough break. That's what happens when you neglect your home. Your homeworld gets toasted, and your Chapter is next to go belly up."
"Wait, doesn't this sound a little like that twisted story about Emperor Mao and 'The Victim'?" Walt muttered into the comms.
"Walt, you're a toxic guy! How could you bring up the Minotaur's voice during a tragedy like this?" Rigby snapped.
Faced with the other players' skepticism, Walt shrugged it off and offered his perspective.
"Look, the Emperor's Scythes deeply loved Sotha, but Sotha had already been transformed into the enemy's shape by the Genestealers. When the war started, the Scythes fought like dogs to protect it.
But Sotha, having had a change of heart, stabbed the Scythes in the back and insisted on hugging the Tyranid that wanted to harm him. The Tyranid devoured Sotha completely, and the Scythes, burdened by shame and hatred, have been seeking vengeance ever since. Finally..."
Before Walt could finish, Rigby pointed his weapon at him. "Shut it! You're the worst. Don't make me drop you mid-storyline."
"Okay, okay, my bad, my bad," Walt quickly shouted, worried Rigby might actually shoot him.
"Walt is vulgar, no doubt, but he actually hit the nail on the head," Yuji admitted, supporting the comparison. "When the Scythes learned that Sotha's people and gene-seed were contaminated, they were probably even more devastated than the victims themselves."
"You two are sick. Can't you pick a different metaphor? I'm a total square, and my ears are burning listening to this," Rigby said, disgusted.
Rumble!
As the players were discussing the Chapter's fate, a massive sound erupted from deep underground. The fortress monastery appeared to be under attack by some terrifying force and began to collapse. Huge chunks of rock came crashing down, smashing through the floor.
Everyone fled in a panic, trying to dodge the falling debris.
The shaking lasted for over ten minutes before it finally subsided. When the dust settled, only Cawl and a few Mechanicus members remained by Daniel's side; the players and the Emperor's Scythe warriors were gone.
The once-magnificent fortress was now a pile of ruins, and all paths leading out were blocked. They were trapped.
Daniel observed the scene for a moment and found a massive crack in the ground, revealing a passage leading below.
Hum! Hum!
Several drones flew into the channel to conduct a quick scan.
"That earthquake must have been the work of the Necrons!" Cawl declared, connecting to the deep-scanning drone. The results showed the passage connected directly to the Necrons' black metal maze below.
"Let's go take a look. Maybe they've been forced underground as well," Daniel said, stepping into the passage and entering the massive subterranean maze.
The corridors were intricate and complex, and they were occasionally ambushed by Necron constructs. Daniel destroyed the hostile automatons and pressed forward with Cawl and the others. Along the way, they found players like Yuji and Rigby, and they also came across fallen members of the Adeptus Mechanicus and Emperor's Scythe warriors.
The surviving Scythe warriors were ready to meet their maker. They fought to the last second and refused to retreat, their only goal being to take as many metal constructs as possible with them.
Daniel paused in silence for a moment, observing these souls returning to the Golden Throne.
"For the Emperor and Sotha!"
An angry shout came from the end of a corridor. Daniel quickened his pace toward the source of the sound.
When they arrived, the battle was already over.
Chapter Master Selesian of the Emperor's Scythes lay on the ground, coughing up blood. His chest had been sliced open, and bright red blood stained the floor crimson. Nearby lay the shattered structures of over a dozen Necron warriors.
He had fought until his last breath.
Seeing Daniel appear, the dying Captain reached out a hand. Daniel knelt gently on one knee and took the Chapter Master's hand.
Selesian used his final ounce of strength to speak. "Saint, have I failed the Emperor? Will He reject me for my lack of piety? Am I a coward for not having the guts to face our shame?"
Daniel shook his head, his tone soft. "You are the Emperor's pride, His warriors, and you have never failed Him."
"Your courage is plain for all to see. You will be welcomed into the God-Emperor's palace and become noble, heroic spirits."
Selesian smiled with relief. He drew his last breath, his head tilting to the side.
"You are a hero of the Imperium and a protector of mankind. Your achievements will be remembered, and your spirit will live on," Daniel whispered to himself.
The players were genuinely moved by Selesian's final moments.
"How much more will this cruel universe take out of humanity before it's satisfied?"
"The Emperor's Scythes—eternal heroes."
Yuji's face showed regret. He recorded the relevant video. "I'm going to post this on the official site. How can they bear this emotional gut-punch alone? We all have to eat the plot knife together, and then we can curse the shoddy planner together."
Daniel briefly considered giving the players a task to retrieve the Scythes' bodies, but quickly abandoned the idea.
He would let them rest on this land they had sworn to protect. When the time came, they would erect a monument for them on Sotha. When the Primaris project eventually re-establishes the Emperor's Scythes Chapter, Daniel would pass this story on to the new warriors.
The brave warriors of the old Chapter had given everything for Mankind and the Emperor. Their lives were not perfect, but they were beyond reproach.
After leaving Selesian, Daniel found some players and Mechanicus members. But Arale had been MIA for too long, which started to worry him.
Following a fierce skirmish, Daniel and his companions arrived at the core of the maze. A huge, glowing black metal matrix stood there. Imprisoned within the matrix was a metal structure radiating terrifying power.
Arale, the missing player, was currently standing near the matrix, staring at it.
"How dare you, a bunch of pathetic carbon-based monkeys, waltz in here?"
"I am Zarahush the Ruler, the true God, the living embodiment of this universe!" the imprisoned metal cube communicated telepathically to all living beings present.
"Hey, Master!" Arale ran over excitedly when she saw Daniel.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The imprisoned ruler Zarahush slammed madly against the barrier formed by the matrix.
"How dare you, you lowlife carbon-based monkey!"
"The audacity! How dare you corrupt my people?"
Yuji looked at the raging C'tan. "Why does it look like that C'tan just flipped its lid?"
Walt chuckled. "Are you kidding me? Which magos doesn't despise the 'God-Emperor'? Even though Zarahush isn't Arale's Father, did you not hear him constantly boast 'I'm God, and you're a bunch of damn carbon-based monkeys'?"
"Then, a young, complete Necron shows up, eagerly following the 'carbon-based monkey,' acting like a spoiled brat, and calling him 'Master.' I was terrified Arale was going to say, 'My Master is different!' We're in for a treat. I bet we're about to see a classic C'tan meltdown."
Rigby nodded. "Just listening to your description makes my blood pressure rise."
"If I ever have a daughter, no guy with yellow hair is getting within a hundred yards of her."
"..."
Zarahush looked at Arale bouncing around Daniel. His eyes burned with endless rage.
"I'll be free soon, and then I'll wipe you out, you damned carbon-based monkey!"
Arale stood defiantly in front of Daniel. "You are not allowed to hurt my Master! He's not some 'carbon-based monkey.' He is Arale's Master!"
All the players immediately gave Walt a strange look.
Yuji shrugged. "Get ready to witness the wrath of a C'tan."