The mountain trembled violently under the C'tan's wrath. It was clear now: the Archon Zakhurash was behind the collapse of the Emperor's Scythes' fortress-monastery.
Zakhurash, once one of the most ancient beings in the cosmos, lived by gobbling up stars. He eventually cut a deal with the Necrontyr, and like the other C'tan, he feasted on their souls and flesh, transforming them into the living metal husks known as the Necrons.
During the War in Heaven, the Necrons pulled a fast one, betraying the C'tan when they were weakest. The betrayal shattered the ruler Zakhurash.
A large fragment of him was imprisoned by the Necrons beneath the Pharos Beacon, meant to serve as both a power source and a stabilizing force. A massive Necron army was left behind as jailers.
Zakhurash was supposed to be locked down in a dimensional cube, and for eons, he was. It wasn't until the Horus Heresy, when the Iron Warrior Dantioch overcharged the Pharos to fight the Night Lords, that the station's core was crippled.
Later, Guilliman's forces blew up parts of it. These events didn't totally destroy the Pharos, but they put a serious dent in key components, creating flaws in the dimensional cube's seal. Zakhurash seized the opening and broke through some of the cube's constraints.
Just as the Pharos began its self-repair sequence, the Tyranids invaded. After stripping Sotha bare of biomass, the Tyranids dug deep, leading to a knock-down, drag-out fight with the Necron jailers.
The tunnels connecting to the metal maze? Those were the handiwork of Tyranid workers. The two sides fought for ages until the Tyranids realized the war was a losing proposition—Necron constructs offered no biomass for replenishment.
The Tyranids cut their losses, but Zakhurash got another chance and completely shook off the remaining dimensional cube constraints.
Knowing the time was right, he began pounding the matrix's binding wall, desperate to regain his freedom.
The resulting power surge caused a massive psychic shockwave, collapsing the long-abandoned Emperor's Scythes' fortress-monastery and leading Daniel and his crew straight to him.
Zakhurash sensed Arale and drew her in. Seeing one of his own Necron kin made him ecstatic. He figured the real universe still belonged to the C'tan, and those damned traitors would eventually get what was coming to them.
However, when he saw the Necron calling a "carbon-based monkey" her Master, he flew into a blind rage. How could a noble, godlike being kowtow to a mere human? He repeatedly slammed the binding matrix wall, determined to bust out of that cage and shred that damn mortal.
"This C'tan fragment is absolutely juiced up—it's got a Khorne blessing or something! That furious state is terrifying!" Armor Man, his battle axe whistling, cleaved through the Necron constructs pouring down the corridor.
Zakhurash's tantrum had woken up the whole neighborhood, causing a massive surge in active Necron constructs initiating a clean-up protocol.
"Behold: the wrath of the victim! A rage that won't stop until it burns the world to the ground," joked Walt, who was busy controlling his exoskeleton armor to dismantle a scorpion-like construct.
"For the Emperor!" Little Alpaca laid waste with a two-handed sword, slicing several Necron warriors in half—sending scattered metal remains, crackling sparks, and spilling lubricant everywhere.
A massive, tracked Iron Cavalry Servitor became a roadblock, its heavy machine gun roaring as it scythed down the incoming Necron tide. The players and the Mechanicus forces held the line, blocking the maze entrances and engaging in a fierce firefight.
Cawl plugged into the drone network, mapping the maze in real-time. Over ten millennia, he hadn't just made the Armor of Destiny and the Primaris Marines; he'd also hunted for STCs and pored over xenos technology.
Necrons were right in his wheelhouse. Drawing on his vast experience, Cawl quickly pinpointed a spherical core—a house-sized mainframe covered in silver alien runes and glowing faintly green.
"Take Arale and go," Daniel told Cawl. "Arale will reverse-engineer the Pharos Lighthouse and then reshape it."
"And you, Sir Guide?" Cawl asked.
"I'll run interference for now," Daniel replied, looking at the trapped Zakhurash.
Cawl nodded grimly. "Praise the Omnissiah. This is our best play."
Daniel turned to Arale. "Stick with Cawl. Get the Pharos Lighthouse under control and reverse-engineer that tech."
"Understood, Master. Arale will make it happen as fast as possible," she promised solemnly, before leaving the prison hall with Cawl and several Crusader Servitors. A group of players covered their flanks, providing fire support.
Cawl threw up a force field projector to shield himself and Arale from the Necrons' Gauss weaponry. Though Arale was a C'tan, her body was still just plain metal and could be easily destroyed.
The Skitarii went full-auto, laying down suppressing fire and using their laser and incendiary guns to blast a path through the Necrons.
They successfully reached the chamber holding the Pharos core. Arale stepped up, placed her hand on the core, and established a connection.
Cawl and the Skitarii bought them time by holding off the Necrons. The Great Magos was a force to be reckoned with.
His long-handled power axe smashed Necrons to pieces with every casual swing. The arsenal sprouting from his back provided firepower that could rival a small army.
"Damn, that's the right way to play a Tech-Priest," Fred exclaimed, watching the display and his eyes wide with envy. "I want that loadout, like, yesterday."
"That setup probably costs an arm and a leg," UwU noted. "But the DPS is crazy. With that kind of firepower, we'd run the table every time."
Fred shot a Necron construct with his pulse gun before continuing. "Who says Tech-Priests can't be MVPs? We gotta crush that stereotype! When the time comes, we're raising the cash for our own conversions. Ditch this weak flesh and embrace mechanical ascension!"
"..."
Back in the prison hall, BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! Zakhurash was going ballistic on the matrix. Every slam made the mountain shudder, and the air screamed under the pressure.
CRACK! After another collision, the sound of splintering metal echoed. Fissures spiderwebbed across the black matrix. Finally, with a deafening explosion, the prison blew wide open, sending shards flying.
The fully unleashed Zakhurash was revealed. He had gleaming silver skin, an austere face, and features more dramatic than any human's. His appearance was cold, cruel, and completely devoid of organic emotion.
Arcs of raw power crackled around him, and a terrifying energy pulsed from the glowing core in his chest.
"Tremble, you lowly, lesser creatures, for Zakhurash the Ruler walks the stars again!"
When Rigby saw Zakhurash bust loose, he joked, "Our Guide is about to feel the heat from the OG Magos Star-God!"
Zakhurash locked eyes on Daniel, and unadulterated fury erupted from his body. He made a gesture; a bladed staff flared to life in his left hand, and a crown coalesced on his head. Both were wrought from silver active metal, streaming with the destructive light of stars.
"I am the living embodiment of the law and the ruler of the true cosmos!"
Daniel brandished the Heavenly Punishment Scepter, and surging psychic power coursed through him. His body blazed with light, and his aura was every bit the C'tan's equal.
"You're not needed here. Go protect Arale and Cawl," Daniel's command resonated through the minds of the players and the Mechanicus.
"Looks like we're on crowd control and defense duty. Fall back, people!"
"The ultimate showdown between the God-Emperor and the Star-God!"
"Walt, shut your trap!"
The players quickly scrambled. The Skitarii and Servitors, however, short-circuited. Daniel's order conflicted with their mission protocols, and their logic modules couldn't prioritize.
"This is the will of the Omnissiah. Abandon your current objective and protect the Great Magos Dominus," Daniel added, sealing the command. The Crusaders and Servitors instantly turned and retreated toward Cawl.
With the players and the Mechanicus out of the way, a huge number of Necron constructs—Scarabs, Ghost Spiders, and locust-like killing drones—flooded the hall. They ignored Daniel completely, focusing their collective attention on Zakhurash.
Countless constructs swarmed the C'tan, dead set on keeping their prisoner locked up.
Zakhurash swept his staff, and swaths of Necron constructs disintegrated into clouds of glittering dust, their self-repair functions failing spectacularly. But as soon as one wave was destroyed, another took its place, an endless tide.
"Don't get ideas above your station! I am a god—an invincible god!"
Zakhurash unleashed pulse after bright pulse of energy, shattering the Necrons in his way. Daniel saw his opening and launched his own attack, unleashing vicious psyker lightning against Zakhurash's metal form.
Several crescent-shaped Necron drones zipped past. Their metal mandibles snapped open, and long needles tipped with a crackling annihilation field shot out. These constructs, taking a cue from the distraction Daniel provided, plunged their annihilation needles straight into the C'tan's metal shell.
The C'tan let out a howl of pure frustration. Zakhurash unleashed his full, furious power, incinerating all surrounding Necron constructs. Instantly, a burning spear of starlight coalesced in his hand and was hurled away.
With a deafening crash, the mountain was breached, and a path to the outside was carved open. Zakhurash charged Daniel, locking him in a crushing grip with his metal arms, and tackled him out through the massive hole.
The Necron constructs poured out behind them like a tide, and the battlefield was officially moved topside.
In the core computer room, Arale was making short work of the Pharos's core protocol. Necron technology, after all, originated with the C'tan.
Though the Necrons claimed they were no longer in thrall to the Star Gods, their technology still bore the indelible signature of the C'tan. Arale breezed right through the encryption and safeguards, accessing the Pharos's core database.
A massive firehose of data flooded her memory core. Using her innate abilities, she effortlessly secured full data and control authority over the Pharos Lighthouse. When she opened her eyes again, the job was done.
The Pharos Lighthouse was hers for the taking.