Daniel looked into Casarius's eyes, his tone sincere.
"Humanity and Craftworld Ulthwé will join forces to fight the great enemy, Chaos, until peace is restored to the galaxy."
Casarius fell silent, clearly weighing Daniel's request.
While humans and Aeldari can cooperate, handing over our technology still calls for careful consideration.
After all, this collaboration won't last forever. Once the threat of Chaos subsides, the two races will, in all likelihood, be back to square one.
Seeing Casarius hesitate, Daniel pressed his case, appealing to both emotion and reason.
"Since the Great Rift tore open, the Aetheric winds are over a hundred times stronger than before, and mutants and psykers are popping up like mushrooms. If we can't even hold the line against Chaos infiltration and invasion, how can humanity possibly defeat it?"
"Helping humanity is helping the Aeldari. The Prince of Pleasure is always trying to corrupt your race's very soul. If humanity goes belly up, who will you turn to?"
"Will it be the green-skinned Orks who live for the pleasure of war, the soulless undead, or perhaps the Tyranids who are dead set on devouring the entire galaxy?"
Daniel's argument finally brought Casarius around.
"Okay, you've convinced me."
"We'll help you train your psykers and show you the ropes on using this power correctly."
"We'll equip your psykers with the skills and know-how to combat Chaos, and ensure that a vital human world is never again blindsided by invasion."
"Thank you for your generosity." Daniel smiled. "The bond between humanity and Craftworld Ulthwé will surely stand the test of time."
The Aeldari have long been splintered into the Asuryani (Craftworld Aeldari), the Exodites (Savage Aeldari), the Drukhari (Dark Aeldari), and the Harlequins (Jester's Troupe).
Just because the Ynnari and Guilliman have hammered out a deal doesn't mean the Aeldari and humanity have one overall.
The Drukhari's raids on human planets are still commonplace.
The Craftworld Ulthwé can only represent themselves, not the entire Aeldari race.
Daniel could only promise friendship with Ulthwé's Craftworld.
As for the other Aeldari forces, we'll simply avoid rocking the boat.
If they decide to play hardball, he wouldn't mind giving them a taste of their own medicine.
Casarius nodded, then continued, "When we came to the Calixis Sector, we received a message from the Jester's Theatre Company. They asked me to issue a warning to you."
"The unpredictable Changer is gunning for you, and the dark forces throughout the sector will weave a tangled web of intrigue to ensnare you until you're completely brought down."
"The first target is the Garden of Beasts, a festering pit of corruption rooted in the Calixis Sector that could very well put a monkey wrench in all your efforts."
"The Garden of Beasts?" Kaidin frowned, repeating the blasphemous name.
"Does the court have any intel on this?" Daniel asked, turning to Kaidin.
"My Lord, the organization's judiciary has the relevant dossier."
Kaidin stepped forward.
He instructed his aide to use his biometric seal and fetch the relevant information.
The aide was quick on the draw.
A few minutes later, he returned with several members in court uniforms.
They were all holding documents and data-slates in their hands.
The data-slate was slotted into the projection apparatus's reader.
The documents were then distributed to the public.
As the projection screen lit up, an introduction to the Garden of Beasts flashed before everyone.
Of all the threats before him, the Garden of Beasts was one of the most evil and dangerous.
Despite the court pouring massive manpower and resources into the issue, they were unable to confirm the true nature of the Zoo.
Many still refuse to acknowledge its existence, chalking it up to mere nonsense.
However, the court has insisted all along that the Garden of Beasts is real and could potentially turn the reality of the Calixis Sector on its head.
After a series of investigations, previous Grand Inquisitors ultimately flagged the Zoo as a threat that the Inquisition must eliminate.
They believe the Garden of Beasts is most likely a nightmarish area located somewhere in the Subsector, consisting of various secrets, intricate conspiracies, and terrifying entities.
When someone is selected, they are pulled into it through all sorts of unbelievable means.
The Zoo supposedly exhibits the so-called 'truth' to selected viewers, stripping bare the 'reality' of the Subsector and forcing people to confront the 'essence' of the universe.
Such revelation can cause terrible harm to the mind, body, and soul.
Most people go stark raving mad, but those who survive are forever changed and become staunch believers.
The last documented individual to enter the Zoo was a foundry worker about a year ago.
The worker claimed to have seen the 'truth' of the universe.
"Humans are monkeys, goats, elephants, everything; they are infinitely varied. Anything can be human. The word 'human' is meaningless."
"The Emperor is a fraud, and the existence of the Imperium is an even bigger lie. Only by destroying the Imperium and killing the Emperor can humanity be saved."
Before his arrest, this worker was extremely zealous in promoting the doctrine of constant change, advocating that the universe is always in flux and that survival depends only on adapting to that change.
The worker died after being interrogated multiple times.
Those who had heard him preach blasphemous doctrines, including his colleagues and relatives, were also targeted for excommunication.
Some were summarily executed, while others had their minds wiped clean and were converted into servitors.
Outside the meeting hall, players like Rigby and Chosen Alpaca were also passing around the courtroom documents they had received.
As high-level players and warband commanders, they are usually privy to the right to attend such meetings and even chime in with their opinions.
However, knowing the players' unpredictable nature, Daniel never mandated their presence, but let them decide for themselves.
"I'm calling it right now: Tzeentch opened a zoo." The little guy declared with a humorous grin, looking down at the documents.
"It's kind of like a rules-based horror story, where a sequence of trials ultimately breaks the mind and completely corrupts the soul."
The chosen alpaca nodded in agreement with the little guy's take.
"This game is so much fun, it has everything. I wonder if we'll ever run into Deep Ones or Cthulhu characters out of the blue?" Blood Dove chuckled, not taking any of it seriously.
"Cthulhu's probably a tall order, but Deep Ones are a dime a dozen. I heard there are some kicking around in the Kronus Sector." Rigby stroked his chin. "We might run into them once we wrap up the Calixis Sector and start spreading out."
"We'll snag a few for Guan Bao later. That guy was dead set on getting a Cthulhu last time." Blood Dove grinned mischievously.
Rigby raised an eyebrow and shot Blood Dove a knowing, mischievous grin.
"You two!!"
Alpaca rolled its eyes.
"You guys are giving Slaanesh a run for his money!"
"......"
The people at the meeting also whispered among themselves, exchanging their opinions.
In the past, these court documents were kept strictly confidential, and ordinary people had no access to them at all.
The Great Rift has now opened, daemons are rampant, and the treacherous forces in the Calixis Sector are extremely rampant.
These materials no longer needed to be kept secret, which is why they were seen by these ordinary officials.
"It looks like the opposition is trying to capitalize on the instability in the Calixis Sector to sow seeds of corruption and have them blow up at a critical juncture."
Daniel could guess the intentions of those treacherous daemons.
"The cunning of the Changer of Ways is second to none among the Gods. If he's dead set on taking you out, you can bet your bottom dollar it'll be through a string of conspiracies," Casarius warned. "You need to be ready, Saint of the Emperor."
Daniel nodded. "I will be, but I'm still counting on you to help us take out these loose ends."
"That is precisely why we have come here. But how can we assist you?" Casarius asked.
"Can you work some magic and get one of us into the Garden of Beasts?" Daniel asked, looking at Casarius expectantly.
Casarius' eyes widened.
This request was quite a curveball!
I thought they would be thinking about how to sever the connection between the Beast Garden and reality.
Or find those who have been corrupted and try to eradicate them completely.
Who'd have thought their first idea would be to greenlight a jailbreak... into the prison?!
"Do they think we don't have enough corrupted people and want to double down on their efforts?"
"It's possible, but I don't recommend it. Even the most devout believers would be completely broken if sent inside."
The psychic prowess of the Aeldari in their prime was nothing short of mind-boggling, truly beyond imagination.
They each have their own Aeldari pantheon in the Warp.
Things that are tough nuts to crack for other races—like the 'Tyrant Star' from the Garden of Beasts—are just par for the course for them.
"Of course we can't send in just anyone." Daniel grinned and laughed. "The Chosen Ones are under the Emperor's umbrella, so they can dodge the corruption of the Garden of Beasts."
Casarius's pupils dilated slightly; the idea seemed feasible.
When the Chosen Ones first showed up, the Aeldari ran a divination on them.
They discovered that the fate of these individuals was utterly illegible.
It is clear that they are protected by the Emperor and some mysterious forces.
As pawns of the Fifth Chaos God, the chances of them being corrupted by another one are slim to none.
The Zoo is terrifying for ordinary people, who are powerless to resist.
But for those powerful beings, it's no big deal.
If Tzeentch could corrupt and twist everything to his will, he'd have already dragged Skarbrand, the Masked Dancer, and other great daemons into the fray for some fun.
"Perhaps it's feasible. If we can send the Chosen One in, the power of the human Emperor might be able to influence the Garden of Beasts."
Casarius thought about it more and more and felt that the idea was simply ingenious.
The Garden of Beasts would effectively become a turf war between Tzeentch and the Lord of Men.
The mastermind behind this is going to be spitting mad.
Daniel asked, "When can it be sent in?"
"It will take some time to prepare," Casarius nodded. "About a week from now."
"Thank you for your help, Farseer."
Daniel expressed his gratitude.
It looks like this is going to be some sweet new content for the younger players.
What's a game without a good old-fashioned dungeon crawl?!
Let the Zoo be the first one.
"It was nothing," Casarius said.
"Looking at this storyline, it seems like they're going to introduce a new gameplay mode," Rigby said with anticipation and excitement.
"The intel on the Garden of Beasts doesn't scream 'hack and slash.' This is definitely going to be about us going head-to-head, outwitting and outfighting Tzeentch inside that Zoo."
Blood Dove agrees with Rigby's point of view.
"It looks like the dungeon drop is right around the corner. With the Aeldari helping, maybe we can snag some of their relics."
"That sounds great, but can we skip the brain-teasers in this new content? I'm not exactly a whiz kid." Alpaca said, clearly stressing out.
"So what are you good at? Sweet-talking?" The chubby boy raised an eyebrow, a mischievous grin plastered on his face.
Alpaca grabbed the chubby boy by the collar, yanked him hard, and then delivered a knee strike to his abdomen.
The sheer force instantly turned Rigby's face beet red.
He doubled over like a pretzel and crumpled to the ground.
Alpaca clapped her hands. "I'm better at hitting people. Do you want to try again?"
"No, I can already feel it." Rigby waved his hand.
After a long while, he managed to stand up with difficulty, his legs trembling uncontrollably.
"If only the Garden of Beasts had a straight-up hack-and-slash mode, we wouldn't have to rack our brains and could just cut our way through," Alpaca lamented.
"Khorne really missed the boat not blessing you," Blood Dove muttered under his breath.
"Do you know who the most killer chess player in the Han Dynasty was?" Rigby asked, rubbing his gut and leaning against the wall.
"Who is it?" Blood Dove asked, puzzled.
Rigby put his other hand on Blood Dove and began to explain.
"It's hard to say about other games, but Warhammer Online is billed as a 100% realistic game, which means players can dream up entirely new ways to beat the game, not just one. There's definitely more than one way to skin a cat here."
Alpaca looked like it had just realized something and clenched its fist.
"So, you're saying if I just straight-up kill the final boss of the Garden of Beasts, I can call the game beaten??"