Chapter 33: Wayne's Origin
Wayne picked up his family's emblem. The analyzer on his armor activated, confirming the emblem had no connection to the Warp and was crafted by humans ten thousand years ago.
This signified his origin.
The Wayne bloodline itself was extremely strange, almost immortal, with a lifespan of over 200 years and free of cancer and other genetic diseases. Like truly perfect humans.
Perfection?
Wayne gave a self-deprecating laugh. Humans of the past were arrogant to the point of madness. They themselves weren't perfect, yet they yearned to transform all of humanity into a perfect species.
The human species cannot be perfect.
Wayne turned the emblem over in his gauntleted hand. He looked at the back of the emblem, where an owl appeared, like the object of people's desires. A form of justice.
Wayne roughly understood what his opponent had prepared: the past sins of his own lineage. The demons intended to attack Wayne through this method.
He directly crushed the ring and threw it to the nanomachines, letting them devour and completely purify it.
He activated his communicator. "Konrad, have the daemons said anything to you?"
Konrad saw Wayne appear in black armor for the first time. He was a little surprised that his father still possessed such armaments.
"I was told a demon was born because of your bloodline."
"The Waynes were once an ancient noble house, ruling several sectors," Wayne said. "During the Dark Age of Technology, they were renowned, creating countless riches, yet they were ultimately massacred because they committed sins. These sins gave birth to a daemon, in the material realm, leading to their downfall; it was twisted retribution."
Wayne's tone was unremarkable. "Until they started doing good deeds, yearning for atonement. How could the sins of millennia be so easily dissipated, Hmph? I am the last Wayne son; it's normal for old enemies to come looking for me."
Swarms of black bats flew high above the city, hunting demons, but the number of nanomachines was too small. Compared to the entire world, there were still too few; they served Wayne.
Currently, the entire world is still under Chaos's invasion. Demons and Chaos Cultists ran rampant here. Countless people had already fallen under the demons' allure, and those unexecuted gangsters and nobles were resisting Wayne in pursuit of the demons' promises.
Chaos was taking root in this world, as if they wanted to completely corrupt it, but the world would not allow them to succeed so easily.
Wayne would not allow it.
...
Just as Konrad was briefing about his and Scavenger's contact with the owl daemon, the chief psyker of the Wayne Group arrived. His good name was Todd. He wore an artificial intelligence-powered psyker enhancement device and observed Wayne carefully.
"According to my psychic perception, there are three psychic vortices in this star system, existing independently of each other. The oldest vortex among them can reshape another."
"Which one is the oldest?" Wayne asked.
Tidd projected an image on the holovox. "That would be this ancient temple glittering in the outer wilderness."
Analyzing the information, Wayne realized something. "I understand. Todd, Grayson, you two assist Konrad here, while I go solve this problem for good."
"Sir" Todd and Gayson gave Wayne a military salute, then moved closer to Konrad.
The Primarch didn't react immediately. Wayne had just been preventing him from entering the Chaos Tower, and now he intended to act personally?
"Father, tell me, what exactly happened?" Konrad looked at his father, hoping to understand what had transpired. "Father!"
Wayne studied the feed intently. Through high-definition satellite cameras, Wayne clearly saw a large Wayne symbol at the epicenter, the territory that was once his family's. It was the place of origin for the Wayne before the Hive City on Nostramo was built.
Wayne realized then that his opponent was clearly attacking him through every detail of the Wayne family's past.
Furthermore, this location was a weak point in Nostramo's crust. If it were struck by an orbital strike, geological activity would intensify, and the world would experience a catastrophic earthquake, endangering every single hive city on this planet.
Now the psychic analysis results were in: the enemy had set up and deployed psychic magic here, and only Wayne could enter it. The enemy simply wanted to challenge Wayne to a duel, and they had prepared other means as well.
Wayne could destroy that place using nanomachines, but he always felt the enemy's plan wouldn't be so simple.
The material analysis of the regional map showed that the area was covered by adamantium at the top. For an orbital strike to shatter the outer shell, it would also trigger geological activity. Both the psychic and material analyses told Wayne that the area could not be destroyed by an orbital strike.
At the same time, nanomachines, composed in part of human ashes, struggled against one of the universe's most resilient materials: adamantium. This type of machinery was suitable for Warp warfare, not for facing Chaos Cultist forces armed with live ammunition and relying on adamantium defenses.
Moreover, this area was internally corrupted by Chaos, while externally, there was still a large amount of armed void defense weapons.
Wayne could see that some of the old nobility's equipment was in their hands. Currently, a large number of Chaos Cultists are gathered there, and their combat strength should not be underestimated.
"Konrad, this time I must go alone."
"Father, you just told me not to get carried away, and now you're preparing to go alone?"
"This isn't getting carried away; it's a necessity. Nostramo lacks qualified commanders to lead on planetary, and you are the only one capable of unifying the entire region."
Konrad didn't give in and insisted, "Then at least you should bring an army."
"No. Any Mortals approaching there will not survive for long. I will arrange for my trusted warriors to assist me under the protection of the Scavengers. As for what happens to me, consider it me washing myself of the blood of my ancestors."
Konrad also understood. He had studied for nine years and simulated commanding Nostramo's army for seven years. Now was the time for him to demonstrate his abilities.
"But I'm still worried about you."
Wayene stepped forward and patted Konrad on the shoulder, "Fear not, son, your father will not die today. I will come back, just focus on your own duty and leave the rest to me."
Wayne wasn't unwilling to bring people along; it was just that the place was the last ancestral land of the Wayne family, and was the first location to be completely corrupted by chaos. And given his special identity, it would inevitably be targeted specifically at him.
Other humans, even if elites couldn't enter, and there weren't that many Untouchables to gamble with in the heart of chaos.
After years of effort, Nostramo currently shelters only about 10,000 untouchables, and they are dispersed across the globe. Under the current circumstances, how could they quickly gather and have enough power to help him?
Wayne's contingency plan for Chaos had always been weapons composed of Untouchables, but he had never anticipated a global invasion.
Wayne had never been lax in matters pertaining to cultists and dogmas. The untouchables under him had been regularly cleansing Chaos Cultists where ever they were they were found, purging their beliefs from this world. His goal had been to fight Chaos and prevent a large-scale outbreak of Chaos pollution. Now it seemed Wayne had still underestimated the enemy.
...
Marshall Wayne wore a full headpiece, and Konrad couldn't see Wayne's expression at that moment.
"Konrad, trust me. I will never be defeated. When this is over, we'll have a good meal together."
Konrad, in the end, sighed and spoke, "I understand, Father. I just also wanted to tell you that I met Helena. She seems to be the mastermind behind all of this."
"Indeed." Wayne's voice was steady.
Wayne turned to Grayson and Scavenger Team behind him, "Grayson."
"Sir," Grayson responded.
"Stay alive," Wayne spoke softly.
"Sir?" Even from behind the mask, Grayson could feel Wayne was smiling.
Wayne looked at Todd, Grayson, and the scavenger and spoke, "I cannot say all of you will survive today, but I do hope you do. Kids are waiting for our rematch, I'm sure you wouldn't want them miss it."
"Yes, Sir!!" All responded in union.
Wayne returned his own salute in response. He took a good look at everyone present, nodded his head, and then turned towards his target direction. He spoke some words murmur
"I am clad in hell, forged from darkness, shaping my world with an unyielding will. Light is not on Nostramo; only by embracing hell can we protect ourselves. There are no Gods, but I."
...
Wayne moved toward the armory bay. He turned and activated his armor, heading towards the wilderness. Konrad watched his father's retreating figure, then turned to link with Nostramo's command system and began directing various units.
Meanwhile, the artificial intelligence was battling Chaos warships in orbit. The Owl's current strategy was to disperse Wayne's military forces through various invasion points, thereby isolating Wayne.
The Owl Daemon appeared in Wayne's long-abandoned graveyard site. It hadn't expected the enemy to pour Untouchables' remains, transformed into nanomachines, directly onto its face, destroying the tower.
It looked at its master beside it. "My Lord, do you truly wish to face him? He is but mortal. Is he worth your personal intervention?"
"I hope he is."
[End of Chapter]