Lost. With twice the troop strength... I lost. It was that damned golden object.
Krom Gat had noticed the item that had been a constant throughout this battle.
Space Wolves will always be Space Wolves. Reckless and brainless. Contempt rose within him in his final moments, accompanied by a twisted sense of vengeful pleasure. Krom Gat raised his remaining functional arm.
In his hand, he held a Golden Apple, identical to the one Wolf Lord Bloodhowl had used.
He had stolen it during the clash when he took Bloodhowl's fatal blow, using the impact as cover.
Krom Gat had seen it clearly: Wolf Lord Bloodhowl possessed such immense power only after eating this thing.
Leaving such a critical item in the most conspicuous place—that was your greatest mistake.
A grotesque smile stretched across Krom Gat's ruined face.
"What!" Bloodhowl feigned shock. "You vile traitor, when did you..."
He made a move as if to lunge, acting as though he would do anything to snatch the Golden Apple back.
Seeing Bloodhowl's loss of composure, Krom Gat was even more certain.
Whatever you don't want me to do, I will do. Let the tides turn.
A voice deep within Krom Gat screamed, warning him not to swallow this object of unknown origin.
But that voice was instantly drowned out by his hatred for the enemy. He could not accept the reality of being so easily defeated by this pack of Space Wolves.
He opened his mouth and bit down on the Enchanted Golden Apple.
All panic suddenly vanished from Bloodhowl's face. His face changed faster than the dying Krom Gat could perceive.
--
A Splash Potion of Weakness had already smashed against Krom Gat's body.
Zeke watched this scene through his Spyglass.
Not bad. Wolf Lord Bloodhowl actually learned my Golden Apple curing technique.
He even set a trap for the enemy in the midst of a rapidly changing battle.
It seemed Wolf Lord Bloodhowl wasn't as reckless as he appeared on the surface.
The potion enveloped Krom Gat's upper body. Under the effect of Weakness, the dying Krom Gat consumed the Golden Apple.
Krom Gat could never have anticipated that the Golden Apple—a potent restorative—combined with the Weakness Potion would become a poison as deadly as arsenic to him.
Did it work? Bloodhowl watched Krom Gat's movements.
Ever since he witnessed Zeke use a Weakness Potion and Golden Apple to forcibly revert a corrupted individual back to human form...
Bloodhowl had been observing that worker. As expected, under pressure, the man showed signs of corruption again.
Physical corruption could be reversed, but for psychological corruption, the Golden Apple and Weakness Potion were evidently powerless.
Bloodhowl had finally come to a realization: even the smallest betrayal was unacceptable to him.
Forgiveness? Absolutely impossible.
His Wolf Brother, Orven Highfell, Wolf Lord of the Iron Wolves Great Company stationed on Cadia, had said countless times:
Once tainted by Chaos, never to be trusted. There is no returning from the path. To save them is to murder your own future.
No matter how miraculous Zeke's methods were, they couldn't change the fact of betrayal.
He exchanged opinions with Zeke, and eventually, Zeke agreed with him and proposed a new use.
To interrogate the enemy. Even the tightest Chaos lips will loosen under the influence of a Weakness Potion and a Golden Apple.
Krom Gat was an Iron Warrior. It was highly likely he knew the internal structure of the Blackstone Fortress, or even parts of Abaddon's plan.
Prying open his mouth would be of immeasurable value for the upcoming decisive battle for Cadia.
After obtaining the intelligence, letting him burn away his last shred of value for the Emperor would be the best end for a traitor like him.
Krom Gat swallowed the Golden Apple and laughed maniacally. "Die!"
A crackling sound erupted from within his body. Power surged through him, and Krom Gat felt like he was back in the game.
He swung his heavy mace and charged at Wolf Lord Bloodhowl. One step, two steps.
Krom Gat's charge froze on the third step.
The world spun. A sense of weakness, stronger than ever before, swept over him. His eyelids grew heavy.
With a thud, he fell to the ground, entering a peaceful coma.
Zeke put away his Spyglass. It's over. He saw Wolf Lord Bloodhowl cleaning up the remaining Iron Warriors.
This battle perfectly demonstrated the effects of the potions and Golden Apples. Both provided percentage-based enhancements.
The stronger the base target, the more terrifying the boost.
An ordinary Cadian soldier drinking a potion might just become a super soldier.
But an already powerful Space Marine combined with a Golden Apple could easily crush opponents of the same level.
After finishing off the last Iron Warrior, Wolf Lord Bloodhowl walked over, carrying his dripping storm axe.
"Kid, I think we might need to change our plan."
"Hmm? What do you mean?"
"How about we go raid the Blackstone Fortress directly? I feel like in my current state, I could take Abaddon down easily."
Zeke looked at Wolf Lord Bloodhowl. His face was taut, without a hint of jest.
Fight Abaddon right now? Are you serious?
Wolf Lord Bloodhowl saw the skepticism in Zeke's eyes.
"Forget it," he waved his hand, seemingly realizing his proposal was a bit of a leap.
"Anyway, kid, I think we can start thinking about our next move. No need to keep hiding on this mining planet."
On this point, Zeke strongly agreed.
"My thoughts exactly. Once you pry something useful about the Blackstone Fortress out of this Iron Warrior's mouth, we should get moving."
Eventually, they had to get back on track. The thought of Abaddon throwing a tantrum at the end and crashing the entire Blackstone Fortress onto the planet gave Zeke a headache.
What method can stop a Blackstone Fortress that massive?
–
Bidding a temporary farewell to Wolf Lord Bloodhowl, Zeke quietly returned to the hill.
"Visiting your gallery won't take too much time, will it?" Zeke asked.
Trazyn looked at the human before him. I don't recall agreeing to his request to visit.
But thinking about it, his gallery hadn't had a visitor in a long time. It was quite lonely having no one to appreciate such perfect collections.
Trazyn waved his hand, and a green portal appeared before them.
Trazyn's gallery was on a Tomb World named Solemnace.
This dark exhibition hall stretched for twenty-five square miles, its layout meticulously arranged to satisfy Trazyn's aesthetic tastes.
For the past millennium, nothing in this gallery had moved, save for the maintenance scarabs.
Countless precious and bizarre exhibits were stored within. Just at first glance, Zeke saw:
A perfect clone of the Primarch Fulgrim.
Several Salamanders Space Marines.
A C'tan Shard, embedded in a crown.
Zeke even saw an Inquisitor, Katarinya Greyfax.
This Inquisitor belonged to the Ordo Hereticus, just like the one on Cadia who had openly opposed him at the Iron Golem meeting. They might even be colleagues.
If everything went according to history, another old acquaintance would soon be added to this collection: Lord Castellan Creed.
Yes, Trazyn would even collect the old man during the final battle.
According to Trazyn, the old man was the figure who best represented the Cadian War, carrying with him a respectable piece of history.