Chapter 361: The Annihilation Engines
The situation in the main hive city of Sibellus was no better.
Nurgle's power was hosted within the toxic fog, while the powers of Tzeentch, Slaanesh, and Khorne were spreading directly through the radiation emitted by the Tyrant Star. At this moment, riots had broken out in the lower, middle, and even upper levels of Sibellus. The powers of Slaanesh and Khorne had driven those with weak wills into a state of utter madness, just like the unprompted riot that had occurred in the marketplace earlier. They had completely lost their minds; these afflicted individuals only wanted to torment others or to revel in slaughter. The deepest impulses of their hearts had been unleashed, and their actions only further fueled the spread of the Chaos Gods' corruption.
The Raider troops stationed on Scintilla, seeing this, hastily applied Marks of Purity to their powersuits, which was the only thing that saved them from falling into the same state. The priests of the Ecclesiarchy also poured out of their cathedrals, doing everything in their power to maintain the people's morale.
Fighting was breaking out simultaneously in every corner of Scintilla. The Dynasty and official Imperial forces were doing their best to suppress the riots, but at this moment, the enemy was everywhere they looked. Even with their superior combat strength, they could not suppress a riot of this scale in a short time.
Listening to the reports coming in from the Astartes and soldiers, the faces of both Lucan and Guilliman were grim. Lucan gave the order without hesitation, having the troops on standby on Agathos assemble immediately and head for Scintilla. It was clear that this Chaos invasion was far more complex than they had imagined.
And seeing the mutations happening on Scintilla and the star reflected in his wine, Lucan was reminded of the terrifying legend of the Calixis Sector's Tyrant Star.
"The Tyrant Star... isn't this thing supposed to appear without any warning? Could this thing really be related to Chaos?!"
Damon, carrying the transport case containing the Infestors, arrived outside the gate. "My Lord! You must come and see this!"
"Guilliman," Lucan said urgently, "the Infestors have arrived. No matter what, we must control these Navigators first. Our intentions have been exposed. If we let them run, they will never agree to gather like this again. And through their mouths, the other Navigator houses will learn everything that happened here. You control them here! After they have been infested, if what is happening on Scintilla is related to these Navigators, we will know everything! We might even be able to get a solution from them! I'm going outside to see!"
Guilliman nodded. A metal case was opened, and a giant Infestor crawled out, turning its gaze to the Navigators in the room. In its transparent abdomen, one could see parasitic creatures writhing. Seeing this, the faces of the Navigators were filled with horror. They did not know what Guilliman planned to do to them, but it certainly wasn't anything good.
However, Lucan had only taken two steps out the door when he felt an incredibly powerful psychic energy suddenly erupt from within the room. The Night Sentinels, Ultramarines, and Artificial Blanks who had been controlling the Navigators all exploded in a shower of gore.
Even Guilliman was sent flying out of the conference room, crashing through several walls before he came to a stop. The powerful psychic blast left even the Primarch momentarily stunned. He struggled to his feet and immediately shouted to Lucan.
"Lucan! The one who shouldn't be here... he's the problem! His psychic power is astonishing! Be careful!"
Seeing that Guilliman was alright, Lucan looked through the hole that had been smashed in the wall. Fletcher was now radiating an immense psychic power. Lucan could feel a psionic level from him that was far beyond Alpha-Plus. The psychic energy he had released had exceeded the tolerance limit of the Artificial Blanks under his command. The massive influx of psionic power had caused their bodies to instantly collapse, let alone the surrounding Night Sentinels and Ultramarines.
Limbs and flesh were splattered everywhere. Most of the Navigator patriarchs were looking at Fletcher, frozen in terror, not daring to move. Fletcher, who considered them his followers, had not attacked them.
Seeing this, Lucan immediately connected it to what Guilliman had mentioned about the incidents occurring in the different Segmentums.
The man looked down on Lucan with arrogance, as if looking at an ant. Relying on his own powerful psychic abilities, one after another, warp portals were opened behind him. The daemons of the Four Gods were not attacking each other; even the Bloodletters of Khorne were standing alongside the daemons of Tzeentch.
In Fletcher's altered memory, the summoning of these daemons was a manifestation of his complete mastery over the power of the warp. Countless daemons surged toward Lucan, trying to kill him.
"Usurper... accept your death!"
However, no matter how powerful his opponent's psychic abilities were, Lucan was not worried. This number of daemons was not enough to be a threat. You can bully Guilliman, whose psychic resistance is in the negative, but against me, your psychic power is just my Psy-crystals!
Lucan's devouring ability was not something the Artificial Blanks could compare to. As he pushed his devouring power to its maximum, all the warp energy and psionic power was continuously drained away. The daemons dissolved into Psy-crystals and entered Lucan's body before they could even get close.
Truly feeling the devouring ability that Pacini had spoken of, Fletcher was no longer so calm. This power was too much of a counter to his own. His connection to the warp was becoming incredibly weak.
At that moment, the risen Guilliman charged directly at Fletcher, the Emperor's Sword in hand. It was now certain that the person before them was the culprit behind everything happening on Scintilla!
However, neither Lucan nor Guilliman yet knew his true identity. He could summon daemons, but his body was still that of a mortal, with no signs of mutation. Was he truly a follower of the Chaos Gods?
Seeing that his psychic powers could no longer control the battle, Fletcher plunged a beacon into the ground.
On Komus, which was already approaching Scintilla, Olivia received the teleportation signal from the beacon. She activated the teleportation device on Komus and flipped the kill switches on the Annihilation Engines.
The twenty prepared Annihilation Engines were instantly teleported to Fletcher's side via the beacon.
Before Lucan and Guilliman, twenty of the massive war machines appeared, forming a metal city wall in front of Fletcher. They simultaneously raised their mechanical arms, and their immense strength sent the charging Guilliman flying back once more. Then, their glowing energy cannons aimed at the two of them.
Feeling the immense force and seeing the Annihilation Engines appear, Guilliman instantly recognized their identity. This is... just like the Abominable Intelligence that my good brother Lion has under his control! He knew how terrifying these things were.
"It's the Annihilation Engines! Lucan, get down!"
"Annihilation Engines?!"
Hearing this, the hair on Lucan's body stood on end. He threw himself to the side with all his might.
Dozens of atomic pulse cannons fired, the beams streaking past them. The soaring beams of energy completely pierced through the entire building.
"Kill them both!" Fletcher commanded.