Chapter 50: Go Home with Dad
The Magi, including Laust, were no longer calm. They considered various scenarios, but found no way to dispel the Archmagos's suspicions. In the end, they decided to throw caution to the wind and lay everything bare before the Archmagos, to let him know that it was all the little brat's "good intentions gone wrong." And that this little brat had a heavily armed force of several hundred thousand soldiers willing to fight to the death. Archmagos, you must think thrice before you act!!!
Omega's loyalists did not disappoint the Magi. The moment they sensed something was wrong, they were ready to send the Archmagos to his "heavenly ascension," without a moment's hesitation.
Archmagos Veyl's thought: Don't they know this airship has void shields? Are they really this brave?
And so, the scene of them collectively "selling out" Omega occurred. Omega felt he had done nothing wrong, that the Magi were "traitors." The Magi felt that Omega had gone too far, and that they were saving him as well as themselves.
"Stand down! All of you, stand down!" Omega shouted into the comms.
Veyl's party, seeing the soldiers immediately lower their weapons at Omega's command, began to believe a part of what Laust and the others had said. When you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth.
If there was anyone on the scene who had believed the Magi from the beginning, it was Captain Uriel Ventris. He had been outmaneuvered by this little brat before.
After having the soldiers stand down, Omega ignored the guns pointed at him and trotted over to Veyl. "Archmagos," he said, "don't listen to the Magi's nonsense. I'm so small, how could I have such great power? Those soldiers were all your workers. They have always been loyal to you. It was my fault for arguing with the Magi just now, which must have agitated them. They must have thought something was wrong and wanted to protect you. Don't you think so?"
Archmagos Veyl's thought: I do not.
Ventris's thought: See what I mean?
Griffin's thought: By the warp... Ventris, what did you go through last time?
Admiral Alaric's thought: What a talent...
The Manufactorum Magi's thought: Slick-tongued and sharp-witted.
Omega's thought: Archmagos, for the sake of my cuteness, just take this way out. Otherwise, you'll make things very difficult for me, and I don't want to become a heretek cog-head.
Veyl was conflicted. Why had the Omnissiah blessed him with such excellent genetic material? This ability! This thick skin! This cunning! It was just like him when he was young... oh, and the intelligence!
(Mr. and Mrs. Veyl: Are you sure?)
Seeing that the Archmagos was ignoring him, Omega brazenly continued to play the cute card. "Archmagos, you don't know, we have fresh vegetables here, and ruins."
The Laust Magi: You little brat!
"Oh?" Veyl responded.
Seeing the response, Omega pressed his advantage. "And many, many other things. Archmagos, let me show you inside."
Omega's thought: I'm starting to disgust myself.
The Archmagos, a man who had lived for a thousand years, was no stranger to reading people. He could see that the kid had tried too hard and had ripped his own pants, creating this mess. Seeing Omega's earnest efforts to please him, a flicker of amusement sparked in his heart. Such excellence would be a sin in others, but in his own bloodline, it was just a child being a child, good intentions gone wrong.
The Archmagos knew he should show some goodwill to Omega. Otherwise, the kid might just flip the table. He was all too familiar with the micro-expressions on the boy's face; he had used them many times in his youth to crush those who refused to take the way out he had offered.
"Then let's go and have a look," Veyl said.
Hearing his words, everyone on the scene breathed a sigh of relief. No one wanted to die in a firefight like this. They could die on the path of knowledge, they could die on a glorious battlefield, but not in a welcome ceremony blunder caused by a child. What would their battle-brothers, their descendants, think? When they read the final page of their ancestors' glorious, sacrifice-filled, honor-bound biography: Died in a welcome ceremony blunder caused by a child. What would they think?
The Archmagos walked in front, with Omega half a step behind. As they passed Laust and the other Magi, both of them let out a simultaneous "Hmph!" of displeasure.
Veyl's thought: Hmph! Letting a child take the lead. What are you all good for? Without him, you'd have starved to death in your own labs!
Omega's thought: Hmph! Making a child take the lead. What are you all good for? Without me, you'd have starved to death in your own labs!
Seeing the machine and the man, the big and the small, let out the exact same sound at the exact same time, the visiting guests and Laust's Magi were struck by a sense of absurdity: They're so alike!
Not daring to show any reaction, Laust and the others could only accept their contempt and silently follow behind.
After breaking the ice, the old and the young began to chat, their conversation growing more and more congenial. The military parade was long, giving them plenty of time to clear up the misunderstanding.
Omega complained to the Archmagos, "The Magi don't want to manage anything, but they're always asking for this and that, as if the supplies just appear out of thin air."
"I know, right!" Veyl replied. "The ones at the Grand Manufactorum are the same. It pains me to watch. They spend money without batting an eye."
"The Temple isn't any better. I went there once and almost came back with a new leg. Not a single normal person among them."
"A bunch of ungrateful psychopaths. I gave them so many supplies, and they turned around and rebelled against me. Despicable!"
"Why fight at all? If it weren't for them, my business would have already expanded into the priest circle."
"The Forge World's orders are backed up for two hundred years! If it weren't for them, Teyedan would have started building its own Titan Legion in a few years. Now they've ruined everything!"
"Archmagos, don't be angry. Your health is the most important thing. Eliminating hidden dangers is the best way to develop. You have to hit rock bottom before you can reach a higher peak."
"Do you think I, an old man of a thousand years, don't understand that? Don't worry about me."
"Archmagos, look at those autogyros in the sky. I invented them. They're not high-performance, but they're cheap and easy to produce. When this is all over, I'll modify them, create high, middle, and low-end models, and we can sell them to the Planetary Governors. As long as the price is low enough, there will be buyers. It'll be my contribution to Teyedan."
"Good child. This invention of yours is extraordinary. Modify it however you want. To hell with Mars. We'll produce them however we want."
"Archmagos, look at the infantry weapons on the soldiers. I invented those too. Simple, cheap, and powerful. The Departmento Munitorum will love them."
"That's right, the Munitorum loves things like that. They're always complaining that the heavy weapons are too heavy and not flexible enough. It's just that the people in the cult are too rigid. This is good. It doesn't even have an external power source. They won't be able to find any fault with it."
"Of course. I was prepared for those old fossils from the very beginning."
Even in front of the Fabricator-General, who was not known for his technical expertise, the Magi, including the Manufactorum Magi, did not dare to communicate in a private channel. This time, they used the most primitive method of human communication—eye contact.
A Magos shot a look at Laust: Laust, be honest. Are you the Archmagos's lapdog? Is Omega his biological son?
Laust shot back: Get lost! How many times do I have to tell you?
A Manufactorum Magos interjected with his eyes: If you have any information, tell us now! We're all colleagues now. As long as you don't mention funding, we're all good brothers! (How does one interject with their eyes?)
A local Magos returned the look: Do you know that Omega is the Archmagos's biological son?
The Manufactorum Magos received the look and was greatly shocked: I had no idea! Wasn't it just a rumor?
Archmagos Veyl was now extremely satisfied with Omega. His excellent bloodline and talent were on full display in the boy. Even his little temper was just like his own. He had the intelligence, he had the emotional intelligence. It was just a pity he wasn't... hmm... hmm!
A thought struck Veyl. He suddenly realized that the problem of how to incorporate Omega's loyalists was not a problem at all. Loyalists were good! Loyalists were great! The more loyal, the better! Genetically speaking, wasn't Omega his "biological son"? Far more of a son than those useless descendants who were still asking him for money. If it weren't for the fact that he, Veyl, was an "old son of Macragge" who valued family tradition and honor, he would have let those good-for-nothings fend for themselves long ago. He had given them so many resources, so many opportunities, and not a single one of them could carry the family honor.
But now, it was different. A "biological son" sent by the Omnissiah, the perfect heir to his own talent. All he had to do was "restore" Omega's identity, and Omega's loyalists would be his loyalists. A father taking back the business he had given his son for training, so the child could focus on his studies—wasn't that perfectly reasonable?
Having figured it all out, Veyl felt not just good, but very good. As expected of his son. At such a young age, he already knew how to look after the family, knew how hard his thousand-year-old father had it.
The long road eventually came to an end. Omega and Veyl had reached the end of the military parade. To further improve his impression on the Archmagos, Omega said, "Archmagos, would you like to say a few words to your worker-soldier legion?"
Veyl saw through Omega's little scheme. He needed just such an opportunity to address everyone. Soon, his voice was transmitted through the comms network to every ear.
"Today, I am very happy, very satisfied. I have seen Omega's achievements. I have seen your loyalty. Therefore, I have decided to tell you the hidden truth, as a reward for your loyalty. Your leader, your master, your savior—Omega! He is my son! My biological son, who carries my bloodline!"
"Son, after I've inspected your homework, go home with dad."