Deep within the Laer temple.
A real Laer priest, wearing an ornate hood and luxurious robes, stood in the shadows. He watched the group slowly exit the side door through a network of projection devices scattered throughout the temple, his face masked in total confusion.
"Priest Russell Hayes... what is going on?" he whispered in the Laer tongue to those around him. "Why did they go out? Weren't we supposed to defend the temple to the death, fighting to the very last Laer? Could it be... they want to surrender?"
The few Laer priests standing next to him exchanged bewildered glances. None of them could provide an answer.
--
Within the ranks of the Imperial Auxilia, Vance's brow was furrowed tightly.
He stared at the Imperial Auxilia prisoner being marched out of the temple, staring at his blood-smeared face, before shifting his gaze upward...
To the black ID floating above his head.
[All According to Plan]
And then at the swarm of black IDs floating above the group of Laer.
Vance's heart skipped a heavy beat.
Standing next to him, [Worthy of Sanguinius's Blood] had noticed the exact same detail. He leaned in and lowered his voice.
"What are those Chaos players up to? Aren't those Laer also Chaos players? Why is [All According to Plan] being paraded around as a prisoner by his own guys?"
Vance stared intently at the figure, his mind racing at light speed.
He recalled every single operation the Chaos players had pulled off over the last few weeks.
Spreading the legend of the temple's holy sword.
Orchestrating all sorts of chaos to get Emperor's Children warriors killed heroically right in front of Fulgrim, constantly stimulating his emotions...
"A prisoner..." he muttered to himself, before realization suddenly struck him like a thunderbolt. "They're going to stage a grand theatrical execution of a heroic Imperial soldier right in front of Fulgrim!"
[Worthy of Sanguinius's Blood]'s face changed instantly. "Fuck! Won't that push Fulgrim's emotions even further over the edge?"
Vance nodded. "Definitely. We'll watch what they do and sabotage it when the moment is right. If that doesn't work, we'll have to execute the final backup plan."
[Worthy of Sanguinius's Blood]: "Understood! [Love Eating Grox Cans] and the others have already taken the explosives to the energy pillars. We're ready to act on command."
Vance gave a slight nod, refocusing his gaze entirely on the temple gates.
Fulgrim stood at the very peak of the ruins.
Watching the group slowly walk out, his purple brow furrowed slightly.
What were these Laer trying to pull by walking out at a time like this?
Surrender?
Or...
The elderly Laer priest walked to the edge of the steps in front of the temple doors and stopped.
His gaze swept over the impossibly dense Imperial army blanketing the plaza, washing over the purple, silver-grey, and grey silhouettes.
Finally, his eyes locked onto Fulgrim.
A look of absolute, unadulterated disgust surfaced on his aged face.
"You... you evil humans!" His voice was hoarse and aged, but every word was roared out in crisp, clear High Gothic. "We Laer are a peaceful, benevolent species! We have engaged in trade and cultural exchange with humanity across many star systems in this sector! In our history, we have never once committed a hostile act against mankind! But you? Simply because we refused to bow our heads, refused to become mere vassals of your Imperium... you laid waste to our civilization! You slaughtered our brothers and sisters! You destroyed the very home we rely on to survive!"
He raised a trembling hand, pointing at the mountains of Laer corpses littering the plaza.
"Do you see those? That was my son. That was my grandson. Those are my people, my friends, my compatriots! I am filled with so much hatred... I hate that we lacked the power to fend you off... I hate that all we could do was watch helplessly as you tyrants ground our civilization into dust... watch as our people were butchered! I hate that our Laer kindness was repaid only with your artillery and your blades!!"
--
[Wings of Freedom Regional Chat]
[I Just Like Sleeping In]: "Holy crap, [Blue Pigeon Knows Nothing]'s acting is actually legit!"
[Konnichiwa Slaanesh-chan]: "Definitely better than that clown [Are You Sure This Melon Is Ripe]! Just look at those streaming tears, I'm actually feeling a little moved over here!"
[Are You Sure This Melon Is Ripe]: "Can you guys stop using me as the negative example for five fucking minutes?"
[Crimson Dawn Regional Chat]
[Selling Cola at the Terra Palace Gates]: "Holy shit, why does this routine feel so familiar?"
[Dragon Bro Never Yields]: "Yeah, definitely rings a bell. Swear I've seen this before."
[Selling Flatbreads at the Terra Palace Gates]: "Of course it's familiar. [Are You Sure This Melon Is Ripe] pulled this exact same stunt yesterday. They just swapped in a veteran actor for today's episode."
[Have You Been Loyal Today?]: "The Chaos faction has literally made roleplaying their core gameplay loop."
–
[Light of the Emperor Regional Chat]
[I Eat Tomatoes]: "Bravo."
[For the Regent Yellow Guilliman]: "Warhammer fans are so twisted. If they aren't making stuff up, they're running scams. No wonder there's so much fake Warhammer lore out there. I got scammed so hard when I first got into the hobby."
[Sanguinius Is My Husband]: "I'm honestly starting to wonder if we Imperial players are just way too honest."
--
The old priest took a deep breath. Tears continued to stream down his aged face, but his eyes turned completely resolute.
"You destroyed our civilization! You slaughtered our brothers and sisters! You turned our home into ruins!" He abruptly spun around, pointing a finger at the temple radiating its pale purple glow, his voice spiking into a frantic shriek. "But we Laer will never surrender!! Listen well, you human tyrants! I willingly offer my blood, and the millions of restless souls of Laeran, as a sacrifice! We throw ourselves into the embrace of our God! To exchange for the power to annihilate you all! I curse you! I curse you to fall into the endless dark! I curse your Imperium to burn in eternal rebellion and the fires of war! I curse your Emperor to never know a moment of peace for all eternity!! I curse the citizens of your Imperium of Man to suffer a thousand, a million times the agony the people of Laer suffer today!!"
His voice echoed through the ruins like some ancient, apocalyptic prophecy.
The Imperial soldiers in the plaza exchanged uneasy glances, some instinctively tightening their grips on their weapons.
[Blue Pigeon Knows Nothing] turned to the twenty-plus Chaos players disguised as Laer warriors and barked a low, guttural order.
Two of the Chaos players immediately hauled the prisoner forward to the very edge of the steps.
The old priest raised his hand, pointing squarely at the dying captive.
"Execute him! Use human blood as a sacrifice to the Gods of Laer! Use a human life to purchase the power to curse you human demons!"
The two Chaos players dragging [All According to Plan] moved in unison.
They hoisted the brutally mangled Imperial Auxilia soldier high into the air, forcing everyone to look at his face.
That face was currently staring straight out at the impossibly dense Imperial army gathered in the plaza.
Staring straight at that purple silhouette.
Staring at Fulgrim.
Down in the plaza, countless Imperial soldiers raised their weapons simultaneously.
The hum of lasguns charging merged into a single deafening whine, accompanied by the chaotic clacking of bolter safeties being disengaged.
As long as Fulgrim gave the word, they would not hesitate to turn that entire group of Laer at the gates into bloody sieves.
But no one fired immediately.
Because of the hostage.
That blood-soaked, heavily scarred Imperial Auxilia soldier hoisted into the air by the Laer warriors was acting as a living, breathing meat shield.
[Blue Pigeon Knows Nothing] laughed maniacally, his cackles echoing into the sky.
"Shoot! Go ahead and shoot! Kill your own compatriot right along with us! Come on! We're dead no matter what anyway! Taking one of your own down with us is worth it!"
His voice was shrill and grating, twisting like a knife in everyone's chest.
--
[Wings of Freedom Regional Chat]
[I Just Like Sleeping In]: "Here it comes! Time for [All According to Plan] to steal the show!"
[Konnichiwa Slaanesh-chan]: "Watch closely, bros! Let's see how he plays this!"
[Number One Handsome of the Soul Hall]: "Heh heh heh... Tzeentch's Oscar Winner takes the stage!"
--
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