Chapter 1013 - 1012: Akurduana Submits to the Perfect You

Fulgrim's gaze lingered briefly on the Fireblade, purple phantoms and grey sorrow flickering alternately in his eyes.

A moment later, he looked away and picked up the Skull-breaker.

With the Blade of Laer at his hip and the Skull-breaker in hand, Fulgrim approached Akurduana. "My son, it is time to decide."

Akurduana heard a strange, hiss woven into his father's words, as if serpents were coiled in his throat, hissing along with his voice.

He recalled the Black Emperor's warnings and the sacred task.

"I understand."

"I will pursue the Iron Hands."

Saying this, Akurduana walked to Ferrus Manus's headless body. He picked up the Fireblade, along with the silver hand that still gripped it, and strode away.

Fulgrim stared intently at Akurduana and the Fireblade in his hands, two voices in his mind coiled and clashed like serpents.

"The Fireblade was forged for me by Ferrus, it is my trophy as well."

"You no longer need it. You have become something entirely different from the past. You should not cling to the past, forget Ferrus."

"Look at your beloved son," said the voice, its violet-gleaming eyes fixed on Akurduana's retreating back.

"You tried so hard in the past, yet he remained unmoved."

"Now Akurduana submits to the perfect you, and billions upon billions will follow your lead."

"You should have embraced Chaos long ago."

Fulgrim's tears of sorrow scattered in the wind, and he let out a low, pleasured murmur. "No!"

"I am not yet perfect, you know that. I still lack the final step."

Akurduana pursued the Iron Hands' remnant forces into the valley, then halted.

He said to Ravasch Cario, the Palatine Blade beside him: "Take these back to the ship and place them in my armory."

Akurduana knew he could not possibly bring Ferrus's Fireblade, let alone his silver hand, before the Iron Hands.

The moment they saw their Primarch's relics, they would attack without giving him a chance to explain.

He decided to offer them to the Black Emperor in sacrifice after the war ended.

"As you command." Ravasch acknowledged respectfully.

He knew the Flawless Blade had always had a habit of collecting weapons; he had gathered nearly four hundred before the War of Rebirth, and now possessed over a thousand.

After Ravasch departed, Captain Solomon Demeter of the 2nd Company approached the Lord Commander.

"What do we do next?"

"Follow our father's orders, naturally, pursue the Iron Hands."

Solomon was prepared. He smiled and said, "I have already drafted a plan, the 2nd Company will move to the valley at marker 2-9-5..."

Akurduana nodded. "I trust your deployments."

"What about my battlefield?"

"3-6-0, already uploaded to your tactical network."

Ulrach Branthan, Iron Captain of the 65th Clan Company of the Iron Hands, led his company in pursuit of the Emperor's Children's fleeing forces, chasing them all the way into a fish-shaped valley, narrow at both ends, wide in the middle.

Branthan's steps suddenly faltered as he stared at the narrow exit ahead.

His adjutant, Cadmus Tyro, raised his shield high, stepping in front of Branthan to block a cascade of incoming fire.

"Captain."

"This place suits those screeching, twisted warriors-"

Before he finished speaking, the Emperor's Children in purple armor appeared on the cliff-face to the right, raising bizarre instruments aimed at the valley below.

Captain Marius Vairosean of the 3rd Company of the Emperor's Children, his jaw had been distorted to an impossible angle by Bequa Kynska's singing, and a custom amplifier was perfectly embedded in his mouth.

"Iron Hands, go die with your father!"

His voice was more grating than a heavy stubber, echoing through the valley.

The Iron Hands instantly activated their Lyman's Ears' filtration, but the supernatural shriek bored straight into their skulls.

Bang! Bang!

With two sharp bursts, two Iron Hands' heads snapped apart amid the piercing, reverberating oscillations.

One Emperor's Child after another emerged from the cliffs on both sides, raising their sonic weapons at the valley below.

Deafening harmonic waves crashed into the canyon, terrifying sonic booms blasted a dozen Mark IV power armors to shreds of flesh and blood.

A Dreadnought swung its arm, unleashing a vengeful barrage at the traitors above.

Boom boom boom!

The sweeping volleys detonated one grotesque instrument after another, the reverberating harmonics slammed into the traitors, blasting them into sprays of crimson mist.

Vairosean raised the sonic cannon slung across his arm, its elongated firing mechanism, derived from Kynska's orchestra and continuously refined by artisans, vibrated along its long axis, shaking his body like a chainsword's motor igniting.

Firework-like sonic energy burst forth, striking a Dreadnought's hull in devastating explosions.

A distorted, shrieking howl blasted the auditory receptors into a ball of flame.

An explosive crescendo rose from nowhere, amid the deafening blast, the Dreadnought crashed to the ground.

Branthan watched the ancient Dreadnought felled by the Emperor's Children's unholy noise in a single blow, and knew that even fighting to the death would not kill the traitors.

He suppressed the hatred in his heart and gave the cold command: "Fall back!"

Cadmus pushed ahead, Branthan close behind, as they rushed toward the exit.

Each time the unrelenting sonic waves detonated behind them, more warriors of the 65th Company fell.

'Their flesh is too fragile, mine is too fragile.' Branthan clenched his fists.

As he thought, Cadmus stepped to the left, placing his body fully between Branthan and the enemy.

A chord of rapturous howling crashed against his storm shield.

Supernatural harmonics clashed with the energy field, thunder rumbling.

The storm shield's glow abruptly died, shards of broken fragments clattered to the ground.

Cadmus took half a step back, discarding the handle in his hand and drawing his combat knife.

He had blocked that strike, but he had lost his storm shield. His bolter was long empty and discarded.

Now he had only a combat knife, and a dozen distorted, barely human Emperor's Children blocking the exit.

Cadmus let out a roar and charged forward, even if he died, he would drag traitors to death with him.

One Noise Marine's lungs swelled, a manic, unrestrained blast, laden with ecstasy, pain, and delirious climax, crashed into the Cataphractii Terminator armor.

Boom!

Cadmus's armor was scorched black. Blood trickled from his ears; his face was swollen and twisted.

He staggered but did not fall, dragging his heavy steps toward the exit.

Boom!

Cadmus lost his hearing, the shrieking echoes in his skull bored like a drill, splitting his head with agony.

His vision blurred. He stared at the fish-mouth exit, and suddenly, a flash of purple and gold caught his eye.

....

If you enjoy the story, my p@treon is 30 chapters ahead.

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