[Magnus?]
Mortarion's voice died away in an indistinct silence.
As the name was evoked, Mortarion first felt a great deal of disgust, revulsion, and disdain, and an avoidance that he did not want to mention it again.
These surging emotions made the Pale Lord silent for a moment. He stared at the starry sky in front of him, looking at the dazzling scratch that was drawn from Fenris.
He seemed to have had some issues with his brother, but now it was Magnus who pointed them in the direction of Cadia, so Mortarion remained silent, his eyes looking at Malcador in confusion.
The regent of the First Empire was holding his scepter tightly at this moment. The old man stared at the sky in disbelief. A faint light shone from his scepter, as if he was sensing something.
Malcador murmured to himself,
"… Completely consistent with my Lord's prophecy, the Scarlet Sinner has indeed fallen into the realm of change…"
Malcador coughed nervously a few times, his claw-like hands tightly grasping the scepter, supporting his hunched and trembling body.
"Ruth..."
Malcador whispered, "It must be Russ - he stopped the Sinner's folly."
In the prophecy of the Lord of Mankind, Magnus was destined to fall, and his best ending was nothing more than being broken, but the fate of the Red One flickered,
The Lord of Mankind saw that when the fate of the Crimson Sinners was tied to that of Cadia—the benefits to the Imperium of Man would be maximized.
So, what else can be said? A disabled Primarch who had lost his legion, a Primarch who had committed a crime and made a deal with the devil, was unsurprisingly sent to Cadia by the Emperor as an imprisoned criminal.
The past is determined, the identity is determined, and the future is determined. For those in power, this is just a simple multiple-choice question.
Malcador coughed, and perhaps the current Regent of the First Empire was also a little confused by the scene in front of him - he had already prepared himself for Magnus to commit a crime.
But now all he saw was a dazzling road of stars.
Those scarlet fragments were shining, and they were surrounded by bright white light, flowing slowly in the starry sky.
No, Malcador thought to himself, even in prison, the Dead had already made sure that Magnus would no longer be free to resist.
The Scarlet Sinner's every word and action is monitored by the Lord of Change. Under such circumstances, Malcador does not think that Magnus's initiative will have any positive impact.
Then... it can only be Leman Russ.
Malcador frowned as he thought that he hoped this good boy would suffer less. Russ had always been the most considerate of Malcador among the many Primarchs.
Hope all is well on Fenris.
Hope all is well on Terra.
Macador thought, he knew very well that this was not a battlefield he could set foot on. Many times, you can only watch the beginning and end of a war.
So... is this all a trap
A trap set by the Lord of Change to lead them back to Cadia
Malcador stared at the heavens, the stars reflecting light on his old retinas, watching the slowly flowing, dispersing fragments of light.
Whether or not this is a trap, they must head to the Eye of Terror.
If we stay here and refuse to leave, chaos will slowly bleed the world to death.
The seal holder's sinister eyes lit up from the shadow of his hood, and he said hoarsely,
"…Magnus…your former brother."
Mortarion raised an eyebrow, tilted his head, and listened to Malcador's words.
But the seal holder simply shook his head.
"Prepare to engage him, Mortarion—we may sail now."
The old man left in silence again and walked into the darkness. The Pale Lord stood where he was. He watched Malcador leave, then turned his head again and stared at the galaxy in his eyes.
[… one way or another,]
Mortarion said quietly,
[At least now, I will thank you, Magnus.]
—————
The winter of Fenris is over.
Overnight, the wolf moon was no longer sharp, the wind and snow stopped howling, the wolves whimpering and disappearing into the mud of melted ice and snow, and the Fenrisians stared blankly at the continent as the plates gradually solidified.
Anyone who could understand the wind knew that the winter of Fenris was gone forever.
But there is still one place where Blizzard never stops.
The blizzard there never stopped, but became more and more severe. Even if other plains were as hot as summer with the sun blazing in the sky, as long as you set foot on that land, you will quickly come to a place with no sun, howling wind and snow.
Of all those who trespassed without permission, only the bravest ones who feared nature the most would find the way out after getting lost, while the rest would leave their lives in that world of blizzard.
No one knows what happened.
When the Space Wolves tried to organize brave warriors for the twenty-third time and set foot into the ice and snow to search for the trace of the Wolf King, Leman Russ, covered in snow and with white hair and beard, appeared in front of his descendants.
The blood on his body was dried up by the wind and snow, leaving only a sad breath.
[go back!]
The wolf king said to his offspring,
[Go back! In the name of Leman Russ - none of you are allowed to set foot on this land! You are not allowed to cast your eyes on this land! ]
The wolves maintained absolute obedience to their alpha wolf. Having lost their leader for many days, they whimpered and huddled around their king. However, their king, who seemed to have experienced too much, said nothing. He was simply not the same person he used to be.
An old, tired look flashed from his deep eye sockets from time to time.
After returning to his people, the seriously injured Leman Russ spent nine months, leading his confidants and the rune warlocks who were still able to fight normally, carefully searching every inch of land in Fenris.
No one knew what the Wolf King was doing, but occasionally, those blind little wolf cubs would see a necklace around the Wolf King's neck that was suspected to be made of broken eyeballs and was flashing a faint red light.
Nine months later, the Wolf King, who had buried his head in the earth, turned his gaze toward the sky again. After looking directly at the red and white galaxy that illuminated Fenris day and night for the first time, the Lord of Winter let out a broken and painful whimper.
He couldn't figure it out.
Leman Russ thought, he didn't understand.
He doesn't understand!
Magnus... The Wolf King thought painfully that every step he took to think deeply was like a knife cutting into his soul. For Leman Russ at this moment, thinking was such a difficult thing.
Any Primarch who cared would discover that beneath Leman Russ's rough exterior, there existed a strict and loyal person.
Leman Russ was not incapable of thinking.
But as the Emperor's executioner, as someone who had participated in the extermination of the lost Primarch, and as his most loyal sword, Leman Russ did not allow him to think too much.
Sometimes, thinking brings pain, doubt, and... betrayal.
The days on Fenris taught Leman Russ that as long as you can survive in this cruel land, you don't need to delve into the meaning behind things.
You do not need to understand why the winters of Fenris are so long, why the land swallows up the creatures that live on it, why the cruel beasts take pleasure in eating humans—
You don't need to know this, you just need to survive.
Leman Russ did not need to know that, he only needed to be loyal to the Emperor and carry out his orders.
The Wolf King knew that the Allfather was right.
But now, his brother's blood splattered on his armor, the gnawing pain bit him, and Magnus's curse still echoed in Leman Russ's ears.
The Wolf King gradually understood what Magnus had done at that time.
What exactly did Magnus face at that time
What decision did Magnus make at that time
What kind of determination did Magnus make at that time
In Magnus's eyes, what role did he play at that time
Leman Russ knew that the intergalactic war was still going on, but the motivation he once relied on was broken, and his hand holding the sword was no longer firm.
He was not sure whether his next step was right or wrong.
Finally, the Wolf King, sitting on the throne of the Fang, issued an order to his legion, and the Space Wolves immediately headed for the Eye of Terror.
The Wolf King himself, along with the Thirteenth Company of the Space Wolves, disappeared in a tunnel deep within the land of Fenris the day before the fleet was to set sail.
Yay!
(End of this chapter)