Chapter 98
Trazyn never imagined that after so many years of hard work collecting treasures across the galaxy, his home would one day be robbed.
Who would have thought that one of the relics sealed in his stasis-display cabinets would suddenly… ring?
Boom!
An ancient psychic bell chimed, and a terrifying psychic shockwave rippled through Trazyn's vault. One by one, the stasis fields failed, and his "collections" began stumbling out—confused, restless, and angry.
They didn't recognize the green-glowing Necron walls around them, but they recognized one another.
"Heretics!!!"
"Traitors!!!"
"Dogs of the False Emperor!!!"
Chaos erupted instantly. Iron Warriors Terminators opened fire. A Battle Sister in her Penitent Engine thrashed wildly. Howling Banshees screamed their war cry.
The whole scene turned into a battlefield.
And in the middle of it all, new collections were released by accident—like a Tyranid Hive Tyrant. Alone, it wasn't too dangerous… at least by Necron standards. It could only rip apart a Terminator squad with its claws.
The psychic bell kept ringing, louder and louder, until it had tolled thirteen times before finally falling silent.
From his sanctuary, the Infinite Trazyn sensed the disturbance in his collection hall. He projected his consciousness into a Necron body within the vault—and when he saw the chaos, he almost swore out loud.
"Who dares meddle with my treasures?!"
His gaze snapped to the source: the psychic bell. Of course he remembered what it was.
That was the Emperor's relic.
The Human Emperor's bell.
And now he understood why the Emperor's sacred number was thirteen. Because the Emperor had just made it ring thirteen times.
If this had been Tzeentch's doing, the bell would have tolled only nine times.
"Oh, damn it all!" Trazyn spat. With a gesture, he tore open a Webway gate and hurled the cursed bell through it. He didn't care what damage it might cause on the other side. The safety of his collection came first.
"Guards! Suppress them! Force them back into containment before the damage spreads!"
Rank upon rank of Necron warriors phased into the chamber. Against the armies in his vault, they were unstoppable. Trazyn would never lose inside his own tomb world. But suppression took time, and with every passing moment, priceless artifacts were destroyed.
By the time the fighting ended, Trazyn had lost dozens of treasures, and many more were damaged. His rage was such that he nearly clawed his way back to life in sheer frustration.
"The relics of that cadaver on the Golden Throne… of course they'd bring nothing but trouble!"
Still, the bell's thirteen tolls had carried a message. A name whispered into his mind:
Cadia.
The Emperor hadn't rung the bell for nothing. It was a warning—or perhaps… an invitation.
"The monster of Mankind wants me to go to Cadia, does he?" Trazyn muttered. "Very well. I'll see for myself what game he's playing."
Opening another Webway portal, he stepped through alone. No guards this time. This Necron body was expendable.
On Cadia, the skies thundered with fire. The Infinite Trazyn stood atop a ruined height, overlooking the battlefield. Even he had to admit, the scale impressed him—it rivaled the smaller wars of the ancient War in Heaven.
"So then," he said aloud. "Why summon me here?"
His eyes fell upon the great Blackstone pylons.
"Ah. That explains it."
He understood now. The Emperor was dragging him into this war. If Trazyn didn't cooperate, the Human's relics would keep finding ways to wreck his collection. And abandoning humanity's artifacts was impossible. After all, he even had a Custodian Guard from Terra itself in stasis.
Trazyn's arrival marked a turning point. With his guidance, Archmagos Cawl would unravel the secrets of the Blackstone pylons, and eventually forge the Armor of Fate.
Meanwhile, the battlefield shifted.
The void shields protecting Cadia had collapsed. Though Isis had held back the Chaos Space Marines' assaults, Godzilla's relentless pressure had allowed the Traitor Titan Legions to break through the void shield generators. Overloaded, they burned out and failed.
The skies above Cadia were suddenly unprotected.
"It's gone!" Lord Creed roared, standing in shock. Sirens wailed. The air-raid klaxons confirmed what everyone already knew: orbital bombardment was imminent.
Even Cadia could not withstand a full-scale orbital strike. Seventy percent of the planet's defenders would be annihilated.
Abaddon the Despoiler felt triumph surge through him. His topknot braid shook as he laughed.
"I've waited too long for this! Orbital bombardment—aim at the Blackstone pylons! Reduce them to rubble!"
"The Planet Killer's main batteries are charging, Warmaster!"
"Excellent! Shatter Cadia completely!"
"What about the beast on the Blackstone Fortress?"
"Ignore it! If Cadia falls, we won't need the Fortress at all!"
Abaddon was correct. Cadia was the lock that held the Eye of Terror in check. As long as the planet stood, the Four Gods remained restrained. Destroy it, and the Chaos legions would flood the galaxy as they had during the Horus Heresy.
The orbital bombardment began. Even the Blackstone's defenses couldn't prevent damage. Towering pylons cracked and fell.
And for once, even Godzilla had no immediate answer.
'Damn it, Abaddon! If you've got guts, come down here yourself! Orbital strikes? That's cheating!'
[ Reminder: Godzilla can fly. ]
'System, shut up!'
Yes, technically he could fly. But once he used that stance, his entire terrifying image would be ruined. It was even more humiliating than that time King Kong helped him take a nucleic acid test.
[ Alternative: Open the Webway gate to the Blackstone Fortress. ]
'Oh? That… actually works.'
Godzilla hadn't realized the Blackstone Fortress contained a Webway gate. But of course it did—built by Vaul, the Eldar's legendary smith-god, it had to.
"Phew… power's coming back to me," Isis sighed in relief. With the Blackstone pylons destroyed, much of her psychic strength returned. She heard the whispers of the Grand Plan once again.
"Good. Open the path to the Blackstone Fortress. My god is ready to show them a true shock of power."
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