The lander touched down east of Numinus City. The Honour Guard disembarked from other landers and assembled behind him.
Porti, now promoted to lieutenant, led three squads waiting there. He approached Nareth.
"Father."
Nareth scanned Porti's squad and found only twenty-seven members. He thought to himself.
'Three Shadows of Order lost. The Gorgon Serpents can inflict casualties on Astartes.'
He nodded slightly and issued the command.
"Move out!"
The team then followed Porti's lead into the caves.
The moment they stepped into the dark cave, a damp, foul, fishy stench assaulted their senses, nauseating.
"The caves connect to the edge of Numinus. The city's sewage system is linked here," Porti explained.
"The foul smell comes from those serpent monsters."
"That also points us towards our target," Nareth said, his nose twitching slightly as he inhaled the stench.
Astartes, through their olfactory neuro-interface, could track the unique scents of certain special creatures.
The Shadows of Order inhaled the damp air. Their olfactory detection was only rivaled by that of the Space Wolves.
The foul odor was discerned, becoming their guiding beacon.
Following the foul smell, the team navigated through the web-like caves.
"Father, the petrifying ability of the Gorgon Serpents poses a certain threat to the Shadows of Order," Porti reported to Nareth along the way.
"Once you make eye contact, it's as if a force is applied to the body, movement slows, and the helmet's lenses cannot block this effect."
"One must resist the influence exerted by the Gorgon Serpents with firm will. Most of the time, the Shadows of Order are not as vulnerable as ordinary humans."
"But there is a small portion of mutated serpents with three pairs of eyes on their heads. Once eye contact is made, the brain becomes sluggish..."
Porti pondered for a moment, then found the appropriate expression from his vocabulary.
"If the petrifying ability of ordinary Gorgon Serpents is like burying a Shadow of Order in a sandpit, we can break free with a little effort."
"Then making eye contact with the larger Gorgon Serpents with three pairs of eyes is like sinking into a sea of sand."
"Those with weaker will are swallowed by the sea of sand. One warrior was petrified, turned into a statue because of this."
A flash of sadness passed through Porti's eyes. He continued.
"Shadows of Order with firm will can still resist. In my squad, two others made eye contact with the six-eyed serpent monster."
"One relied on his own will, the other promptly entered the first layer of the Thelema Mental Fortress you created. Neither was petrified."
"It is worth noting that besides petrification, the Gorgon Serpents' sharp claws can tear through power armor. Their claws and the fangs in their mouths contain potent venom. Shadows of Order can also be poisoned and temporarily paralyzed."
Nareth nodded. He smelled several serpent monsters, the straight-line distance only about two kilometers.
He gave an order to Sanchez: "The five companies of the 7th Chapter awaiting orders are to temporarily increase their time spent tempering their will and practicing the Thelema mindstate."
He instructed the Honour Guard members: "Enter the Thelema mindstate ."
Nareth would review the Honour Guard members while answering their questions about various techniques.
The Thelema mindstate was researched by the Nareth specifically for the Shadows of Order.
The requirement of the first layer, "True Will," to discern one's true self, wasn't a high threshold. After a hundred days of practice, all Honour Guard members could master it.
All members of this batch of Honour Guard had mastered "True Will."
The Honour Guard members, while running, took varying amounts of time to enter the first layer mental state.
Nareth's gaze pierced the depths of the dark cave. He saw over a dozen upright humanoid creatures, most about two meters tall.
Among them, only one Gorgon Serpent with three pairs of yellow eyes was about two and a half meters tall.
The Gorgon Serpents had no legs; instead, they had serpenttine tails longer than their height.
Their arms were attached to their chests, relatively short compared to their bodies, with sharp claws covered in scales.
Nareth noticed their eyes indeed shimmered with a spiritual radiance.
'Indeed potion ingredients. Judging from the radiance, they are either the main ingredient for Sequence 6 or an auxiliary ingredient for Sequence 5.'
'After promoting to "Baron of Corruption," I unlocked half of the potion formulas. None included Gorgon Serpent eyes.'
'Petrification... most likely the main ingredient for Sequence 6 "Hypnotist" of the Visionary pathway, or an auxiliary ingredient for Sequence 5 "Marionettist" of the "Fool" pathway.'
As Nareth pondered, the Gorgon Serpents sensed his gaze and looked over.
He did not avoid eye contact, meeting their yellow eyes.
The moment their eyes met, the Nareth felt his thoughts stagnate for an instant.
His descending right leg also felt as if pulled by something, slowing slightly.
After experiencing the Gorgon Serpents' petrifying ability, Nareth instantly ascended to the first layer of the Thelema mindstate. Simultaneously, he put on the "Banshee Mask" and let out a terrifying shriek.
After promoting to "Baron of Corruption," the power of "Howl" increased by about one-fifth. Combined with the "Banshee Mask" comprehended from the Aeldari "Path of the Howling Banshee," it became more compatible.
The supernatural ability amplified the effect of the psychic scream and could be focused in the direction of the enemy.
Over a dozen Gorgon Serpents met the black-armored giant's eyes.
They were astonished to find the black-armored giant didn't stop. Before they could guess the reason, a terrifying shriek assaulted their brains and minds.
The Gorgon Serpents hunched over, claws clutching their heads, emitting painful wails.
Except for the mutated six-eyed serpent, the other Gorgon Serpents' eyes bulged, and they collapsed under the continuously echoing shriek.
Nareth drew the Dionysian Spear from his back and hurled it.
With a sharp sound cutting through the air, the Dionysian Spear pierced the six-eyed mutated Gorgon Serpent, pinning it to the ground.
Nareth strode forward. He exited the mental state and looked at the Gorgon Serpents' eyes.
The spiritual radiance still shimmered, but there was no petrifying effect.
Nareth walked up to the six-eyed serpent monster, staring at its six eyes arranged in pairs. Still no sensation of petrification.
He gave an order to the Honour Guard members: "Attack their bodies. Kill them."
"I am interested in their eyes."
The Honour Guard immediately dispersed, hunting Gorgon Serpents in the cave.
The "Baron of Corruption" drew the Sword of Vaul, thinking:
'The Sword of Vaul is a sword. A steel sword is also a sword. Therefore, the Sword of Vaul is a steel sword.'
The "Baron of Corruption" felt his spirituality depleting rapidly, slightly faster than the replenishment rate from the blood-red necklace coiled around his right pinky finger.
'The Sword of Vaul was forged by the Aeldari god of smith. Using "Conceptual Swap" on it consumes more spirituality.'
'Enhancement or weakening are both "Conceptual Swap"; the spirituality consumed doesn't differ, only determined by the degree of change.'
'Hmm... at least I don't have to take a combat knife from my gene-son or use a chainsword without the motor activated.'
As the "Baron of Corruption" pondered, he swung his arm, cutting off the foul yellow eyeballs one by one.
Nareth strode forward, leaving the Dionysian Spear behind, and sent all the Gorgon Serpent eyeballs to the "Kingdom of Disorder."
Shadows of Order from the five companies of the 7th Chapter who had mastered the Thelema mindstate joined the cave-clearing operation.
6th Month, 846.M41. The Shadows of Order steadily advanced through the web-like caves deep into the underground caverns.
On this day, just after Nareth sent the Gorgon Serpent eyes collected by the Honour Guard and the 7th Chapter back to the "Kingdom of Disorder," he received a report from Porti.
"Father, I encountered a powerful mutated Gorgon Serpent. It was five meters tall and had six pairs of eyes."
"A Shadow of Order who had mastered the first layer of the Thelema mindstate was petrified. It had multiple layers of scales on its body. Boltgun fire couldn't kill it. It broke through the encirclement and escaped."
.....
If you enjoy the story, my p@treon is 30 chapters ahead.
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