Warhammer [401-403] (Patreon)

Chapter 401: The Mother Goddess Is Pregnant!

The three brothers, reunited after a long time, along with the Emperor launched into a heated discussion, completely forgetting about the Eldar guests on the side.

The situation became a bit awkward. Rhodes offered a polite smile, choosing not to intrude on this family reunion scene. Instead, he approached Yvraine and greeted the assembled Eldar.

"Welcome, everyone. We'll discuss resurrecting the Eldar God of War, Khaine, tomorrow. Rooms have already been arranged for you—please rest for now. There will also be a banquet tonight," Rhodes said.

No matter what, he had to be a proper host. Basic Imperial etiquette still had to be maintained, after all—this was the Imperial capital.

"Honored Primarch. We have crossed the entire galaxy, overcoming countless dangers, and, with the help of the Eldar Webway, collected all the Avatars of Khaine from every Craftworld. We've persuaded countless kin to do this, for it is the Mother Goddess's will. We want to revive the God of War as soon as possible," said Eldrad.

For six months now, they had been busy gathering Khaine's Avatars—now all that was left was the resurrection.

The Craftworld Eldar seers all nodded in agreement—they didn't want to wait a moment longer.

"My children, resurrecting the God of War requires many intricate steps. First, you must hand me all the shards of Khaine. I will need to use my divine power for this. The Avatars must be refined into fragments, then these fragments combined, and finally a body must be rebuilt for Khaine. It's not as simple as you imagine," Isha said as she joined Rhodes.

By now, Isha's belly was fully swollen. Previously, only the High Seer and Supreme Seer had guessed the Mother Goddess was pregnant.

Now, seeing her like this, all the Eldar present understood what was happening. Even though the body she was using came from a Dark Eldar, it still made them uncomfortable.

All the Eldar kept telling themselves: "It's just this body that's pregnant! It's not truly our Mother Goddess."

"Great Mother Goddess, the body you are currently inhabiting may be inconvenient for you. But it's no problem—we Craftworld Eldar have many pure maidens willing to sacrifice themselves, to offer their bodies so your soul may reside more comfortably," suggested one of the Eldar seers.

Looking at their Mother Goddess's swollen belly, the Eldar felt bitter inside. What was this situation? Their Mother Goddess, walking around pregnant in the human capital, was simply too shameful!

It had to be a misunderstanding. There was no way the Mother Goddess was pregnant with a human child—just the body she borrowed was.

As for reproductive isolation between humans and Eldar, they chose to selectively forget. If not for the Mother Goddess's intervention, how could a human and an Eldar possibly have a child?

"I do not need a new body. I must also help nurture this child—this child is my divine child!" Isha declared.

"…" Eldrad.

"…" Yvraine.

Oh Mother Goddess! Could you not have kept it a secret for just a bit? Your countless followers' hearts will break!

Even though some had guessed the truth, when the brutal facts were laid bare, all the Eldar began to sway on their feet.

"No! This… this can't be! Mother Goddess, you must be joking, right? How could you have a divine child? Who… who is the father?" one seer asked, voice trembling.

"Don't jump to conclusions! The father must be your former husband, our Eldar Father!" He was practically begging for the answer to be the Mother Goddess's long-dead husband.

But all the Eldar knew that was impossible. The goddess's husband had died more than ten thousand years ago, when Slaanesh was first born. Among all the surviving gods, he was not one of them.

So the answer was obvious!

Every seer desperately hoped the child was NOT between the human Primarch and the Mother Goddess—but if not him, could it be Nurgle? That was even harder to accept.

If it was Nurgle's divine child, then Holy Terra would already be corrupted, and the Emperor would never allow such a child to grow up here.

"Great Mother Goddess, this divine child is just blessed by you, right? He is the child of this Dark Eldar and a human Primarch, merely blessed by you. Because, after all, gods cannot have children—especially not a divine child," another seer pleaded.

"Enough speculation. You need not doubt. Rhodes's psychic strength has reached the divine level. His partner, for certain reasons, has also reached godhood. With my presence, this child is mine—one of my children. He is a hybrid of Eldar and human, and will be a god of both races from birth," Isha said, shattering all their hopes.

With the power of the Life Giant, and being on Holy Terra, the child's safety was assured. Even if Khaine revived, Isha would not fear him. And with the cosmic beast fused, Rhodes was in control—Khaine would just have to obey and work for them.

Draw Chaos's attention, buy them time.

At this moment, every Eldar seer looked at Rhodes with murderous eyes.

The Emperor, seated on the Golden Throne, was gleefully watching the seers break down.

Weren't you all so proud? Didn't you call us humans monkeys? Well, now the monkey has gotten your Mother Goddess pregnant—how does it feel?

"Mother Goddess! How could you… with these barbarians! With them, with them…"

"Mother Goddess! I can't accept this—I absolutely can't!"

Compared to the devastated Craftworld and Exodite Eldar, the Dark Eldar and Harlequins were much calmer. To them, the Mother Goddess was single—she could be with whomever she pleased. Why did the others care so much?

"We Dark Eldar are the true heirs of the Eldar Empire. We don't care about this. Do you still think yourselves noble?"

Looks like your spiritual path is far from complete!

"Enough! The Mother Goddess sacrifices for our entire race. The birth of a new god will make us safer," Eldrad said, using his psychic power to silence all the seers.

His power was always among the top of the Ynnari's seers, and recently, blessed by both the Death God and Laughing God, he was now second only to Yvraine.

"This is the Mother Goddess's personal life. We have no right to interfere. She's always worked for our people. Besides reviving Khaine, you may not know—the birth of her divine child will sever our connection to Slaanesh," Yvraine said.

With a cosmic beast inside her, she could use Rhodes's system to chat with her sisters and with Rhodes himself.

She'd learned that the cosmic mantis had already devoured C'tan shards, and with Isha's divine power, they could already cut some members' links to Slaanesh.

When Rhodes and the Mother Goddess's divine child was born, he'd be able to sever that link completely.

The Craftworld Eldar, previously miserable, now brightened instantly. If anyone had suffered the most from Slaanesh's soul-draining, it was the Craftworld Eldar. Even in death, their souls were trapped in infinity circuits.

"Once my divine child is born, all that will be easy," said Isha.

She couldn't wait to shake off the shackles of Chaos. With Aisha's help, the two goddesses could easily sever that link—though for now, only a little at a time, maybe a dozen a day.

When Slaanesh's divinity found a new host, the link would transfer to the reborn Slaanesh. Let her be the scapegoat—the Eldar goddess of love and beauty would be reborn.

"Mother Goddess! Your divine child can truly free us from Slaanesh's threat?" all members wanted to hear it themselves.

"Of course. With the Death God, the God of War, my soon-to-be-born divine child, and my own power, we can defeat Slaanesh," Isha said, smiling.

"Praise the gods of the Eldar!"

"You have not abandoned your children, great Mother Goddess!"

"We finally see hope!"

This was the best news they'd heard since coming to Holy Terra.

The Emperor, atop the Golden Throne, sneered inwardly.

Looks like he'd worried too much. After Rhodes's divine child was born, things wouldn't be so easy for him among the Eldar.

Prejudice is a mountain—and for the Eldar, even greater. They saw humans as mere monkeys.

Chapter 402: Avatars of the God of War, Eldar Infighting, and Yvraine's Request for Help

The Emperor had been worried that Rhodes's divine child would grow closer to the Eldar, drifting away from humanity, perhaps even seeing humans as inferior.

But now, he saw things differently. The Eldar were too arrogant—even more xenophobic than humans.

In their eyes, sacrificing an entire human world to save a single Eldar was a fair trade.

Their xenophobia was terrifying—only the Tau were less so. Although many humans had defected, the Emperor was sure the Tau would not get far in the galaxy.

In a few thousand years, they'd gone from primitives to a starfaring race—he'd never believe it wasn't Chaos pushing them along.

When Chaos demanded payment, the real tragedy would begin—just like it had for humanity.

As for Rhodes's divine child, it was too early to predict his future. Only once he was born and developed his own values could judgments be made.

After the Mother Goddess's promise, all the Eldar's previous gloom vanished, replaced by joy. It was as if nothing unpleasant had just happened. Rhodes shook his head at their hypocrisy.

The more contact he had with them, the clearer it became—even the Dark Eldar were more straightforward. The Craftworlders were just pretentious. Even the Exodites were better.

"My children! Now, hand over all the Avatars of Khaine you've gathered. I'll combine the fragments and resurrect the God of War!" Isha commanded.

"As you wish, great Mother Goddess!" The Eldars nodded, taking out their Avatars.

Each Avatar was the ultimate weapon of a Craftworld. Every time it was activated, it consumed a seer's soul as fuel.

Yet history had seen Avatars defeated. Now, nearly all the surviving Avatars were gathered here.

"Great Mother Goddess, is this all the Avatars we could collect? Some Craftworlds were destroyed, and their Avatars lost," Yvraine said.

"No matter! These fragments are enough for Khaine's revival. Each holds part of his memory. Missing a few pieces isn't a big deal," Isha replied.

It was better if Khaine wasn't revived perfectly—easier to control.

Isha spread her arms, emitting emerald divine power. The green light enveloped the Avatars, which shrank into soul fragments, then were gathered up by the Goddess of Life.

"Now, I must expend divine power to revive Khaine! But for a perfect resurrection, I'll need a strong Eldar warrior to offer their body as a vessel. Who among you will take on this responsibility?" Isha asked.

All the Eldar Ynnari took a step back. They were followers of Ynnead and the Mother Goddess, not of Khaine.

Most warriors weren't interested in Khaine anyway. In ancient myth, he was the villain—imprisoning their Mother and Father, nearly destroying their race. Only Slaanesh's birth had stopped him.

So, no one volunteered to be Khaine's vessel—after all, he would totally erase their mind and possess their body. Offering oneself to Khaine was suicide.

"Great Mother Goddess, we are followers of the Ynnead and yourself. We respect Khaine, but do not wish to surrender our bodies to him," one Eldar argued.

The others agreed.

"For the good of our people, Khaine must be revived. You must choose someone," Isha said sternly. She was no longer the gentle goddess of ten thousand years ago—now she knew when to be strict.

"If a warrior must bear Khaine's soul, then let's choose from the Dark Eldar! Some have tainted bloodlines from beast serum, and besides, the Dark Eldar are just clones grown in vats—hardly precious," an Asuryan seer said.

The Eldar had their own hierarchy: Craftworlders looked down on Exodites, who looked down on Corsairs, who looked down on Dark Eldar—and the Dark Eldar looked down on everyone!

Everyone claimed to be the true heirs of the ancient empire, but in truth, the Blood Brides of the Dark Eldar were the true inheritors.

"Agreed! Let a Dark Eldar beast-warrior bear this burden!" the seers chorused.

Hearing this, Yvraine, leader of the Ynnari, frowned. The Harlequins had the most Dark Eldar, then Corsairs and Exodites. Craftworlders were the fewest. Harlequins themselves were rare.

For Yvraine, the beast-warriors were not evil—in fact, some Dark Eldar had accepted the modifications willingly, to help everyone.

"We are the noble heirs of the empire! Commorragh was the jewel of the empire, while you are mere refugees!" a Dark Eldar snapped back.

"Shut up! You're just clones!"

 "Damn refugees! Cowards!"

"Clones should sacrifice themselves! It's a noble sacrifice!"

Rhodes had no interest in Eldar internal affairs—he just watched their infighting with schadenfreude.

The Emperor and other Primarchs were equally amused. So this was the most united race in the galaxy?

Hilarious!

"Enough, you idiots. Some of our warriors became vegetative during battle—bring them here and let the Mother Goddess choose," Yvraine ordered, unable to stand it any longer.

So embarrassing! To be so undignified in front of humans!

"Seers, you're out of line. You're shaming the honor of the Eldar. Stop arguing and obey the orders of the High Seer," Eldrad said.

With Eldrad and Yvraine both speaking, the argument ended at once.

Soon, several warriors carried in vegetative wounded. They could have recovered with rest, but now they were sacrificial lambs—no one cared about their opinion.

Isha didn't waste words—she picked the strongest body, gave Rhodes a look, and returned to her palace.

"We'll take our leave. The Custodes will take you to your rooms. Don't wander the palace—consider that friendly advice," Rhodes said.

"The banquet is ready! Please follow me," Guilliman announced.

The Eldar, led by Eldrad, followed the Custodes to their rooms.

That night, the Emperor hosted a grand banquet for the Ynnari, with Guilliman, Rhodes, Ecclesiarchy dignitaries, and nobles all attending.

Guilliman and Rhodes just made an appearance, gave some speeches on alliance, toasted the seers, and then left.

They found banqueting with Eldar awkward.

"Please, continue. I have other Imperial business to attend to," Rhodes excused himself.

"Wait for me, Rhodes! We haven't seen each other in so long. I want to talk—especially about Lelith," Yvraine followed him.

"No problem, Yvraine! I missed you too," Rhodes put his arm around Yvraine's waist, taking her away under the searing gazes of the Eldar warriors.

"Enjoy the feast! Keep eating, keep dancing, keep drinking!"

Soon, the two returned to Rhodes's quarters. Yvraine kicked off her shoes and lay on Rhodes's sofa.

The past days of battle had exhausted her. Collecting Khaine's Avatars was no easy job—they'd even been attacked by Chaos Space Marines and Xenos.

But with her cosmic beast and Rhodes's monster warriors, nothing too dangerous had happened.

"To be honest, I can't stand those busybodies. Today was so embarrassing. What's going on with the Mother Goddess?" Yvraine asked.

Even she, the Death god Emissary, felt embarrassed. When the Goddess needed a host, everyone fought to volunteer; if not restricted to female Eldar, even the Asuryan would have jumped in. But when it came to Khaine, nobody wanted the job!

"The longer one lives, the more one fears death!" Rhodes chuckled.

"Anyway, is the body provided today really suitable for Khaine? He's just an ordinary Eldar warrior, and the beast serum came from Golza," Yvraine asked.

"After you provide the body, I'll modify it to hold Khaine's soul. No problem. But you must have another reason for coming today?" Rhodes asked.

With her personality, Yvraine would only come after the banquet. Coming early meant she had something important.

Isha was busy fusing Khaine's soul, and Elena was with her gene-daughter. So only Yvraine was in Rhodes's room.

"There is something. Rhodes, you need to help me break free from the Death God, Ynnead!" Yvraine said seriously.

"The Death God is your source of power! Why break free?" Rhodes asked.

"This is your fault, Rhodes. You gave me a cosmic beast and made me a super life-form. Now the Death God wants my body—he's even trying to persuade me to give it to him," Yvraine said.

A super life-form's body could house an Eldar god—so naturally, Ynnead wanted hers.

Chapter 403:

"So the Death God wants to erase your consciousness?" Rhodes asked.

"I don't know. He just wants me to give him my body, so he can descend into realspace," Yvraine shook her head.

"Is this Death God actually female?" Rhodes joked.

"Please! Don't joke! The Death God is male," Yvraine said.

"Oh! Then his tastes are… interesting. So he wants to be a woman?" Rhodes grinned.

Yvraine wasn't lying—when Rhodes rescued Isha from Nurgle's garden, Isha had wanted to fully possess Lelith's body, too.

A super life-form's flesh was priceless to a Warp god, letting them manifest full power in realspace.

But back then, Rhodes had absolute control and refused Isha's attempt.

"I don't know what he's thinking. Maybe Death Gods have weird quirks. When he asked me, it scared me! He said we could share the body, and his deathly power would make me stronger, but I never trust gods—even as his emissary," Yvraine said.

The more you knew about the gods, the more you feared them—they weren't all noble and selfless!

Eldar gods were born from the race's own psychic power, with some Old Ones' tampering. In myth, the Eldar were created by the Goddess of Life and her husband—but that was nonsense. The true creators were the Old Ones!

"You're the emissary, your power is linked, so he asked you instead of taking your body by force," Rhodes said.

"I think he's wary. The cosmic beast inside me is from you—maybe he's afraid. Plus, my psychic strength is high, and with the beast in my soul, if he tried to take my body, who'd win isn't certain!" Yvraine said.

Voluntarily letting a god share your body versus being forcibly possessed were very different. Your body was your domain—you had the home advantage.

"I get it! Of course I'll help you. Why not just give up the Death God's power and break free completely?" Rhodes suggested.

Yvraine was basically his side-chick—he wouldn't let her be bullied. If Ynnead wanted a vessel, he'd better look elsewhere.

"No! I can't give up the Death God's power. Without it, the Ynnari wouldn't exist, or he'd just pick a new emissary and take over all I've built," Yvraine said.

Abandoning the Death God's power was out of the question. Only those who had it knew how terrifying it was.

Plus, she'd worked hard for her reputation and army—how could she give that up?

"If you're no longer his emissary, as a super life-form in realspace, your power won't be much less. With the cosmic beast, you'd be even stronger after absorbing C'tan shards. You could live hundreds of thousands of years, maybe longer," Rhodes said.

Don't underestimate the cosmic beast—its potential was unlimited. Eldar were already strong psychically, and the beast made souls stronger. She'd only lose some special powers from the Death God, and might even become stronger in the future!

As for the Ynnari—were they really so impressive? Only the monster warriors and Ynnari provided by Rhodes were truly powerful. Without his help, the Ynnari were hardly top-tier.

"If you think so… but would this offend the Death God?" Yvraine asked after thinking.

Rhodes was right—staying with him offered more power than following Ynnead. At first, she'd created the Ynnari to save the Eldar and gather the five Croneswords, but even if Ynnead was born, without the sacrifice of the whole race, he couldn't match Slaanesh.

He'd just be a slightly stronger Eldar god, about on Khaine's level. An incomplete Death God couldn't threaten Slaanesh. But on Rhodes's side, there was Isha, and soon a divine child.

Add Rhodes himself and the Emperor, and clearly, Rhodes's side had the advantage. Maybe they couldn't defeat the Chaos Gods, but at least they could stand as equals, or even banish them from reality.

Plus, if Khaine was revived, the Ynnari's position would be awkward—would her troops obey Khaine or her? Khaine was a true god, after all—much higher status than Yvraine.

"You're thinking right. To be honest, the galaxy will be in turmoil for a long time, and your God of War will be at the center. As for the Death God, don't worry—I'll talk to him," Rhodes said.

If the Death God were fully born, he'd be on the same level as the Chaos Gods, even inheriting some of the Dark King's power. But right now, he wasn't there yet. Even when Rhodes was weak, Cegorach dealt with him politely—if Ynnead had complaints, Rhodes would be happy to negotiate.

After upgrading his system shop, Rhodes was waiting for a ten-pull opportunity. Soon he'd have enough system credits! Then he could further empower Yapool, and his own strength would increase again.

"Okay. I'll pray and summon the Death God, and you can negotiate with him," Yvraine decided.

She'd once had grand ambitions, fighting all over the galaxy, risking her life countless times, but her power grew slower than Lelith, who stayed by Rhodes's side. The contrast was stark.

Rhodes nodded, and for safety, summoned Tartarus for backup.

Yvraine drew a complex ritual circle in Rhodes's room, stabbed her Cronesword into the center, and began to chant an ancient song.

Powerful psychic waves spread out, and a blurry figure appeared in the center.

"My servant, what has caused you to summon me?" a commanding male voice came from the circle.

"It's me—I asked Yvraine to call you. Pleased to meet you, Death God Ynnead. My name is Rhodes, currently a Primarch of the Imperium, and soon to be the Supreme God of the galaxy, perhaps even the universe," Rhodes said.

This wasn't arrogance—it was his destiny.

Ynnead frowned. What bold words! The future's Supreme God? This human was only on par with a minor order god.

He wanted to scoff, but seeing Tartarus at Rhodes's side, and feeling the invisible pressure from the Golden Throne, he held his tongue.

"So, Rhodes, why have you called me through my servant?" the Death God asked.

"Nothing major. I'm about to resurrect your God of War. As the Eldar Death God, would you like to attend the ceremony?" Rhodes asked.

"If you invite me, of course. But I cannot remain in realspace for long—unless my servant is willing to offer her body," Ynnead said.

"Oh, sorry! Her body is reserved for me," Rhodes said, going to Yvraine's side.

This body—only I get to touch! Anyone else tries, it's their life on the line!