Warhammer [479-481] (Patreon)

Chapter 479: Crushing, Anrakyr's Misunderstanding — C'tan's Lackey

Rhodes had no intention of playing games anymore. It was completely unnecessary. This time, he'd brought Tartarus, Zog, and Mefilas together specifically to ensure absolute success.

With the combined power of the four, taking down a Necron Overlord was no big deal.

As Rhodes made his move, the Necrons in the ship didn't hesitate either. They picked up their Gauss rifles and aimed at Rhodes and the others.

Zog snorted coldly and conjured a layer of photonic shield.

Mefilas, standing to the side, also erected a psychic barrier, blocking the Gauss beams.

The Cryptek raised his staff and activated some kind of temporal ability. The Necron Overlord, Anrakyr, also raised his phase weapon.

Originally, Anrakyr had intended to build good relations with the humans and slowly investigate the truth he sought. But now, that seemed unnecessary.

This human's attitude toward him wasn't exactly friendly either. Since that's the case, let's drop the pretenses!

"Your choice is a grave mistake, human. You should never have chosen to oppose us Necrons. We are beings beyond your comprehension.

It seems I exaggerated my praise of your species earlier. You humans are indeed clever, but you're also an unreasonable, arrogant bunch of lunatics. You have no idea just how powerful your opponent is!" said Anrakyr the Traveler.

From what he knew, humanity's technology was decent, but compared to the Necrons, it was a joke.

Their Gauss weapons were standard, their living metal, phase teleportation, power weapons, and various Necron mechanical units were just basic military tech.

They had far more forbidden weapons, too—even the power to manipulate stars, black holes, influence physical laws, and seal off the warp.

And humans? They'd only used a few new gadgets in the past few years, and for the previous ten thousand years, they'd actually regressed. Their war potential was inferior to even ten millennia ago.

All this new tech was thanks to this human here, who must have excavated some ancient relics from humanity's golden age and mistakenly thought he could take on the Necrons.

Even the Old Ones back in the day didn't dare claim they could crush the Necrons.

"And how much do you know about my power? Who's really the frog at the bottom of the well? You'll understand soon enough," Rhodes retorted with a cold laugh.

There was no need for more words. Anrakyr cut the chatter and chose to strike first. Since this human knew about resurrection tech, all he had to do was capture him alive.

Let the Silent King deal with the rest.

"Your arrogance will be the beginning of your species' destruction, human."

Anrakyr's gaze was cold as frost, his phase weapon flickering with eerie green light.

At his gesture, the Necron troops behind him immediately moved into formation. The muzzles of their Gauss rifles leveled at Rhodes's group, unleashing a wild barrage of green Gauss beams.

Zog's photonic shield formed a shimmering barrier in the air, while Mefilas's psychic wall, invisible yet solid, blocked all the Necron Gauss fire.

Tartarus struck first. His hands gathered golden energy spheres, which he smashed into the ground. A violent energy pulse exploded, shattering the nearby Necron mechanical units. Their living metal shells cracked and even disintegrated under the impact—no joke for a being of ultimate life.

As for the Necron time-based attacks, to Tartarus they were like showing off a sword in front of a master—utterly laughable.

Seriously? Those low-level tricks you control are nothing but child's play to him.

"You call yourself a higher lifeform? Let me show you what a supreme being of the cosmos really is.

I am the Ultimate Life Form, Tartarus of the Absolutians." With that, Tartarus transformed into a giant over 50 meters tall.

His hands unleashed golden temporal energy, instantly paralyzing all the Necron Chronomancers present.

"How is this possible?! How can a human wield this level of temporal power? You… you're not human!"

They simply couldn't comprehend his means of attack. This wasn't power of the realspace universe, nor was it psychic power.

Every Necron tomb ship was equipped with anti-psyker Blackstone devices—no psychic power could be used here.

The golden figure's power was utterly beyond their understanding. Some Necron Chronomancers' brain chips even began to overload.

After countless calculations, they got nothing.

Zog hovered in midair, waving his hands. Countless photonic arrows rained down like a storm.

"Hah! Hah!"

Each arrow struck a Necron unit with precision, instantly reducing them to ash.

Boom! Boom! 

Explosions filled the air.

Zog's attacks were both powerful and incredibly fast—the Necron troops couldn't even react before Zog unleashed a devastating photonic shockwave, blasting the Necrons to pieces.

Mefilas stood beside Rhodes, hands together, eyes flashing strangely. His psychic barrier not only blocked the Gauss attacks, but also began countering the Necron phase teleportation tech.

Any Necron who tried to phase close to Rhodes would be forcibly pulled back by an invisible force, unable to approach.

His vast psychic power also enveloped the entire Necron tomb ship. At full strength, a Mefilasian could move a planet—wrapping a Necron tomb ship was child's play.

Zog, Tartarus, and Mefilas attacked together. Their overwhelming power decided the outcome almost instantly.

Anrakyr's face finally changed. He'd thought the Necrons' technological superiority would let him crush Rhodes and his team.

But the battle turned out far beyond his expectations. His troops were completely suppressed in minutes, not even getting a chance to fight back.

All his subordinates—and the whole ship—were instantly immobilized. These beings weren't human. They simply weren't human.

"This is impossible!" Anrakyr roared, swinging his phase weapon and launching a blue energy blade straight at Rhodes.

Fine then, if you want to capture the king, strike the king first! Anrakyr chose to attack Rhodes directly, aiming to behead him.

But Rhodes simply raised his hand, and the energy blade froze in midair before an invisible force bounced it back at Anrakyr.

Did you think I don't have telekinesis? Did you think Zetton's ultimate barrier was for show?

Anrakyr dodged, but the blade was too fast, grazing his left arm.

The living metal shell was torn open, exposing inner machinery. Shock flashed in his eyes—he clearly hadn't expected Rhodes's power to be so overwhelming.

"Try hitting harder. I can take it. These feeble strikes are just boring," Rhodes said flatly.

Want me to give you a super shockwave? Or maybe the Just Ox-Breaking Fist? Or the Cosmic Phoenix Fist?

"You… who are you really?" Anrakyr's voice trembled. He simply couldn't believe a human could wield such terrifying power.

Rhodes sneered, walking slowly toward Anrakyr. "I told you, you know nothing of my power. The real frog in the well is you, ignorant of the vastness of the world."

At this moment, Rhodes chose to mimic the flashy entrance of a certain first swordsman from a pirate anime.

Anrakyr's face turned ashen. He finally realized he had underestimated Rhodes.

Still, as a Necron Overlord, he would never surrender easily. The pride of the Necrons wouldn't allow it!

He suddenly raised his staff, activating a temporal ability to try and trap Rhodes's group in a time-stasis field.

But Rhodes simply waved his hand, and the stasis field immediately collapsed, his body glowing crimson.

A massive gold-red shockwave blasted toward Anrakyr. Rhodes unleashed his trump card: the Super Shockwave, infused with the power of the Cosmic Vermillion Bird.

Anrakyr's staff was reduced to powder under Rhodes's power. His proud Necron Overlord living metal shell was crushed, leaving only his skull.

With a clang, it hit the ground with a crisp sound. Anrakyr was instantly defeated by a single blow.

"How are you so fragile? I only used one move and you're done!" Rhodes smirked.

"This… this isn't power a human should possess!

This isn't power for humans. You shouldn't have this power. You… you're not human. What are you?" Anrakyr's voice was filled with disbelief.

This power was absolutely not something humanity should have. Anrakyr's cautious skull glowed green. In an instant, he analyzed the power—pure vibrational and cosmic energy.

The Necrons knew this power all too well, for their race had once been imprisoned by it. The C'tan, the C'tans who had once led their race into fire and hell, had used this power.

Anrakyr, finally understanding, was filled with rage. No wonder this human had advanced tech and such mighty force—he was a lackey of the C'tans.

Rhodes didn't answer, just looked at him coldly. 

I'm not human? I'm a pure-blooded human—perhaps the purest in the whole Warhammer universe.

I've simply been strengthened to an unimaginable level.

Tartarus, Zog, and Mefilas had already wiped out the rest of the Necron forces. Only Anrakyr was left on the battlefield.

Even the Necron tomb's core had been suppressed by Tartarus' Absolutian techniques. The Necrons destroyed here couldn't even activate their resurrection protocols.

"There's something very special in your tomb core—a fragment of a C'tan. That's my target." Rhodes directly questioned Anrakyr's skull about the C'tan shard.

Anrakyr lifted his head with difficulty, eyes full of unwillingness, fear, and hatred.

He finally understood: he wasn't facing an ordinary human, but a being that transcended species, one that had definitely made a deal with a C'tan.

Otherwise, there was no way to have such overwhelming power, and not just any C'tan shard—perhaps a true C'tan.

Rhodes's body was saturated with C'tan energy.

"Go ahead, C'tan's lackey. A Necron Overlord will never submit to you, nor bow to you. The Silent King will avenge me! You humans are just playthings for the C'tans!" 

A string of question marks appeared on Rhodes's forehead. What is this idiot on about? C'tan's lackey? What the hell is he imagining?

"First, let me tell you: the C'tans are just trash. I'm not their lackey. They're not qualified to command me," Rhodes said.

"Ridiculous. Do you think you can fool me? The cosmic energy you wield is the C'tans' power—I can't mistake it.

We Necrons paid a terrible price to shatter those remnants. Did you think I wouldn't recognize it?

 And your goal is the C'tan shard in my tomb world, isn't it? You want to rescue it," Anrakyr's cautious skull snorted.

Rhodes suddenly understood. All this talk of cosmic beast power and C'tan shards had led to a big misunderstanding.

Rhodes said nothing, his body glowing gold as the Cosmic Phoenix's form appeared from within him. Instead of wasting words, he chose to show his cosmic beast.

A massive golden fire phoenix appeared before Anrakyr.

"Wh-what is that?" Anrakyr was silent, gazing at the huge energy creature before him.

It looked like a C'tan—but not quite. It was a pure energy being, but lacked the typical C'tan rules.

"Don't misunderstand. This isn't power from a C'tan. It's the power of a Cosmic Beast.

They're a similar kind of lifeform, but kinder than C'tans—though much weaker," Rhodes explained.

Chapter 480: Bluffing, the Third C'tan Fragment

Cosmic Beasts weren't even close to the C'tans, even compared to their fragments. A few Cosmic Beasts who had absorbed fragments might be able to match a weak C'tan, but there was still a gap.

C'tans were born at the dawn of the universe, absorbing vast stellar energy and cosmic radiation. They were gods of the material domain.

Cosmic Beasts were just a special kind of monster from the Ultraman system universe. Their life level wasn't even close, but after coming here and absorbing C'tan shards—and with the system's power—they'd found a new path.

"Cosmic Beasts? In my eyes, they're just C'tan creations. Don't bother lying—I see right through you. You've been tricked by the C'tans. Whatever they promised, it's a lie," Anrakyr snorted.

How ridiculous. Humans, thinking they control C'tan power, imagining they've gained the C'tans' allegiance? What a joke! The C'tans would never submit to any material universe being.

They're the highest level of existence in the material universe. Would you humans submit to an ant?

"I don't need to lie. Cosmic Beasts can absorb C'tan shards and truly kill them. I've already destroyed two C'tan shards," Rhodes said helplessly.

What the hell is this guy imagining?

"Funniest joke I've ever heard. The so-called servant is actually the master, the so-called master actually the servant.

You're helping this C'tan absorb others' power. You're helping it resurrect. When it no longer needs you, it'll reclaim all the power it gave you.

You'll be left with nothing, a miserable fate. I can already see your future," Anrakyr declared.

A being with C'tan-like power, able to devour fragments… if it wasn't a C'tan, what else could it be?

This phoenix-shaped energy form must be a juvenile C'tan. Once it absorbs enough fragments, it'll rebel against its master.

So, Rhodes's fate was sealed. In Anrakyr's eyes, Rhodes and his three companions were all beneficiaries of some unknown C'tan.

As for Necron resurrection, their kind had been transformed into cold metal skeletons by the C'tans. If they could be transformed, they could be restored. Simple as that.

But this unknown C'tan wouldn't be arrogant for long. News of his death would soon reach the Necron tombs, and the Silent King would act.

"…" 

Rhodes looked at his Cosmic Phoenix. If it wasn't summoned by the System, he might actually believe him.

By your logic, is my System made by a C'tan? Was my transmigration a C'tan plot? A C'tan so powerful he could summon Tartarus, the Destruction Angel, Cosmic Beasts, and Dark Giants?

If such a C'tan existed, you guys wouldn't have won the War in Heaven sixty million years ago.

"Hmph! Foolish low-tier lifeforms love wild speculation about things they don't understand. Cosmic Beasts are amazing, but they're gentle, not evil," Tartarus said coldly, spreading his arms.

Even the mysterious Four Ultras are only a bit stronger than him!

"You're rather pitiful, Anrakyr. You Necrons—no, your whole Necron race—are no longer the galactic overlords you once were.

You've lost your glory, your honor. Before you became Necrons, you were wise, artistic, noble.

But since your transformation, you've become violent, cold, ruthless monsters," Rhodes said.

"That's the C'tans' curse on us! We were never like this," Anrakyr replied.

"I'm done talking. That C'tan shard is mine," Rhodes said.

"Wishful thinking. You think defeating me means you can take Necron property?

Impossible! You have no access to the tomb core.

Even with all your power, Necron tech is beyond you. If you force it open, the hypercube device will activate—you'll see what happens," Anrakyr declared.

He was bluffing. The hypercube had safeguards, but these guys could break them easily.

He was just trying to buy time, hoping the Silent King would arrive to reclaim the fragment.

"I get the feeling you're bluffing," Rhodes remarked.

He didn't want to gamble on some hidden Necron doomsday trap.

"Wretched C'tan lackey! Disgusting C'tan slave! Just kill me if you dare!" Anrakyr yelled.

He was hoping to be killed. His backup memory was with the Silent King; if Rhodes killed him, he'd be revived.

"Shall I kill him, master?" Zog asked.

"Master, I'm 80% sure he's bluffing," said Mefilas.

"Great master, trust us, there's nothing to worry about. With my space control, Mefilas's psychic power, and Zog's might, nothing can threaten you. Against absolute power, all tricks are futile," Tartarus added.

If Anrakyr had a real kill switch, he'd have used it, not revealed it.

Rhodes nodded, took Anrakyr's skull, and handed it to Mefilas for safekeeping.

"Imprison him! Guard him carefully!" Rhodes ordered.

All Necron overlords had memory backups. If killed, they'd be revived elsewhere. Imprisonment was the only option.

As long as the body wasn't completely destroyed, the resurrection protocol wouldn't trigger.

Anrakyr cursed Rhodes madly, but it was useless. Mefilas quickly sealed his consciousness and packed him into a metal box.

After dealing with Anrakyr, Rhodes and his three followers headed to the Necron tomb's core.

His three subordinates used their respective skills—Mefilasian psychic power, Tartarus' Absolutian science, and space-time manipulation.

They cracked the tomb core with ease.

"Nothing special, master! That fool was bluffing. There are some safeguards, but just for ordinary mortals. Against us, his tricks are meaningless," Tartarus said.

Rhodes nodded and went to the tomb world's core, where a hypercube imprisoned a 2,000-meter-tall green energy figure.

"Mortal, release me, and I'll grant you unparalleled power. I'll give you anything you desire," the C'tan shard greeted Rhodes.

"I will release you, don't worry!" Rhodes replied.

"Good, mortal. Wise choice. After you release me, you'll be my servant. I'll grant you eternal life and great power," said the fragment, satisfied.

"Don't misunderstand. You won't be my master. You'll be food for my servant. I don't need you to grant me anything. I'll take what I want myself," Rhodes sneered.

Tartarus, Zog, and Mefilas glanced at each other, then released the C'tan shard and brought it into space.

Rhodes summoned the Beast Queen Zoiger and other cosmic beasts to absorb the fragment.

Chapter 481: Beast Queen Evolves — Humanity and Necrons Must Battle

This time, absorbing the C'tan shard went smoothly. It was the third time. As the saying goes, practice makes perfect. Rhodes was now very experienced.

He had Mefilas and Tartarus move the giant C'tan near a red giant star.

Then he let his cosmic beasts begin devouring. After absorbing the fragment, they could immediately feed on the red giant's energy.

Rhodes also realized that main-sequence stars weren't ideal—their energy was too compressed. Forcing absorption caused indigestion in the beasts.

Red giants, though, were at life's end, hugely expanded, with diffuse surface energy—perfect for the cosmic beasts to absorb.

The C'tan's power turned into pure cosmic energy, devoured by the beasts.

Beast Queen Zoiger gulped down the power. Born of darkness herself, she finally had a chance to reach her master's level (her previous master being the dark god Gatanothor).

"You damned mortal! How dare you deceive and toy with a god! You'll pay for this!" the C'tan shard roared in fury as its energy was drained.

These mortals—how dare they harm a god, a true god!

"Your time is over. You're the past. Accept your fate," Rhodes snorted.

From the moment he absorbed the first C'tan shard, all the C'tans were doomed.

These cosmic rule gods were nothing good. On the contrary, destroying them was good for the universe.

The fragment raged and cursed as its essence was devoured and it realized it would cease to exist.

It began to show terror. Even as a fragment, it inherited body memories and divinity. If it died, the main body couldn't return. Missing a fragment, its power would be incomplete.

"No—don't hurt me! I can give you endless knowledge! We C'tans control cosmic physical laws. Do you need FTL engines? Space-folding tech? I have it all! Free me and I'll give it to you!" the fragment begged Rhodes.

"I liked your arrogant attitude before. Could you go back to that?" Rhodes replied.

FTL engines—he already had those, and the empire was about to mass-produce them. Soon all imperial warships and merchantmen would have FTL, making sub-1000-light-year journeys easy.

As for warp jumps, Rhodes had that too—on the mighty Imperator-class Titan. Human science just couldn't copy it yet.

So, what the C'tans had was priceless to other civilizations, but worthless to Rhodes.

The only thing worth taking was their cosmic energy.

"I represent the highest law of this universe. If you kill me, the laws here will be incomplete.

The Necrons dare not kill us, as it would destabilize reality and let those damn warp creatures invade.

The warp beings are the true evil! We destroyed the Old Ones because they cooperated with the warp.

Kill us and you help the Old Ones—you're aiding the warp's invasion!" the C'tan protested.

"Don't worry about the warp, old fossil. You've been sealed for ages, and nothing's happened to the universe," Rhodes said, ordering his beasts to devour faster.

As for Chaos gods, he'd defeat them in time—he didn't need the help of these failed gods.

In its final moments, the fragment hurled curses at Rhodes until it was completely consumed.

After the cosmic beasts absorbed the fragment, their energy levels transformed, and they gained the ability to devour stars.

Next, Rhodes sped up the star system's time flow, spending ten days to accelerate time by ten thousand times, letting the beasts consume the red giant's energy, leaving a black stellar core, which Rhodes collected.

The beasts all grew in size, reaching about a kilometer.

The biggest change was to the Beast Queen, who grew to over 3,000 meters, her energy several times greater. Now she was truly a queen; before, she was just a child.

"Great master! I can now hatch ten small Zoiger a day, each 5 meters long, with an 8-meter wingspan—twice as strong as before!" the Beast Queen happily reported.

She could produce more, and stronger, offspring.

"Excellent! Next, produce two powerful children for my two subordinates. Take your time and energy to make them as strong as possible," Rhodes ordered.

They'd been with him the longest; he didn't want to give them ordinary Zoiger.

"In a month, I can produce two purple ones, each 10 meters long, 16-meter wingspan, with one-tenth the power of a regular cosmic beast. That's my limit," the Beast Queen replied.

"No problem, start the process!" Rhodes said.

After dealing with the Necron Overlord and the C'tan, Rhodes returned to his territory and met with the Blood Angels, who'd been there for half a month, unaware of what had happened.

They didn't care about the Necron Overlord's defeat—after all, the empire's attitude toward xenos was always the same: evil xenos must be destroyed.

Rhodes then entered the warp and spoke with Sanguinius about what had happened.

"Won't this make the Necrons hostile? Will they declare war on the Imperium?" Sanguinius asked.

"If I didn't do this, would they not go to war? Don't be naive, Sanguinius. Ten thousand years ago, only Trazyn the Infinite awoke.

Now, all the Necron dynasties are reviving. As the rightful overlords of the Milky Way, we're their first target.

They're determined to reclaim their lost glory and territory. There's an irreconcilable conflict between us; a war is inevitable.

They aren't the fallen Eldar—they're a soon-to-awaken, former galactic overlord," Rhodes replied.

No matter what, the Necrons had to be wiped out. As for the Necrontyr, Rhodes would arrange for them to survive in another galaxy, like Andromeda.

With Necron and Rhodes's tech, migration was easy. He'd corrupt some Necrons from within; the rest he and the Emperor would destroy.

It was a trial for humanity. To be galactic overlords, they had to challenge and defeat the former overlords.

"I understand, but are we really ready?" Sanguinius asked.

The Imperium was advancing quickly, but they still needed time to mass-produce FTL engines, new Titans, superhuman drugs for the Guard, and more—to reach full power.

"We're not ready. But do you think the Necrons are? They haven't fully awakened, and their dynasties are divided.

Even if the Silent King wants revenge, he'll need decades, maybe centuries, to prepare!

Don't worry—I have a plan. When I return to Holy Terra, I'll launch the Indomitable Crusade, reclaim all lost Imperial worlds, and even border worlds.

When that's done, we'll prepare for total war with the Necrons," Rhodes said.

"I understand, Rhodes. I'll support you with all my strength," Sanguinius nodded.

…

On Ultramar's 500 worlds, Leandros, once a chaplain of the Ultramarines, knelt before a strange being.

"It's all a lie. The so-called Codex Astartes is a scam. Our gene-father betrayed us, lied to me, and lied to my faith," Leandros said.

He'd given everything for the Codex, only to be told by his primarch that it was worth less than toilet paper. His faith had collapsed.