Warhammer [503-504] (Patreon)

Chapter 503: A New Primarch, A New Legion — The Ice and Fire Dragon

"Great master, you—do you mean… you want me to replace the original? You want me… to become the new gene-primarch?" The clone Lorgar stared at Rhodes in disbelief and asked.

Since following his new master, he had received unimaginable benefits. Over a mere dozen years, his power had transformed beyond recognition.

First, he had fused with the cosmic phantom-beast Behemoth, gaining the ability to travel faster than light through space with his physical body.

His life level had risen countless times above the original's, and he had gained gigantification along with calamity-like combat strength; if he returned to the Great Crusade era now, he could utterly crush his true self.

What bliss. And now, back on Holy Terra, he was repeatedly summoned by his master, who even proposed something beyond his imagination.

"You heard right, Lorgar. You will formally become a true gene-primarch. You will become Lorgar's true self, a primarch of the Imperium—and the founder of the state church." Rhodes smiled at the excited Lorgar before him.

"How is that possible? The Emperor—He's willing to forgive my original… but what about my original? What does he say?" Lorgar asked, agitated.

This matter shook him so hard he was at a loss.

"I've arranged everything. You will be the founder of the state church. You will be the pontiff. You will not only spread faith in the Emperor, but also faith in me. I will become the Imperium's second god—do you understand? You will write the new ecclesiastical canon." Rhodes said.

That was the main objective. No one knew proselytizing better than Lorgar.

"Building a new canon atop the scriptures my original wrote—no problem. But, great master, this could be done in secret. There's no need for me to stand out in the open," Lorgar said.

"No, no. This time you must stand in the open. You must thoroughly humiliate the Lorgar in the Realm of Chaos—the Lorgar who betrayed the Imperium.

"And remember this: from today on, you are the true Lorgar, a gene-primarch created by the Emperor.

"You took part in the Great Crusade. That fool hiding in the Warp, in the Realm of Chaos—the traitor—is the real clone, a monster fabricated by the heretics," Rhodes said.

We must set the narrative. You are the real one. As long as the Emperor backs you and I back you, no one can refute it.

If Rhodes weren't the Imperial heir apparent, the crown prince, he wouldn't expose the clone Lorgar. But now that the Emperor had decided to share part of humanity's faith with him, Lorgar became crucial.

"I understand, great master. From today on, I am the true Lorgar. I will write a new canon for you, spread it throughout humanity, and dovetail it perfectly with what I wrote before," Lorgar said.

"That's right. At the upcoming investiture for the new primarchs, you will return to the Imperium as a primarch who has slumbered for millennia.

"The Emperor will extract your current gene-seed to create a new legion," Rhodes said.

Having fused with the cosmic phantom-beast and become a super lifeform, this clone Lorgar's gene-seed could indeed be harvested. They would be a new Adeptus Astartes legion—not the Word Bearers.

They would be the Church's Protectors, guardians of the Emperor's and Rhodes's faith. Their new name had already been chosen: the Templars—a title harking back to the medieval age.

"Thank you, great master. Thank you for your grace, for your recognition. To follow you is the greatest honor of my life." Lorgar knelt, voice trembling.

He had been just a clone, only slightly stronger than a typical Astartes, carrying the original's memories—a defective product marked for disposal.

Yet his master discovered his talent and put it to use. Lorgar swore: from today on, he would live for his master, fight for his master.

"Remember: among the other primarchs, aside from Roboute Guilliman and Magnus, attitudes toward you may be unfriendly. You must endure it—understand?" Rhodes said.

"I understand, great master. Even if they swing fists into my face, I won't be angered. It's all for your plan," Lorgar said.

"And remember this: while I will receive part of humanity's faith, the Emperor must retain His. You are not to alter scripture to steal the Emperor's faith. This is crucial. Understand?" Rhodes said.

He had to make this clear up front. Otherwise, if the subordinate filled in the blanks and thought, "Does the master want me to infiltrate the state church and rewrite the faith to make people forget the Emperor?"—that would be disastrous.

Without humanity's hope empowering the Emperor, He could not suppress the Dark King. If the Dark King broke loose, everything would turn to smoke.

So no matter what, the Dark King must be suppressed. Until Rhodes reached the Four Chaos tier, enough faith must be maintained to energize the Emperor to keep the Dark King down.

If necessary, Rhodes even considered sending Zog to help—light is the bane of darkness.

Also, the Empera Blade could once absorb part of the Dark Emperor's power. If the Alien Empera made a move now, could he erase the Dark Emperor entirely?

That guy is the ultimate stirrer of trouble, dreaming of letting the Dark King loose—but he doesn't realize that once the Dark King emerges, both he and the Emperor will vanish!

"Rest assured, master. I understand. I'll direct at least thirty percent of humanity's faith to you, with the Emperor retaining seventy percent. Will that do?" Lorgar asked.

He didn't know why his great master didn't want to seize the Emperor's faith. As a subordinate, he just needed to obey.

"Make it eighty percent for the Emperor. I only need twenty. The Emperor critically needs humanity's faith—the light of hope." Rhodes said meaningfully.

Even the primarchs didn't know the Dark King's details. Only Rhodes knew the truth.

Even Guilliman and Magnus assumed the dark persona within the Emperor was the Dark King, but in fact, they were not the same.

The Emperor had told Rhodes he was only a small persona of the Dark King. The Dark King was far more terrifying than the four Chaos Gods.

As humanity's numbers grew, if the Dark King successfully manifested, that would be the day the entire universe perished.

Rhodes dared not gamble. One misstep would mean eternal doom.

With the Ultraman monster summoning system, Rhodes's growth potential was limitless. All he needed was time.

For this grand investiture, the other campaigning primarchs were not recalled. Only Rhodes, Elana, Magnus, and Guilliman participated.

…

A few days later, a grand ceremony was held on Holy Terra. The Emperor's avatar stood before the Imperial Palace, a 60-meter colossus that inspired awe and dread.

Golden radiance flowed from His body, suffused with sanctity—the very image in the people's hearts.

Some Imperials even thought the Emperor had risen from the Golden Throne and could once again walk abroad, since in recent years His avatars had indeed joined battles in various regions.

The Emperor often used His psychic might to dispatch these avatars to other war zones.

"My children of the Imperium, today is most special. Three new gene-primarchs will be invested. Two adults will receive their own Astartes legions, while one minor will do so in a few years," the Emperor's voice boomed, carried by psychic power across all Terra.

"Praise the great Emperor! Praise the new primarchs! Praise the Imperium of Man!"

"Loyalty and glory! They will illuminate the Imperium!" Nobles and commoners alike cheered.

The Custodians arrayed in perfect ranks lifted their weapons in salute.

"First, Rhodes, the Imperial Heir Apparent, firstborn, Stark. He is a naturally born primarch—the first ever.

"From birth, this child carried humanity's hope, the Imperium's hope.

"His childhood was forged in war. With his father, he launched crusades against humanity's foes and traitors, stepping onto the battlefield at sixteen," the Emperor began, introducing Stark.

Flight craft rose above the palace, assembling a massive holo-screen.

On it played Stark's birth and growth, and his battles at sixteen—against Orks, Tyranids, and other xenos.

The terrifying strength of a super lifeform and ferocious combat skill set Imperial blood aflame.

Though only sixteen, he inherited Rhodes and Elana's excellent genes, and, with his cosmic phantom-beast, wielded ice and fire.

Even in human form his prowess eclipsed the Custodes; once gigantic, his might defied mortal imagination.

The display even made Stark below the dais a bit embarrassed. All of this was his father's doing, by design!

"Honor the new primarch!"

"Hail to you! Blessings upon you, new primarch Stark!" the masses roared.

Common Imperials are easily swayed; the Emperor's word is truth—divine decree.

"Today, he has formally come of age. We have extracted his genetic material and crafted his gene-seed.

"His recruits will soon begin implantation. New Astartes will be born. A new Astartes Legion will be born," the Emperor's avatar proclaimed.

A newly formed 100,000-strong recruit cohort marched before the Emperor—boys from ten to fifteen, soon to undergo Astartes implantation. Thanks to med-bays, the modern Astartes surgeries now had a 100% success rate.

Virtually no risk of failure.

These recruits were all handpicked from families of unswerving loyalty to the Emperor—paragons of devotion.

"From now on you are the gene-sons of the new primarch. Now, pay respects to your future gene-father!"

"Homage to the great primarch! Homage to our gene-father!" All the recruits knelt, saluting Stark on the high dais.

"My gene-sons, soon you will bear my gene-seed. I look forward to seeing you become true Astartes, to fight for me and for the Imperium," Stark said.

"To fight for you, great gene-father!" the boys' voices rang to the heavens.

Next, they would undergo implantation and spend ten years in training.

They became the first legion to meet their gene-father before receiving gene-seed.

"Child, you have the right to name your legion. Name it now," the Emperor said.

The final step—today's climax. The new Astartes Legion would be given a name.

Stark nodded, thought for a moment, then spoke.

"Great Emperor, I have decided. My legion shall be called the Ice and Fire Dragon. My gene-sons will inherit my powers over frost and flame."

The name fit perfectly. His phantom-beast was a dragon; his powers were ice and fire—traits that would pass to his gene-sons.

"Very well. The Imperium's new legion, the Ice and Fire Dragon, is hereby founded, with an initial force of one hundred thousand," the Emperor said.

Stark's investiture concluded. 

Next came Sterne. The Emperor repeated the process, delivering an address.

A new recruit cohort of several tens of thousands was likewise prepared for Sterne.

These recruits skewed younger—mostly under ten. Since three new primarchs were being invested, it wouldn't do for one to lack his own recruits, so Guilliman had arranged them on short notice.

Chapter 504: The Sons of War — The Wargod Khaine's Ambition

These young child-recruits would receive Sterne's gene-seed in five years, becoming a new Astartes legion.

Every one was carefully selected from excellent families across Imperial worlds—near the peak of human genetic purity and physical quality.

By then, the youngest would be no more than fourteen. Following his older brother's example, Sterne greeted his future gene-sons. When he came of age, he would name his legion.

"Hail to you, great gene-father!" countless youths cried to Sterne.

"Praise to you, new primarch!"

"Praise to you, son of the High Princess!"

"Blessings upon you, son of the Warmaster!"

"Shine forth and light the Imperium!"

"Salute to all Imperial citizens, and to my gene-descendants. I will live up to your trust. In the future I will light the dark galaxy and illuminate the Imperium," Sterne shouted.

The citizens and officials applauded warmly, delighted by the child's achievements.

A young primarch symbolizes a renewed Imperium—new hope, a new future.

Afterward, the Emperor instructed Sterne and then formally invested him as another primarch of the Imperium.

Sterne bowed in thanks and came to Rhodes's side, face flushed with excitement.

"Father! Mother! Brother! Did you see? I have my own gene-sons now. I'll found my own Astartes legion," Stark said.

"We saw. But for them to receive your gene-seed, it'll take five years; to form up fully, another ten. So at least fifteen years before you can lead them," Rhodes said, smiling and ruffling his younger son's hair.

In the Imperium's martial culture, it's easy to be eager for the front lines—but war is no playground.

If not for overwhelming strength, Rhodes would never let his sons go to war. Home would be best.

After investing two primarchs, the Emperor presented an eighteen-year-old, 4.2-meter-tall new primarch: the former Aeldari Wargod, now human primarch—Khaine.

Compared to Rhodes's sons, Wargod Khaine looked even more robust—explosively muscular, radiating oppressive power.

"Next is a new primarch—not naturally born, but created by me: the twenty-first primarch. His name is Khaine," the Emperor's avatar announced to the people.

He omitted Khaine's past as the Aeldari Wargod.

"So this is the newest primarch made by the Emperor? Another divine son?"

"He looks so strong!"

"The great Emperor's son!"

The people buzzed. Until today, they had no idea this primarch existed. The Emperor had secretly created another.

"I am the Imperium's twenty-first primarch. I will fight for humanity. I will fight for the Imperium," Khaine declared from the stage.

And you will fight for me.

His voice boomed like a sonic wave through every corner, laden with psychic force, echoing in every ear on Holy Terra.

As a true divine Wargod, Khaine's mastery of psychic power was unimaginable—even beyond primarchs awakened with a divine soul.

To put it simply, Khaine at this moment was somewhat akin to the Emperor before He took the Golden Throne.

Clap, clap, clap!

Thunderous applause rolled. When it subsided, 30,000 handpicked boy-recruits, selected by the Emperor and Guilliman, came before Khaine.

These youths were similar in age to Stark's—mostly under fifteen.

It was clear the later primarchs got fewer recruits than Stark.

Stark had 100,000. Khaine and Sterne each had only 60,000; even combined, they were fewer than Stark's.

That was deliberate by the Emperor and Guilliman. Khaine could be a human primarch, but would not occupy the mainstream.

"I will grant you courage—the courage to fight. With my gene-seed, you'll gain unimaginable power," Khaine told his recruits.

His gene-seed had been tested; implantation induced a berserk-like combat state—immense strength, no pain, ferocious rage.

Somewhat like Rhodes's berserk transformation, yet different: this was more like a stimulant state. After it ended, there would be a period of weakness. Rhodes's transformation, by contrast, was a form-state that didn't leave one powerless afterward.

Khaine could also use his psychic power to vastly amplify soldiers on the battlefield—even project blessings via the Warp to Imperial worlds, empowering their troops.

Giving them much greater fighting power.

"Great gene-father! We follow you. We follow war!"

"My children, war is your birthright. Battle is your destiny. To die on the field is your best end. After death, your souls will be with me," Wargod Khaine roared with arms wide.

This wasn't just talk. His gene-sons' souls would indeed join him after death, becoming part of his divine war-power.

He could even use these pure warrior souls to form a demon-host akin to the Emperor's cursed warriors.

His legion size being limited didn't matter. As long as they died fast enough and recruits flowed in, warriors would come to him endlessly.

"My children, our legion is called the Sons of War. You are the children of war," Khaine declared.

"Sons of War! Sons of War! Sons of War!!" the recruits bellowed.

"Hahaha! War! War!!" Khaine howled in excitement. As a human primarch, he could feel war empowering him.

Though born from Aeldari worship, the Aeldari don't love war; they aren't a warlike species. Humans and Orks fit him better.

The Eldar gods thought Khaine a fool for pledging to the human Emperor and becoming a human primarch—but who understood his designs? As humanity's Wargod, he could aspire to the rank of the Chaos Gods.

See how the Emperor grew so mighty through humanity's faith!

In the crowd, Elana frowned, nudged Rhodes with her elbow, and spoke via the phantom-beast's secret channel.

"I don't think this Aeldari Wargod truly fights for humanity. I feel he wants to use humans—maybe even steal the Emperor's faith, and yours," Elana said.

"He needs faith, yes—but not overt worship. He needs the Imperium at war. As long as humanity wages war, his power grows. His rising divinity in turn will empower all human fighters and soldiers," Rhodes said.

Among the Aeldari, Khaine is the first god beneath Asuryan, second only in battle to the four Chaos Gods—for a reason.

Anything tied to combat strengthens him—which is why Khorne covets him.

If he dedicates himself to humanity—shielding and blessing human warriors—the Emperor will keep him. But if he crosses the line—like devouring vast numbers of human souls to boost himself—the Emperor will move against him.

Just like He once purged the Second and Eleventh Primarchs—on such matters, the Emperor shows no mercy.

"Enough. Khaine, withdraw with your gene-sons.

"You will be cast into the Imperium's wars. Fight for humanity, for the Imperium, for me," the Emperor's avatar said.

Khaine turned, nodded to the Emperor, then knelt on one knee.

"To fight for you, my father."

After Khaine's investiture ended, the Emperor's avatar raised His golden greatsword again.

"My subjects, all humanity, let me tell you a story—a story from ten thousand years ago.

"Of a perfect city, and the origin of the state church," the Emperor said.

All were puzzled. Apart from a few who knew, no one understood what the Emperor was about to do.