"The Empire in the early days of the Great Crusade was still a new nation. Covenants and oaths were not yet mature and untested. Even though the Empire's territory extended beyond the solar system, the territories it conquered were often accompanied by questionable stability and loyalty. This
Attempted rebellions were common, and the Empire quickly suppressed most of them without publicity... However, for the Emperor, certain incidents deserved a different response than in the past, and simple conquest was no longer enough.
What is needed is punishment.”
"discipline......."
Sabourin chewed on the word, feeling the cruel implications within it.
"Venori is an urban enclave on Terra, formerly part of the Pan-Pacific Empire. It was built on both sides of a rift deep underground, one of the last territories that the tyrant Nathan Doom fell to. The areas around the rift are
The plain is covered with buildings that stretch for more than a hundred kilometers. Those buildings are close to the edge of the crack and extend downward for several kilometers. Whether it is the light of the sun or the moon, there is always only a glimmer of light when it reaches the deepest point.
.....The shackles of the empire are not recognized by the people of Vennoli, but in the years after Doom's defeat, they were helpless and could only silently surrender in front of their own situation.
Until the arrival of the Scarlet Walkers changed everything."
"Scarlet Walker, what is that?"
"The Crimson Walkers are a secret society of psykers, genetically enhanced warriors, and warlords who served the last tyrant in the history of the Age of Strife, the Emperor who overthrew many kings, queens, and kings in the process of unifying Terra.
Chiefs and tyrants, the fame and deeds of these men and women have become lingering memories in many people's minds... At that time, they were the monarchs who ruled the old night, using lies, fear and cursed secrets.
Knowledge enslaved billions of monsters, and those atrocities forged in genetic knowledge, blood, and spells symbolized their time, until the Emperor shattered their rule and brought redemption to the world... But
In the shadows, the traces of the old night remain. Over the years, many traitors have been purged, but some have survived. The survivors have formed alliances to survive and fought to take back the Emperor from their hands.
Desiring to take things away, they did not hesitate to use hatred to make a contract with the devil. They gradually gathered many followers and resources, and launched a secret network on Terra. The stronghold for their comeback is Venori.
.”
"Those people gathered followers and allies who truly relied on them in the canyon city, and began to build a fortress of despair. The ancient nightmare reappeared in Terra like never before: flesh forges, voodoo societies and pagan worship, which made people even more...
What is frightening are the people who follow the Scarlet Walkers after they take power. They are like loyal beasts returning to the care of their masters, obeying them instead of escaping from the horrors they once escaped. The few who resist become the Scarlet Walkers.
The fuel of the Walker's evil art, the rising surging military force seemed to be about to drag Terra back to the ancient nightmare... When the Emperor heard that the threat had emerged from the cocoon and was reborn, he only responded with one sentence
talk."
"What is-"
Facing Sablin's uneasy expression, Talos spoke out those words with piercing eyes——
"Send out the Eighth Legion!"
Faced with the Emperor's order, the Eighth Legion did not respond immediately. At that time, they had only more than 500 soldiers stationed in the solar system.
It is true that for the Astartes, 500 people are still a large army, but it is not enough to defeat an urban enclave with tens of millions of people in one fell swoop.
But this fact was not important to the soldiers of the Eighth Legion at that time. They knew why they were called to fight and what they must do.
Gradually, Sablin was attracted by this dark, bloody but incredible story.
"...The war started with flames falling from the night sky. The ancestors opened fire on the countryside of Vennoli, using supercharged lasers to turn the night into day. The bombing lasted for six hours...
..By the time the bombing was over, the fused metal and soil had formed a kilometer-long ring around the urban enclave! Tens of millions of people all looked at the night sky, their minds filled with longing for the scene after dawn.
. But the dawn did not come, and the light on the horizon was shrouded by black clouds. Then, it started to rain, a heavy downpour, but it became more turbid due to the chemicals spread by the clouds. People began to feel dizzy and felt that they were standing still.
The place began to tremble, and at the same time, the perception of every sound around and every moving object at the corner of the eye seemed to be magnified... It rained all day long, although it was not used to distinguish the day from the coming
The sunset at the turn of the dark night turned into vague ghosts, and people trapped in the darkness began to cry."
Talos walked up to Sabourin and put his hands on his shoulders. Their faces were no more than a fist apart, and their dark eyes stared straight at each other.
"Can you imagine the despair of those people at that time?"
Through Talos's eyes, Sabourin seemed to be able to see the blood flowing and the darkness that filled that night.
But for some reason, he felt his blood vessels surging, and the idea that it was a perfect hunting ground actually came to his mind.
"But those people didn't know that death had already lurked around them. As early as the ships in orbit lit up the night sky with flames, the soldiers of the Eighth Legion had already airborne from the void border, wearing dark midnight blue armor and rising from the night sky.
And descending, straight to the crack in the center of the enclave, when all the guards' eyes were attracted by the flash of light in the sky... They only triggered the jump pack to terminate the descent at the moment when they deviated from the light above their heads,
In the darkness below the city, they have been waiting for the real night to fall, clinging to the rock wall like creatures in a cave, until the lightless day passes. When the time is right, they will ride on the fire to escape.
Driving upward into the abyss... they penetrated deep into the lower reaches of the suspended city, intercepting anyone who stood in their way, and planting explosives to cause parts of the buildings to spin in the darkness."
"Soon, screams filled the canyon, and the horrific screams from the battle echoed in the minds of everyone on the surface. The mental defenses weakened by the drug collapsed in one blow, and most people immediately collapsed to the ground, trembling in fear;
Others fled one after another to avoid the increasingly fierce howls... In response to the Eighth Legion, the Scarlet Walkers released an army of monsters: including the Stitch Demon with dozens of human limbs.
Like, groups of brainless people with glass eyeballs and stimulation probes embedded in their brains, as well as spirit slaves who filled the air with the stench of the warp, and the pulses of guns and flashes of warp flames illuminated the abyss.
, but the Eighth Legion still charged forward, spinning among the wreckage with the help of jump packs, dismembering the abominations with lightning claws, singing a symphony of the voices of the dead in the battle, and the speaker grilles emitted
The recorded torture, pain and despair! That night, the abyss burned like the mouth of hell in mythology. The airdrop pod descended from the night sky. The legionnaires who came to rescue gathered in the rift valley and divided their forces to slaughter and search and kill in the city.