In a place filled with the whispers of the Warp, a man adorned with scarlet tattoos stood before an incandescent fire.
He had tanned skin, a long beard, and wore a ceremonial outfit made of beast hides.
However, what stood out most about him was not any of that.
He proudly bore the mark of a Chaos God.
The god of blood and skulls.
Khorne.
"G… Gr… Master, the invaders… they are retreating toward the outside of the cave," growled a man after entering the dwelling of their spiritual guide.
The elderly man did not respond to the young tribal leader.
He was not even surprised by the "good news" the latter had announced.
The old man simply continued carving esoteric symbols into his dwelling.
An unusual reaction given their situation, yet the barbarian leader showed no hostility toward the old man's indifferent attitude.
For him and his brothers, the man before them was not a simple spiritual guide.
The old man was the very image of a volcano that could erupt at any moment.
A proud and faithful servant of their god.
"Do not fear, I had already anticipated this outcome," he said, leaning toward the fire to feed it with more fuel.
"W-what?!" the young man could not fully express his surprise, as his head was severed from his body.
The shocked expression remained frozen on his face, but his killer calmly licked the blood from his hand.
Even though he had executed the strike at inhuman speed, the old man had ensured it would be as bloody as possible.
He slowly walked toward the head on the ground, then threw it into the fire.
The servant of Khorne had offered a skull to the throne of his ever-hungry god.
"My lord does not believe in our victory nor in the success of this operation, my dear Malik," he declared, watching the fire change color as it consumed the skull.
The old man revealed a predatory smile as he observed the spectacle, while the whispers of the Immaterium grew stronger.
"Indeed, the invaders are too strong for us. He has deemed this battle unworthy of interest. However, your skulls and your blood will be enough to generate sufficient offerings to earn our god's favor. Soon… yes, soon… enough blood will be spilled for the Lord's weapons to take part in a festival where skulls and blood will flow freely," he said, his eyes burning with fanatical light.
As if answering his prayers, the fire stirred in rhythm with the whispers of the Warp.
…
"Commander!!! Regiment 3 has evacuated!!" Joshua announced through Zack's communicator.
The veteran allowed himself a faint smile as he observed the scene through the systems integrated into his Arbites power armor.
He could see the natives pursuing Dede and his regiment.
"Excellent. Keep Regiments 4 and 5 at maximum alert. You must wait for my signal, then collapse the cave behind them to begin the massacre," he said in a deathly serious tone.
A silence followed on the other end, but Joshua eventually replied: "Affirmative."
Zack's plan was simple, yet delicate.
He intended to use Dede as bait after he lured the natives out of the cave.
Once the barbarians were outside, the tanks blocking the entrance would destroy any means of retreat.
If Zack succeeded, the enemy would be encircled and isolated from any potential reinforcements inside the cave.
He might even extract information from prisoners of war.
"It's been two years since last time, hasn't it?" he thought as he took command of the First Regiment of the auxiliary army.
The auxiliary army possessed colossal numerical strength, but its logistics were a nightmare for Zack.
Even now, he had deployed a massive force into the jungle to eradicate the "rebel cell" quickly and surgically, in order to avoid straining his supply lines.
Beyond that, he also refused to let the battle drag on due to the climate.
The environment was tropical, and sustaining such a large force in it for long was difficult.
The veteran did not intend to repeat the same mistake he had made in the past with the Macedonian.
Zack would use every means available to win from the outset.
"C-Commander, the natives…" Joshua began.
But Zack remained silent as he watched the barbarians tear through the rear lines of Dede's regiment.
The veteran slowly drew his chainsword from its sheath, standing atop a genetically modified horse.
The men around him held their breath instinctively as the man's "friendly" aura turned cold.
He was no longer just their commander.
He was the conqueror of Limnos III.
The chosen of angels.
The slayer of the Macedonian king.
The hand of the planetary governor.
He was the conquering king, Zack.
But the Macedonian had given him another name after his conquest of their city, the name the people of Limnos III still used for him.
The Great.
"Fire at will," he said calmly.
A silence fell over the battlefield.
But it was brief.
No one knew who fired first, but it marked the beginning of a massacre.
…
"You bastard!! Trying to get revenge for our old relationship on the ship?" Dede mocked after encountering his former cellmate.
Zack simply shrugged after facing his subordinate.
Dede had once led the cell where Zack had been held on the frigate.
But that was in the past.
Zack was now the commander.
Dede owed him obedience.
"Still, puff, these guys are potentially more troublesome than the Macedonian," Dede said, exhaling cigar smoke while watching the front line.
Even while surrounded, the barbarians tore through the auxiliary army's ranks.
They could lose a limb, an eye, or have their guts spilling out—yet the natives did not slow down.
It was as if the idea of death on the battlefield did not exist for them.
Zack nodded at Dede's remark, but the natives' bravery no longer mattered to him.
Like the brave Macedonian before them, he would break their will.
At least, that was the plan.
Rumble.
The ground began to tremble beneath Zack's feet as a strange spectacle unfolded before him.
Blood.
All the blood spilled on the battlefield seeped into the rock blocking the cave entrance, while strange murmurs emerged from it.
It sounded like whispers.
"Oh fuck, Zack!" Dede swore, pointing at several soldiers.
For some unknown reason, they had frozen like sleepwalkers at the sound of the whispers.
This strange state was brief.
What followed could be summed up in one word: massacre.
The soldiers influenced by the Warp began rampaging across the battlefield in a manner similar to the natives.
The only difference was their inability to distinguish ally from enemy, something they could not overcome in their killing frenzy.
Only the elite troops identified by Zack and Joshua remained relatively intact after the whispers appeared.
Finally, an explosion.
A crimson-skinned being stood at the cave entrance.
(Image)
The creature had an inhuman appearance, but one detail caught Commander Zack's attention.
It was not its unique weapon, nor its numerous daemonic subordinates flooding the forest.
It was rage.
Infinite rage in its eyes, fueled by a bottomless hatred for the creatures of the Materium.
Yes, it was a daemon.
A Champion of Khorne.
"To all men spared from madness, I order an immediate retreat!!" Zack commanded after regaining his composure.
An action approved by the silent observer of this war. However, he could not accept a retreat at this stage.
After all, there was a daemon incursion into his world.
[ No, you must hold until my arrival ], Atreus's calm voice echoed through every soldier's communicator on the battlefield.