On the surface of the rocky sphere, Nareth looked around. He immediately noticed golden, circular stones to his right front.
They formed a tight ring, about ten meters in diameter.
The Primarch keenly sensed they formed a cycle, not only physically, but also in the non-material realm.
Each stone was covered in semi-ethereal, semi-solid crystal particles.
He immediately identified them from the Blasphemy Slate as ingredients for Sequence 5 "Winner" on the Wheel of Fortune Pathway.
The golden, circular stones were God's Favors, and the particles were God's Favor crystal powder.
He didn't need to activate his Spirit Vision to confirm they were potion ingredients.
He didn't try to activate it again. He intuitively sensed some danger nearby.
He examined the potion materials on the ground, considering how to acquire them.
Those who interfered with the rock suffered misfortune. Even more so for items called God's Favors.
His Spirit Vision automatically shutting down, and the presence of an ancient deity, warned him not to simply use telekinesis to scoop them up.
'Interfering with the rock brings misfortune. God's Favors and God's Favor crystal are "Winner" potion ingredients. This deity must be in the domain of fate.'
'As the chosen one of the Kingdom of Disorder, the source will isolate misfortune, or rather, fate imposed by other deities will have difficulty affecting me.'
'But disasters triggered by fate still threaten me.'
He recalled the regular arrangement of the spheres. The 'ancient deity' mentioned in some possible records was unlikely to be a Tzeentch masquerade.
'A deity governing fate would inherently conflict with Tzeentch, and would have fallen in a divine war.'
'Could this place be a contingency? Does it hold a spiritual imprint within the God's Favors?'
'A fate reset? Preparation for resurrection? Ouroboros?'
He wasn't thinking of the future Hive Fleet that would bear that name, but the legend that existed in the myths of Terra, Fenris, Medusa, and many other human worlds.
On the Wolf King's Gate of the Hrafnkel's Den, above the circular ivory doors, a serpent coiled.
Its mouth tightly gripped its own tail. This was the hallmark of Ouroboros, a symbol of eternity.
The Ouroboros depicted on the Wolf's Den Gate formed a ring of scales enclosing turbulent waters, filled with countless monsters and sunken ships constructed from bone-like wood.
As he thought, he clarified what he might face. He also formulated a plan.
Light flickered in the Primarch's eyes. Telekinesis spread, touching the ring of golden stones.
All his psychic energy surged. The tightly packed stones scattered in chaos, pulled by telekinesis, flying towards Nareth.
The golden stones and the attached particles vanished.
The Primarch suddenly felt the sphere beneath him, and the surrounding spheres, tremble.
An ancient will, long dormant, stirred. Waves suddenly rose in the Sea of Souls beyond the veil.
The previously calm void erupted with heaven-shaking waves. Wissel, in the Navigator Sanctum, was the first to notice the change.
She pulled back the silver ribbon covering her high forehead, revealing her Navigator's "eye", a translucent white sphere, surrounded by mottled colors.
She looked warily at the distant Warp storm. She saw a hurricane rising, spreading like thunder.
She felt her consciousness being devoured by an endless abyss. She withdrew her projected power, pulling down the velvet silver ribbon.
The metal plate within, engraved with a magic array and infused with psychic energy, blocked her third "eye."
She immediately contacted the Primarch's Aide via the vox-system.
Arsena, since the Black Emperor had gone to the sphere alone, had been watching the hololithic strategic table.
The silver-haired psyker suddenly looked up, beyond the veil. His comm buzzed with a piercing shriek.
Seeing it was the Chief Navigator, he immediately answered.
"Mr. Dunn, I must warn you. This place is no longer calm. A Warp storm is tearing towards us."
"Lady Wissel, I understand." He ended the call, watching the dead star suddenly flare. His long, narrow blue eyes were filled with concern.
The faint light of the star around which the spheres orbited suddenly surged. The dead, ancient form was reborn.
Blazing silver-white light suddenly flared, enveloping all the spheres.
The spheres spun rapidly. The spheres, which a lance could not damage, shattered.
A storm of rock erupted, slamming into Nareth.
Light flickered in the Primarch's eyes. Telekinesis surged, forming an invisible force field around him.
His wings beat, trying to fly away.
CRASH, CRASH, CRASH...
Rocks, harder than adamantium drills, slammed into the force field.
Each rock pushed away by telekinesis would be hurled back at Nareth.
The attacks cycled, unrelenting.
A storm of fireballs constantly struck him, preventing the Burning One's power from lifting him.
The Primarch felt, beyond the veil, the dead, ancient will flicker with a faint red light, fixed on him.
Its cold, hate-filled gaze, like a red meteor, slammed against the veil.
Invisible ripples spread. The star's light grew. It rapidly grew from a nova to a red giant.
Every rock burst into flame, hurtling at Nareth.
He felt his temples throb. His psychic energy was draining faster than expected.
'Something like Sequence 1 "Snake of Mercury" "Reboot" ability? A saved state.'
He knew the ability, rebooted the state or events within a certain area, not reversing time, but overwriting reality with a saved state.
The ancient deity had clearly saved the star's red giant state, and the state of this region when a Warp storm erupted.
He felt other spheres, wreathed in flames, hurtling towards him.
The approaching Warp storm spread rapidly.
His thoughts raced. He finally decided on a "Backroom Deal."
He knew that the Dionysian Spear, its true name, Gungnir, was symbolic, was closely linked to its owner. His link to it was even closer than Russ's had been in his memory.
When Russ had deliberately lost it, it had returned to him in a gentler, more logical way.
During the Heresy, he had left it with Malcador, and Constantin Valdor had brought it back to him aboard the Hrafnkel.
After several times "losing" it, when it left his side for a certain distance, it would return to his hand the next day.
'Golden Man, the moment to test your forging skill has come.'
'Grant me the power to get things for free, like you do!'
As he thought, his newly restored psychic energy spread outward.
Grey threads of law enveloped the area. The rocks and fireballs briefly paused. He shouted in Dunnic.
"I offer this item in exchange for peace." As he spoke, he hurled the Dionysian Spear into the rocks.
His wings beat, rapidly retreating.
He watched as rocks layer upon layer wrapped around the spear. The spheres scattered.
The star's light stabilized at red giant. The captured spheres resumed their fixed orbits.
The pounding beyond the veil ceased. The Warp storm subsided. The void returned to calm.
As his psychic energy partially restored, the stabbing pain in his temples eased. His mind raced.
'Whether a "Backroom Deal" succeeds does not depend on spiritual energy. The power I used was insufficient to appease its wrath.'
'The key was the Dionysian Spear.'
Considering the details, he noted a previously overlooked point.
A "Backroom Deal" during combat, when creating a peaceful environment, cannot affect the opponent's state.
But he had taken part of its spiritual imprint, and the vessel for its "Restart" resurrection ability. That clearly affected its state.
Under such conditions, it would be nearly impossible to get the opponent to "agree."
'Hmm, my "Backroom Deal" has qualitatively improved from my advancement, and from what I know.'
'This must be due to the potion materials I used, all far exceeding the basic requirements.'
As he thought, he put some distance between himself and the spheres.
He stared at the spheres, thinking to himself.
'This wasn't a wasted trip. I got the "Winner" potion materials.'
'There are more potion materials on the other spheres. Even the spheres themselves are miraculous.'
'But I cannot continue. This would completely enrage the ancient deity, likely Ouroboros.'
He decided to return when he was stronger, when he could deal with Ouroboros. He returned to the Shadow's Sovereignty.
As he landed on the flight deck, he saw Arsena waiting.
Seeing the Black Emperor, Arsena breathed a sigh of relief. He felt his previous concern had been unnecessary.
'How could my Lord come to harm? He granted us eternal life.'
"Set course for Vostroya."
The Shrine region, near the Maw's edge, was relatively safe. The Navigators could return.
This was also an excellent opportunity to gain experience. After the Heresy, one of his goals was the Calixis Sector and the Koronus Expanse.
Of course, if he successfully won over Perturabo, he would give him the more remote Koronus Expanse, which would be outside the view of other Imperial factions for a considerable time.
After returning the Pegasus ring to his private armory, he went to his office, then to the Kingdom of Disorder.
He went to the seventh layer, gazing at the God's Favors bound in chains of threads of law, contemplating how to deal with the spiritual imprint within.
.....
If you enjoy the story, my p@treon is 30 chapters ahead.
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