Shadow's Sovereignty, Third Layer Space.
Nareth picked up the Dice of Prophecy. Information rapidly flashed through his mind: reports gathered by "Polymath" Arsena leading the "Knowledge Keeper" from the Hrud's mycelial scrolls.
The Hrud from five worlds had migrated from the south of the galaxy to the Sak'trada Deeps. They recorded shadows blotting out the sky and the sudden appearance of countless daemons.
Traces of Be'lakor.
There might be fragments of his relic in the south of the galaxy.
Nareth held the massive Blade of Shadows in his left hand. The blade was hazy, constantly shifting between the real and the unreal.
The Blade of Shadows, the medium for divination, contained more power than any other relic fragment like the Eye of Shadows and was most intimately connected to Be'lakor, making it a far more suitable medium for divination.
After the known information rapidly flashed through Nareth's mind, he silently intoned:
'The star chart from the Kalium Gate to the world where Be'lakor's fragment resides.'
'...'
After intoning it eleven times, he tossed the triangular prism in his hand.
The triangular prism rose ever slower, as if shadows were tugging at it.
The triangular prism slowly ascended to its highest point and projected a vision.
Nareth memorized the star chart while feeling a sense of familiarity.
Suddenly, a flash in his eyes: a small part of the star chart overlapped with what he had seen at the war council.
"What a coincidence."
The destination the star chart pointed to was Hoff Albion.
One of the star systems controlled by the Forge World Valia-Maximal.
Nareth looked at the dim crystal and said helplessly: "The cooling time is going to get even longer."
After this exclamation, he moved his mind and returned to the real world.
Nareth opened his bedroom door and walked towards his office.
Suddenly, a buzzing sounded in his ear. He pressed his communication bead, and Arsena's voice rang out.
"My lord, Chief Navigator Wissel Visscher reports that the Shadow's Sovereignty is about to arrive at the realspace anchor point."
"The Master of the Astropaths reports that the Legio Vulcanum I arrived at Graia five standard days ago."
"The Second and Tenth Chapters have also completed their assembly as planned."
"I see." Nareth then walked down the walkway paved with black onyx.
Black specks reflected into his obsidian-like eyes.
At the end of the walkway stood Etrich in black armor, a long spear, even taller than his already large frame, slanted across his back.
The Dionysian Spear.
Etrich's responsibility now was not only to shield from the prying eyes of the Four but also to guard the Dionysian Spear.
As a negative Omega-grade, though he couldn't directly suppress the shadow the Emperor cast into the Warp, he could make the space around the Dionysian Spear like a black hole, isolating psychic prying.
Nareth did not ascend to the Thelema mindstate of mind. He allowed the pitch-black aura suppressing psychic power to waver around him, his skin occasionally feeling like it was being pricked by needles.
He used the negative Omega-grade Etrich as a black stone to temper his will.
Nareth strode towards the bridge, Etrich silently following the "Shining Golden Mountain."
The Honour Guards standing on either side of the obsidian walkway instinctively felt uneasy.
They gripped their weapons tightly, watching the black-armored warrior following their father.
Etrich was only two heads shorter than them, and his massive form moved silently, like a hunting vulture.
The uneasy atmosphere spread from the walkway to the bridge.
Wherever the black aura passed, officers' mouths and noses filled with the stench of copper. Their movements slowed, their fingers stretching into afterimages like marionettes under the lumen strip lights.
It wasn't until the Primarch sat on the Command Throne, with Etrich standing to his right, that the brief unease and panic vanished from the bridge.
There were no control consoles around the Command Throne, only Arsena standing there. He frowned slightly, enduring the discomfort of his book disappearing.
Since becoming a "Polymath," his Warp Image had become a scroll covered in runes.
The Primarch's attendant felt a buzz in his ear. He raised his hand to press it and then reported.
"My lord, we have translated to the real world."
He glanced at Etrich. This time, he didn't feel the scroll flipping rapidly.
He couldn't feel the presence of the Sea of Souls, nor could he feel the crossing from the Immaterium to the material realm.
The voice in Arsena's ear, with hair silver as snow, continued. He went on reporting.
"Father Mallevolus reports that, having arrived early, he has adjusted the armor sent by Lord Manuus. It can be worn immediately."
"Order him to deliver it at once."
After relaying the command, the Primarch's attendant continued.
"Graia has initiated the separation procedure. The Fabricator General invites you and the commander of the 'Dark Fire' Titan Legion to board the Crown of Graia once the fusion reactor is activated."
"I accept his invitation." Nareth rose. "Open the view shutters."
Motors hummed, and the louvered shutters on the viewport rose.
At the silent command of a servitor, the machine spirit influenced the glass, dimming the transmitted light.
The Primarch strode to the viewport, crossed his arms, and surveyed Graia with interest.
The orbital network platforms around the Forge World moved, crisscrossing.
Batteries rotated, missile launchers turned.
The orbital network platforms shifted and interlaced, converging and retracting like a tightening hedgehog back into the primary forge.
Massive mechanical legs braced against the planet's surface, lifting the body of the steel spider, Graia's primary forge.
Void ships circled in the surrounding space. Tugboats spouted tail flames, pulling steel chains to help the Crown of Graia break free from the planet's gravity.
Green Titans, the size of ants, stood among the forge facilities.
Black smoke belched from the primary forge, spilling into the void.
Even as the Crown of Graia broke orbit, the primary forge continued to rumble, ceaselessly manufacturing machinery.
Nareth watched the Crown of Graia separate until Arsena reported that Mallevolus had arrived.
Three standard hours later, Nareth donned the armor forged for him by Ferrus Manus.
He raised his right arm and stretched his body.
Click, click...
Nareth keenly felt, among the ten layers of laminations, the third and fifth layers pull and stretch, moving the width of a finger as he raised his arm.
Mallevolus, who had forged armor for Primarchs like Horus Lupercal and assisted Ferrus Manus in forging this set, stared at the armor with admiration.
"Lord Manuus personally forged these plates using the hearth of the Tarava tribe on Terra."
"He employed the Naloda technique, Baroque arcs on the chest plate, and the Corat technique on the back plate."
"The articulated laminating technique he used, I believe, must be related to his silver hands. It allows you to stretch your body as needed."
Upon hearing this, the "Mentor of Disorder" collapsed a section of his back, and his fingertips extended by the width of a finger.
With a click, the fourth layer of laminations stretched accordingly.
The "Mentor of Disorder" cautiously continued to test the limits of his body's stretch.
After a moment, Nareth spoke, satisfied with praise.
"Ferrus's forging skill is peerless."
This armor could allow his body to stretch and contract up to 1.86 times its normal size.
Though not reaching the 2.3 times limit he could achieve after digesting the "Mentor of Disorder" potion, it still allowed him to more fully utilize the beyonder ability of "stretching and extending" compared to before.
Nareth, donning his new armor, boarded an Aquila Lander and flew toward the Crown of Graia.
....
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