Chapter 191: Angron's Smooth Diplomacy
"But it can resolve most of the differences," Lotala said, her voice carrying conviction.
"Enough." Angron's tone ended the debate, and the Primarch's word hung in the air like an edict. "Bring all the second-generation battleships. Sometimes you don't need a massive fleet to display power; you need vessels that embody dominion itself."
His gaze swept across his commanders. "The remaining first-generation battleships will continue to hunt those xenos and see them annihilated. Leave no trace of their corruption in our wake."
After further discussion, they divided the fleet. One contingent followed Angron into the Silver Heart while the other pressed on to complete its purge.
Raven departed with Angron, heading toward the galactic core.
The Silver Heart, the galaxy's luminous nucleus, exerted gravitational forces so immense that even the Immaterium's surface lay calmer here than elsewhere, and no warp storms clawed at reality's edge.
They entered the region with unusual ease.
The void rippled and tore, and with a flash of light, the Conqueror breached the barrier between the Warp and realspace.
"Raise the blast shields and begin information gathering," Lotala commanded.
The plasti-steel viewport shutters ascended with hydraulic precision, revealing the sight beyond that stole breath from even transhuman warriors.
Magnificent stars floated in the boundless dark, each spewing torrents of stellar flame into the void. Thick nebular matter crackled with plasma lightning, flickering across the cosmic expanse like synaptic fire.
The fleet's augur arrays swept the surroundings, and within moments, they detected signs of Kin activity, massive structures orbiting within and around the stars themselves.
Colossal constructions hung in the void while planets and stars were being dismantled by machinery, their fragments conveyed through vast pipelines into processing facilities.
"These Kin possess technology far exceeding most Human Empire colonies," Lotala said, scanning the data streams. "The Silver Heart's unique structure shielded them from the subspace storms that ravaged the rest of humanity, allowing them to retain much of their Golden Age heritage."
Kahn stroked the weapon at his waist. "I wonder what their attitude toward the Human Empire will be."
Chief Librarian Varius spoke with quiet certainty, his psychic consciousness extending through the aether. "They will join us."
"I hope so," Kahn said, uncertainty coloring his words.
Angron's voice resonated through the chamber. "It will be resolved peacefully." His words carried power that penetrated the hearts of all who heard them, as though fate itself had already been decreed.
"Detecting a fleet of twenty-five battleships!" The officer monitoring the detection systems called out.
Image feeds flooded the bridge displays, and Angron and his command staff studied the approaching vessels.
The Kin warships were iron-gray, their hulls marked by rugged lines that spoke of efficiency. Engines bloomed at their sterns with contained stellar fury, and the largest among them rivaled the Conqueror itself in mass.
Void shields flickered to life across their formation as light danced in the darkness and power cycled through their defensive grids.
Giant weapon batteries emerged from broadside mounts and bow positions while energy arrays glowed with barely restrained power, charged and ready to unleash devastating firepower.
The Conqueror and her sister ships sounded general quarters, and klaxons echoed through steel corridors.
"It seems the Kin have discovered us," Lotala observed.
Angron opened fleet-wide communications. "Attempt to establish contact."
The Kin maintained high vigilance as the human fleet approached their domain.
But war did not come.
After communication channels opened, Angron expressed peaceful intentions, and under his measured overtures, the Kin commander granted them an opportunity for negotiation.
The Conqueror hosted a ceremony of considerable grandeur, welcoming the envoys sent by the Kin.
Angron donned his most imposing ceremonial armor, a magnificent suit adorned with the honors of countless campaigns. A longsword hung at his side, paired with a finely crafted bolt pistol, and behind him stood a retinue of gladiators, each one a company champion who had emerged victorious from mountains of corpses and seas of blood.
Raven, as always, perched on Angron's shoulder, munching on fries and watching the proceedings with interest.
'Angron is quite good at putting on a show,' Raven thought.
If this were the predetermined fate of the original Warhammer 40K timeline, the other Primarchs would probably be beside themselves. "This is impossible! This is unscientific!" they'd cry.
Who would have thought that Angron, without the Butcher's Nails lobotomizing his empathy, could serve as a diplomatic envoy? His skill rivaled that of Sanguinius, Guilliman, or any other Primarch who favored diplomacy.
This time, Angron was in contact with the Greater Thurian League, one of the most powerful factions in the Silver Heart.
The League comprised over two hundred clans, each commanding vast void fleets and nearly inexhaustible armies of Kin. Organizations like Ingvar Unified Logistics, the Star Strider Trade Alliance, and the Deep Rock Mining Guild ensured the League's continuous operation and ever-broadening prosperity.
Beyond the Greater Thurian League, other Kin factions occupied the Silver Heart region, including the Pan-Hyperian Confederacy, the Kronos Hegemony, the Ymir Conglomerate, and the Urani-Surt Pact, commonly referred to as the URSR.
The hum of engines announced the arrival of a Kin vessel as it glided into the Conqueror's boarding deck.
Hydraulic mechanisms hissed, and the heavy hatch opened.
Ûthar the Destined stepped forth, wielding the Blade of the Ancestors, a weapon of legend among his people.
He was one of the Greater Thurian League's most powerful leaders, his merits carved into the annals of Kin history. Born into the Votann clan of the Abyss Gate, Ûthar's birth had been marked by prophecy when the Votann Core housed in the Ancestor Shrine had spontaneously spoken words of destiny.
The mechanical forging devices had activated unbidden, crafting the magnificent energy blade he now bore.
From birth, he had been granted the title of Destined and entrusted with the Blade of the Ancestors.
Behind Ûthar marched a cadre of equally formidable Kin warriors.
"It is a pleasure to meet you, Angron, Primarch of the Imperium," Ûthar said, approaching with measured steps.
Even without prior video communication, Angron's massive build and commanding aura made him unmistakable.
The Primarch extended his hand. "I am pleased as well, Ûthar."
"Your army is formidable," Ûthar observed, his gaze sweeping over Kahn and the assembled warriors. He could sense immediately that these men were elite veterans, each having clawed their way through mountains of corpses and seas of blood.
Pride flickered across Angron's features. "Even the most powerful army exists to protect the Human Empire's citizens."
Raven was momentarily stunned.
Little Angron and red really couldn't be separated, could they? Just a slightly different shade of red.
But if Khorne Red is red, then is Marx Red not red?
"Your virtue truly puts us to shame," Ûthar said, respect evident in his tone.
An army that prioritized protecting its citizens over honor or conquest commanded respect.
"Thank you for your praise. We come with peaceful intentions," Angron began, his voice taking on the measured cadence of a statesman. "After the Age of Strife, human civilization was fragmented and plunged into crisis."
"The Human Lord rose from Terra, salvaging the crumbling edifice of our species. He expelled the xenos, confronted the gods themselves, and established the Human Empire. Now, the galactic war nears its conclusion, and humanity's dominion over the galaxy is inevitable, the prevailing trend of our age."
"Learning that a branch of humanity established civilization here in the Silver Heart, the Human Lord sent me to negotiate. We hope you will peacefully join the Human Empire and avoid unnecessary conflict."
Ûthar's gaze sharpened.
"So your so-called peaceful purpose is to demand the Greater Thurian League submit to your Human Empire?"
"Not just the League," Angron said plainly. "All factions should submit to the Human Empire."
"What Arrogance!!" Ûthar's voice hardened. "Why should we submit to the Human Empire, and not the Human Empire submit to us? You are merely children picking through the remnants of the past, while we have continuously inherited and preserved most of our ancestors' knowledge and technology."
"From any perspective, we are more fitting inheritors of humanity's legacy than you."
Angron met Ûthar's gaze without flinching, and after a moment of silence, he spoke with absolute conviction.
"Because the Imperium of Man is more powerful." His answer was simple and direct.
"You are direct, at least, and did give an irrefutable reason," Ûthar acknowledged, looking up at the towering Primarch without fear. "But how will you prove it? Power isn't merely spoken into existence."
"You will see." Angron took a single step toward Ûthar. The surrounding space twisted and folded, and suddenly they appeared near a star.
In the distance, particle extractors belonging to the Greater Thurian League mined stellar matter, drawing vast streams of fire and feeding them into massive converters that produced rare substances.
"Space transfer? Interesting," Ûthar said, his tone suggesting he was unimpressed. "But if you expect the Greater Thurian League to submit based on this parlor trick, you're being naive."
"Have you ever seen a star extinguished?" Angron asked calmly. "Remember what you are about to witness. This is the true power of the Human Empire."
Raven turned to look at Angron, surprise evident on his face. 'Wow, one really should look at a scholar with new eyes after three days apart.'
'Was Angron really this smooth at flexing?'
Angron extended his hand, activating the World Eater engine within him.
Before their eyes, he demonstrated the immense power he commanded.
The star flickered, like a light bulb with a loose connection, then it went out.
Internal nuclear fusion ceased, and the star's massive volume lost the outward pressure supporting it against gravity's pull. It collapsed inward.
Pressure caused a catastrophic implosion, and the star collapsed into a nova.
Its dimmed surface reignited, releasing light thousands of times brighter than before, a death scream of stellar proportions.
After several heartbeats, the nova extinguished again. It collapsed further, then reignited once more.
After several such cycles, the star died completely, becoming a rapidly rotating neutron star.
The surrounding space was cut away with surgical precision, compressed to the size of a palm, and fell into Angron's outstretched hand.
Within a crystalline barrier, a neutron star spun with impossible fury, confined.
"This is a gift for you," Angron said, presenting the spatial cube imprisoning the star to Ûthar. "It will be a testament to our friendship."
Ûthar's eyes widened, and his jaw hung open. He felt like he was dreaming; it felt completely unreal.
A star, compressed to fit in the palm of his hand. he reached out and took the cube from Angron's hand.
"A star, it's really a star, I am holding a star in my hand."
The other Kin witnessed the scene, personally watching a star taken away as casually as plucking fruit from a tree.
Ûthar's communicator erupted with incoming messages as countless factions demanded to know what had occurred.
"Now," Angron said, looking at the stunned Ûthar, "has it been proven that the Human Empire is stronger than you?"
[End of Chapter]
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