Finally reached 1000 Powerstones!!
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"Curse of Binding prevents the equipped armor from being removed. It binds to you until the wearer dies or the item breaks."
Zeke hurriedly dispelled the Ultramarine's urge to try the helmet on.
"Trust me, you don't want to test that."
In the game, it was a classic prank: rig a Dispenser to forcefully equip a carved pumpkin with the Curse of Binding onto an unsuspecting player. Once it was on, their vision was restricted to a tiny, pumpkin-shaped slit, and they couldn't take it off. It was nasty work.
"Wait..." The Ultramarine paused, a sudden realization dawning on his face. "Isn't that just a Dreadnought?"
Zeke blinked.
Dreadnoughts were the Imperium's walking tombs. Space Marine heroes who suffered fatal wounds were amputated and sealed inside a sarcophagus to pilot a war machine. It was eternal service that continued long past the point where death should have offered release.
Listening to this, Zeke felt a bit awkward. When you put it that way, the comparison was uncomfortably accurate.
"Yeah... pretty much," Zeke admitted. "And since a Grindstone can't scrub this curse, your helmet is basically bricked."
Leaving the soldier to mourn his helmet, Zeke turned his attention to the real prize: the Armor of Fate.
He approached the Enchanting Table and began throwing every max-level enchantment he had at the masterpiece. Archmagos Cawl had created the armor with top-tier technology and materials, but Zeke was about to break its limits.
In addition to a massive 50 Defense Points and a permanent Regeneration V buff, it also provided Zeke with the ability to survive in a vacuum.
Zeke was now space-worthy.
With his block-person constitution, he suspected he could probably survive space in the flesh anyway, but he had never been keen on testing that theory. Who would choose to spacewalk without a suit if they didn't have to?
–
The next day, the skies above Macragge were streaked with the contrails of countless ships.
The news of Guilliman's resurrection had spread—perhaps intentionally. Dozens of Ultramarines Successor Chapters braved the perils of the Warp to come here, swearing allegiance to the Primarch, desperate for just a glimpse of his glory.
Bolstered by Imperial reinforcements and Zeke's magical enchantments—Bolters with Infinity and Chainswords with blinding Fire Aspect—the tide turned. The Chaos Daemons on Macragge didn't just lose; they were routed.
The Ultramarines retook the fallen Fortress of Hera and drove the filth from their world. The front line pushed back, forcing Chaos to curl up and defend the fringes of the Ultramar System.
However, the Great Enemy was not idle. The news of Guilliman's return reached the ears of his fallen brothers.
In the Garden of Decay, Nurgle and Mortarion boiled with rage; unprecedented and terrifying plagues were brewing, ready to descend upon the Imperium.
In the Warp, Magnus the Red was amused. He laughed heartily, foreseeing Guilliman's future journey to Terra. He summoned his Thousand Sons, preparing a "gift" to present to his brother halfway.
And on Macragge, Slaanesh and Fulgrim's spy, the Consul, prepared to hold a grand victory parade.
–
A magnificent triumph was arranged, stretching from the Titan's Gate all the way to the Fortress of Hera.
Salvoes of gun salutes thundered in the sky. Zeke walked along the procession route, watching thousands of war engines arranged neatly on both sides.
The Ultramarines marched in perfect formation, shouting battle cries. The city of Macragge seemed empty, for every citizen had poured out to gather at the intersections. Thousands of shouts converged into glorious hymns.
"Praise the Emperor!"
"Praise the Four-Armed Emperor!"
Wait a minute. Zeke stopped. Something wrong mixed in there.
Before he could point it out, an Ultramarine hauled the man shouting about the "Four-Armed Emperor" out of the crowd.
[Disguised Genestealer]
Zeke read the nametag floating above the struggling man.
"There are Genestealers on Macragge too?" Zeke whispered to the Chapter Master.
"These stubborn xenos lurk in almost every corner of the Imperium," Calgar replied grimly.
The Primarch and his officers stood atop a massive parade vehicle, inspecting the procession. Zeke, standing nearby, scanned the crowd with a Spyglass, beginning his own work.
"Second row, third guy," he whispered to Calgar.
Calgar silently recorded the person's location on a dataslate.
Zeke reported locations one by one, cross-referencing the red dots on his World Map. There were quite a few disguised Chaos agents hiding in the throng.
"There's one in the alley directly opposite the fiftieth row."
As he focused the glass, a flash of yellow at the end of that alley caught Zeke's eye. It looked incredibly familiar.
"Wait a moment, Chapter Master. I see something cool."
Zeke jumped off the parade vehicle and headed toward the alley.
Calgar handed the dataslate with the targeted locations to an Ultramarine below. Receiving the orders, the soldier signaled his battle-brothers. They merged into the crowd, beginning the silent cleanup operation.
–
In the alley, a father and daughter looked up, their eyes fixed on the glorious silhouette of the Primarch.
Two Ultramarines walked toward them. The man didn't even have time to react before he felt a vice-like grip on his arms. He was lifted into the air effortlessly.
One Astartes on each side, they controlled him firmly, dragging him into the deeper darkness of the alley.
The daughter stood there, bewildered. She shouted in the direction where her father had vanished.
"Papa? Will you come back for dinner tonight?"
No one answered.
The little girl tilted her head, and slowly, an expectant smile revealed itself.
She remembered.
It was like this last time, too, in this very alley. Her father had been taken away by two people in black robes. Since then, her father had seemed like a different person—taciturn, secretive, always hiding in the shadows.
So, Papa was taken away again.
When he comes back... will he be his old self?
Will he turn back into the Papa who used to secretly slip her precious pieces of candy?
Her thoughts were innocent. Comforted by this logic, she hummed a little tune, watching Guilliman's receding figure.
"Louder, kid. No one will hear you muttering like that."
Zeke leaned against the alley wall, looking down at her.
"I'll teach you." Zeke grinned, his mischievous side taking over. "Run in front of that big car and shout 'Praise the Emperor!' as loud as you can."
Leaving her with that advice, Zeke walked toward the end of the alley, where a pile of yellow blocks was stacked.
Dry Sponges.
"Who lives in a pineapple under the sea?" Zeke muttered, switching to a hoe to harvest them.
–
Thinking of the strange big brother's words, the little girl timidly took a step. A pebble under her foot tripped her, stumbling her forward and helping her take the final step out of the shadows.
The small figure weaved through the forest of legs, breaking through the last wall of spectators.
On the vehicle, Guilliman was raising his hand slightly to greet the populace. He was somewhat disinterested, his mind occupied with yesterday's meeting with Zeke.
Discovering the child who had broken the line, the guards immediately went on alert. The little girl looked up; the guards narrowed their eyes.
She only remembered what the strange man in the alley said.
So, she used all her strength to send her childish voice into the sky.
"Praise the Emperor!"
The officers on the vehicle were visibly stunned. Immediately, several of them glanced intentionally or unintentionally toward the alley where Zeke was lurking.
A capable-looking female officer reacted fastest. She jumped off the vehicle, walked up to the little girl, and lifted her high into the air.
"Look! The future of the Imperium! Even such a young child knows to offer the purest praise to the God-Emperor!" she proclaimed. "This is the faith of our Macragge!"
Guilliman felt an indescribable bitterness in his heart. He hadn't expected that after ten thousand years, the worship of his father had reached such a fanatical level.
Father, look at what you have done. The very thing you tried so hard to prevent is now the foundation of the Imperium.
The female officer handed the girl to soldiers below the stage. "The Imperium will not mistreat anyone with loyal faith."
They left the noisy center, taking the girl toward a prosperous building at the end of a small path—a better life than the alley, at least.
–
Back in the alley, Zeke placed a Bucket of Water.
He then placed a Dry Sponge next to it.
Instantly, the water vanished.
Zeke nodded, satisfied. He threw the wet sponge into a furnace to dry it and repeated the process. The absorption range was about seven blocks.
Actually, "absorbing" wasn't quite the right word. The water simply ceased to exist the moment it touched the sponge. Any moist object touching it would be sucked dry in an instant.
Interesting stuff.
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Next Goal = 1100