† You cheating bastard, Cegorach! Personally intervening against my daughter, are you? †
That eerie laughter from moments ago was unmistakably the voice of the Aeldari Laughing God.
To put it simply, the Aeldari have their own pantheon. Led by Asuryan the Phoenix King, there were once many gods, but after the birth of Slaanesh, only three remained.
They are Khaine the Bloody-Handed God, Isha the Mother Goddess, and Cegorach the Laughing God.
Among them, Khaine was shattered into fragments during the struggle between Khorne and Slaanesh, Isha was imprisoned by Nurgle, and only the Laughing God remains as a true god in hiding, plotting for the future of the Aeldari race.
Clearly, Cegorach was after Melina's corpse—or rather, the Spirit Stone of a High Farseer and the Wraithseer Titan. Such prizes were worth a personal intervention by the Harlequins. As long as the stone was placed within another Wraithseer, it would become a pillar of Aeldari strength, difficult to destroy even if several Greater Daemons of Slaanesh arrived in person.
The Harlequins completely ignored the Queen of Blades, rushing toward Melina's location at maximum speed.
However, upon closer inspection, they didn't entirely ignore her. As the Queen of Blades moved to pursue, she realized that countless invisible monofilament wires had been laid across the rooftops ahead, sealing her off from the Harlequins.
† These bastards! †
She had almost fallen for it. These nano-filaments were sharp enough to slice through anything; even a Wraith-construct would be severed if it charged through, let alone the Queen of Blades.
In that brief moment, the Harlequins had already pulled away.
The Swarm immediately gave chase, and units further ahead began intercepting. Yet the Harlequins didn't slow down; instead, they broke through the encirclement while dancing through their advance. Their speed was preposterous, their footwork as graceful as a ballet—it was no wonder they had managed to inflict casualties on the Custodes when they once broke into the Imperial Palace.
The Overmind seemed to discern their intent. He took control of the nearest Zerglings and snatched away the Spirit Stones of the Wraithseer and Melina. These stones were meaningless to him, as the Zerg could not utilize them. Only the Aeldari could.
The Harlequins arrived at Melina's body, but the moment they turned the High Farseer over, they saw the Spirit Stone on her chest was gone.
This time, even the Laughing God likely couldn't find the humor in it.
Meanwhile, the Queen of Blades descended from the sky, catching up to the Harlequins.
" Die, you clowns! " she cursed in the Aeldari tongue, psionic energy gathering in her hands.
A figure stepped out from among the Harlequins, wearing a smooth, mirror-like mask. Based on the curves of the body, it was a Shadowseer—a presence similar to a Farseer.
† I want to see just how capable you really are! †
The Queen of Blades unleashed a burst of psionic force. The Shadowseer raised her staff, using her own psionic power to resist. While the Shadowseer was strong, she was far inferior to the Queen of Blades and was forced back the moment they made contact.
But as the chosen of the Laughing God, she possessed divine protection. As the giggling of Cegorach echoed in the air again, the Harlequins threw down smoke-bomb-like gadgets, vanishing instantly. The smoke was infused with psionic energy, disrupting the Queen of Blades' scans.
† If I can't find you with psionics, I'll find you physically. Overseers, find them! †
Under the Overmind's command, the massive single eye of an Overseer immediately began tracking the Harlequins' trail. The Queen of Blades soon found them again; they were retreating rapidly toward another, closer Webway gate.
† Don't even think about escaping!!! †
The Overmind was even more direct. He controlled the Zergling holding Melina's Spirit Stone, having it wait ahead of the Harlequins.
With their keen vision, the Harlequins spotted the shining stone instantly. The Swarm's behavior was so deliberate that before the Harlequins could strike the Zergling to seize the stone, the Shadowseer stopped her companions.
The Shadowseer stepped forward and asked, "What do you want?"
She wasn't talking to the Zergling, but to the supreme consciousness behind it.
The Zergling didn't answer. Instead, it looked up at the sky as the Queen of Blades slammed down once more, blocking the Harlequins' path.
"This time, you won't—"
Just as she was about to strike, the Overmind's will echoed in her mind. The psionic energy in her hands dissipated, and she looked at the Harlequins, saying, "You've just been granted your lives."
This time, the Overmind didn't kill them immediately because he had a very personal question he wanted answered. The Laughing God guarded a special place known as the [Black Library], where it was said the answers to all questions could be found.
"The Swarm wishes to speak with you," the Queen of Blades conveyed.
"What do you want?" the Shadowseer asked warily.
"An answer. The Swarm wishes to speak with the Laughing God."
Neither the Shadowseer nor the Queen of Blades was surprised that the Swarm knew of the Laughing God; after all, the Queen of Blades was originally a Drukhari.
The Shadowseer hesitated for a moment. Then, her tone changed visibly. The soft, feminine voice of the Aeldari woman was replaced by a magnetic, masculine voice laced with giggles.
The Shadowseer tilted her head and said, "I am here."
"If you want that Soul Stone, you must answer the Swarm's question. "
"If it is a question I can answer, I shall tell you all I know."
A surge of psionic energy was channeled through the Queen of Blades directly into the Shadowseer's mind, giving the Laughing God specific information.
†I want to know where these two races are.†
Indeed, he wanted to know the locations of the Protoss and the Terrans. As the famous "troll" of Warhammer 40K, Cegorach was involved in every major historical event. He often knew how things would unfold earlier than anyone else.
"Oh, them... I know of those warriors in golden armor. But they were exterminated ten thousand years ago."
†Exterminated? †
"Yes. Wiped out by that Human Emperor and his Great Crusade. Along with their homeworld Aiur, they were sucked into the Warp and have never appeared again."
What?
The Overmind was stunned. Was it true? Had the Protoss transmigrated ten thousand years ago and clashed with the Emperor?
The Overmind didn't even want to imagine the outcome of facing billions of Imperial Army soldiers, a million Space Marines, nineteen Primarchs, and the Emperor himself. The Emperor was far more terrifying than the Overmind.
† What about the other one? †
"I must have the Soul Stone first," the Laughing God bargained.
The Zergling walked over slowly and placed the Spirit Stone in the Shadowseer's hand. As her palm brushed the stone, she could feel the sleeping soul of Farseer Melina within.
"As for the other race, they are..."
The Shadowseer drew out her words. The Overmind instinctively sensed something was wrong, but it was too late.
The Shadowseer swung her staff, and a small Warp rift appeared behind the Harlequins. They retreated into the Warp one by one. The Overmind reacted, but he was too slow.
The Shadowseer was the last to enter the rift, and it closed behind her.
However, the Laughing God kept his word. Before the rift vanished, he provided his answer.
"In the far west of the galaxy, where the Emperor's light cannot reach."
The Overmind allowed the Harlequins to escape; they weren't important as long as he had his answer. As for their behavior—well, if the Overmind were in their position, he would also worry about being slaughtered after answering. Their actions were reasonable.
†The far west of the galaxy where the Emperor's light cannot reach? Where is that?†