Several hours later, the High City had completely fallen.
The gold-armored soldiers who had once fought so fiercely atop its walls were now either lying dead in pools of blood or kneeling among the ruins, trembling in terror.
The false Emperor's armies, which had charged relentlessly through the city's streets, had been utterly crushed beneath the overwhelming advance of the Luna Wolves.
The red-robed priests who had once chanted prayers inside the palace were now being rounded up by Solar Auxilia soldiers, lined up as prisoners, and held to await judgment.
The entire city was burning.
Flames erupted from countless windows, illuminating the night sky as brightly as day.
Thick clouds of smoke and ash hung over the once-proud capital of the false Emperor, shrouding its ruined skyline.
Garviel Loken stood amid the remains of the palace's main hall, gazing toward the towering central spire in the distance.
His white power armor was splattered with blood.
Some of it was his.
Most belonged to his enemies.
His stern face remained expressionless.
Only his eyes betrayed the cold fury burning within him.
"Loken."
A familiar voice came from behind him.
Tarik Torgaddon approached at a brisk pace, his own armor covered in blood and grime.
There was no trace of the humor that usually defined his expression.
Only grim seriousness remained.
"We've secured the outer perimeter."
His voice was low.
"The prisoners are being rounded up and transferred into holding areas."
"The First and Fifth Companies are clearing out the remaining pockets of resistance."
"Abaddon and Aximand say they'll have everything under control within twenty minutes."
Loken nodded.
He said nothing.
His gaze remained fixed on the distant spire.
Torgaddon studied his face for a moment.
After two seconds of silence, he spoke again.
"Loken, about Sejanus..."
"I know."
Loken's voice was frighteningly calm.
"But we're still fighting a war."
"We can talk about it when the battle is over."
Torgaddon looked into those unnervingly composed eyes.
A sudden chill ran down his spine.
What was he sensing from Loken?
Killing intent.
An overwhelming desire to kill, suppressed so completely that it had become almost invisible.
Torgaddon said nothing more.
He simply nodded and quietly walked away.
Loken turned toward the central spire.
Taking a squad of Luna Wolves psykers with him, he entered the tower.
The interior was dimly lit, its vast corridors filled with deep shadows.
But Loken could see something moving within those shadows.
Assassins.
Invisible warriors were slipping between the pillars and elevated platforms of the spire.
Their outlines were clearly visible to him.
He knew they were supposed to be invisible.
After all, he'd already killed more than three hundred of them.
During the fighting around the ruins where Sejanus had supposedly died, during the first assault on the palace, and throughout the countless ambushes launched from the shadows...
Loken had discovered their secret through his own observations.
The invisible warriors weren't truly transparent.
Instead, they used some kind of optical camouflage that allowed them to blend almost perfectly into their surroundings.
But the technology had weaknesses.
When they moved at high speed, the camouflage devices suffered tiny delays.
Whenever they came under attack, their stabilizing fields would briefly malfunction.
And most importantly...
At the moment of death, their outlines became completely visible.
Loken had memorized those outlines.
The faint distortions.
The nearly imperceptible ripples in the air.
The subtle warping of light around their bodies.
Now, those invisible warriors had nowhere to hide from him.
Loken raised his bolter and aimed toward a shadow along the spire's middle level.
Three distorted figures were moving quietly through the darkness.
Their energy rifles were already trained on the Luna Wolves advancing below.
Loken pulled the trigger.
Three carefully aimed shots.
Three screams followed.
Three figures materialized out of the shadows, each surrounded by a sudden spray of blood.
The Luna Wolves below briefly looked up at the falling corpses.
Then they lowered their heads and continued advancing.
By now, they were accustomed to watching these supposedly invisible assassins get picked off one after another whenever Loken was nearby.
Loken lowered his bolter and continued toward the upper levels of the spire.
His pace wasn't particularly fast.
Yet every step carried an irresistible sense of momentum.
Every few meters, he would raise his weapon and fire at another hidden assassin.
One shot.
One kill.
Not a single round wasted.
Before him, the invisible warriors were like vampires exposed to sunlight.
There was nowhere left for them to hide.
By the time they finally realized that the white-armored Angel of Death could actually see them, it was already too late.
Countless invisible warriors fell throughout the tower, their bodies appearing from empty air as they died.
Blood stained the interior of the once-sacred spire.
Fifteen minutes later, Loken reached the highest floor.
A massive adamantium door stood before him.
It was tightly sealed, its surface engraved with elaborate heraldic designs.
The Luna Wolves psyker squad's final reconnaissance confirmed that the false Emperor's last refuge lay beyond it.
Loken raised a hand, signaling the warriors behind him to stop.
"Psyker Squad."
His voice rang through the corridor.
"Hold your positions outside."
"If anything suspicious happens, open fire immediately."
Several dozen Luna Wolves Astartes nodded and spread out around the entrance.
They established a tight defensive perimeter, watching every approach to ensure that no invisible assassin foolish enough to come near would get through.
Loken drew a deep breath.
Then he reached forward and pushed open the enormous door.
Beyond it lay a vast cylindrical chamber.
Its domed ceiling rose nearly a hundred meters overhead.
Countless glowing crystals were embedded in the structure, bathing the chamber in a soft radiance that gave the entire place a solemn, almost sacred atmosphere.
The center of the hall was empty.
But at the far end, before an enormous floor-to-ceiling window, stood an elderly figure.
He wore a golden crown adorned with three fist-sized gemstones that glittered beneath the crystal light.
A long purple robe draped over his body, its hem trailing across the floor.
Intricate golden patterns had been embroidered along the fabric.
The old man stood with his back to Loken, gazing out at the burning city.
He watched the collapsing palaces.
The crowds fleeing through the streets.
The countless ordinary humans struggling to survive amid the flames of war.
His lips trembled slightly.
A low murmur escaped his throat.
"Why..."
"I resisted you..."
"Why did you invaders have to come to humanity's..."
"Terra?"
His voice was hoarse, filled with profound grief.
"Life here was once beautiful..."
"Our people lived in peace and prosperity..."
"They believed in me. They worshiped me. They looked upon me as their god..."
"And then you came..."
"You white-armored daemons..."
"You brought your guns..."
"And destroyed everything."
His body trembled faintly.
Loken stood motionless, silently observing the elderly figure.
His gaze swept across the immense chamber.
Nobody else was there.
Only the old man in purple.
And an enormous golden throne.
The throne's backrest stood ten meters tall, its entire surface covered in gold and engraved with magnificent patterns.
Purple velvet upholstered the seat, while exquisitely crafted gemstones adorned its armrests.
It was a throne grand enough to inspire awe in almost anyone who looked upon it.
Loken drew his attention back to the old man.
He lowered his bolter and stepped forward, stopping ten meters behind him.
His voice was calm.
But the cold anger beneath it was impossible to conceal.
"You ask why we invaded?"
His fists slowly clenched at his sides.
"Then tell me why you murdered my brother."
"Sejanus."
"He came here in good faith."
"He came to negotiate, to offer you peace."
"He offered you a chance to join the Imperium with dignity and enjoy equal rights as Imperial citizens."
"And how did you repay him?"
Loken's voice suddenly turned icy.
"You ambushed him."
"You surrounded him with your soldiers."
"And ultimately, you killed him."
The elderly figure slowly turned around.
His face was deeply wrinkled.
His eyes were sunken, and his cheekbones protruded sharply beneath his aged skin.
An obsessive, almost fanatical light burned within his cloudy eyes.
"Good faith?"
His hoarse voice took on a shrill, bitter edge.
"You claim you came here in good faith?"
"You entered my star system and spoke down to me as though you were somehow superior..."
He raised a trembling hand and pointed at Loken.
"And you expect me to believe in your goodwill?"
"That brother of yours stood before me, lecturing me about the true Imperium and the true Emperor!"
"He called me a usurper!"
"He claimed my civilization had lost its way!"
"And then he demanded that I surrender everything and submit to some so-called Emperor I've never even seen!"
His voice rose higher and higher.
"WHY?"
"Why should I believe you?"
"Why should I surrender everything I've built?"
"I BUILT TERRA HERE!"
"I UNITED HUMANITY ON THIS WORLD!"
"I AM THE EMPEROR!"
"I AM THE RIGHTFUL RULER OF MANKIND!"
Loken listened without interrupting.
Only when the old man's shouting finally subsided did he speak.
His voice was calm, carrying an authority that left little room for argument.
His eyes remained fixed on the purple-robed figure.
"The battle has already been decided."
"Your armies have been defeated. Your city has fallen. Your people are prisoners."
"Even so, I still respect your position as the ruler of this world."
"I am willing to accept your surrender according to Imperial law."
"You will be brought before the Warmaster for judgment."
"And you will..."
His voice grew colder.
"Answer for what you did to the warriors of the Luna Wolves."
"I am ordering you to surrender."
A brief silence settled over the chamber.
Only the distant sounds of explosions and the crackling of fires outside disturbed the stillness.
The false Emperor studied Loken.
He looked at the blood-soaked giant standing before him.
Then the corners of his mouth lifted into a mocking smile.
"Heh."
"You could have simply left this star system."
His voice was hoarse, filled with resentment.
"You could have allowed us to survive on our own."
"To live our lives."
"To preserve our civilization."
"But you didn't."
"You chose invasion."
"You chose destruction."
He paused and met Loken's eyes.
"And that excuse about us murdering your Luna Wolves warrior..."
"That's all it is."
"An excuse."
"You would have invaded us eventually anyway."
"We merely fought back."
"What crime is there in defending ourselves?"
Loken's brows drew together.
His fists tightened.
For a brief moment, he wanted to argue.
He wanted to shout at the old man.
To tell him that Sejanus had genuinely come seeking peace.
That his brother had never intended to destroy this planet.
He had only wanted its people to join the Imperium, to become part of something greater and finally enjoy lasting peace.
But Loken said none of those things.
Because the old man's accusations contained an uncomfortable truth.
Whatever their intentions, the Imperium was invading this world.
They were destroying its civilization.
And the ordinary people dying amid the flames had indeed once lived peaceful lives.
Lives that the Imperium's arrival had shattered.
But that was the cruelty of war.
When both sides believed themselves to be righteous, righteousness ceased to matter.
Only opposing sides remained.
Only victory and defeat.
And ultimately...
Only those who survived would have the chance to tell their side of the story.
Loken drew a deep breath.
He forced down the emotions churning within his chest and kept his voice steady.
"I'll say this one more time."
"I, Garviel Loken, Captain of the Tenth Company of the Luna Wolves Legion, serving in the Imperium of Man's 63rd Expeditionary Fleet..."
"Order you to surrender."
The elderly figure studied him.
He looked into Loken's eyes, seeing the effort it took for the captain to remain composed.
Then he shook his head.
It was a small gesture.
But one filled with absolute determination.
"I will not surrender to a mere company captain."
He turned around and spread his arms toward the golden throne.
"I AM THE EMPEROR!"
"I AM THE MASTER OF ALL MANKIND!"
A trace of pride returned to his voice.
"If you want an Emperor to surrender, if you want an Emperor to cooperate in handing over an entire planet..."
"Then send your fleet's supreme commander."
"Have that man called Horus come here himself."
"I want to see whether he has the audacity to stand before me and call himself the Warmaster of the Imperium's Great Crusade!"
"As for you..."
"You aren't worthy of accepting my surrender."
Loken's frown deepened.
He was just about to respond when...
A low rumble suddenly sounded overhead.
Something was tearing through the dome.
Loken snapped his head upward.
Countless cracks were spreading across the enormous ceiling.
A second later...
BOOOOM!
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