As he grew older and time passed, Colus Colax had come to understand one thing.

From years of war, from the cult of fear and awe, he understood that being a genetic protogeny must mean taking on some kind of responsibility.

This responsibility does not change because you refuse or comply, it is always heavy as a mountain and its purpose is only one: to change you, or to be changed by you. Either you really take responsibility, or you are torn between your own nature and your duty.

At the same time, somehow, he also learned to look at the emperor separately from his father.

He knew that the emperor had created the genetic prototype to obtain tools, as simple and straightforward as a primitive man needed an axe made of stone to cut down a tree. The emperor's intentions are so obvious that they can even be called undisguised.

He hopes that the Genogens will learn to become weapons and tools to reshape the galaxy with their blades until they shape a bright future for humanity.

But the emperor was not just an emperor, he was also a father who was not very successful. That's the problem, he's not ruthless enough, and at the same time, he can't really get rid of being emperor when he gets along with them.

Every time he thought about it, Koraks felt an extreme irony. There are so many problems between the original and the emperor that arise from this, such as someone complaining that his father doesn't pay enough attention to him, or someone thinking that his father is partial to a brother.

It was hard for the Lord of the Ravens not to allow himself to have a negative attitude towards these thoughts, and it was a rare folly in his life to associate war with family ties.

But what can he do? He's also a member of this weird spiral.

At this moment, the stars twinkled outside the portholes, the ships were moving among the rubble and broken wreckage, and the fast strike ships were rapidly advancing in front of them, and the fighters on them would take some extreme measures to hunt down the enemy fleets that tried to stop them, and the assault boats would play a rather important role in this.

The fleet of the Steadfast Resolve and the Wardogs were firing crossfire on the flanks, it had just destroyed a cruiser, the Void Shield had been easily shattered, the hull twisted and had begun to crumble, and the entire ship had been disintegrated into countless iron slags from the bow onwards.

Corpses and living people swirled and flew out, and soon all of them were reduced to ice sculptures, to be run over by warships, and to be reduced to broken flesh floating in the dark universe.

The war has already begun.

The three legions that had come to Istefan III on a mission were now fighting each other, completely out of orbit on that planet. Two of them had already laid out their strategies, and the offensive intent was clear, but Horus Lupecal's Vengeful Spirit did not make any moves.

It stood still, waiting to be boarded, jumped, or destroyed like a wretched ship with its engine paralyzed.

Corax frowned, instinctively sensing that something was wrong. However, the sword is unsheathed, and if it is not stained with blood, it is not an option.

Twenty minutes later, they started jumping.

Hordes of assault boats rushed into the unresisted artillery positions of the vengeful spirits under overwhelming fire, and after firing several rounds of artillery fire, it was as silent as the dead in the streets on a winter night.

The sense of foreboding in Koraks' heart began to grow stronger, and his instincts were whispering quietly to him not to board the ship.

He would have done it if he could, but he never had a choice. Just like the uprising of the Alert Star, just like joining the Great Expedition, the choice was essentially a fictional lie, and what he was going to do was predestined from the beginning.

His character dictates that he will not sit idly by at such times.

The assault boat crashed into the deck of the Vengeful Spirit, and Corax and his killing ravens burst out of the burning fire. As far as the eye could see, there was blood and corpses almost everywhere.

The Sons of Horus tried to gain their advantage with a round of firepower, but Corax didn't give them that chance. The world slowed beneath his feet, all sounds elongated, and the primordial heart throbbed in flesh and roared lowly.

He rushed into the crowd and single-handedly created a brutal killing field.

With the lightning claws in his hand, Nostramo's deadly weapon, which was originally made of adamantite gold and crafted by Ferus Manus himself, finally ushered in the moment of scarlet bloom.

Corax calmly unleashed one bloody slaughter after another, extending the Crimson Path to the other end of the corridor in an instant. Flesh was crushed into mud by steel boots, stumps and severed arms hung all over the walls, blood splattered onto the ceiling.

The Sons of Horus were slaughtered by him in just five minutes, and the Raven Guards were accustomed to it. They dove into the shadows and begin to create mayhem, blowing up vital energy pipelines and plunging the deck into darkness.

Chaos was a match made in heaven for the Slayer who dwelt in the shadows, and the Lord of the Ravens left his colony and climbed all the way up.

Destroyed elevator shafts, artillery positions in flames, blown up emergency passages he passed through them one after another, his nasal cavity filled with a terrible stench.

Corpses or flames couldn't create the smell, it was something even more terrifying, and Corax could even faintly taste blood. He concentrated and briefly ignored the matter. At the same time, the surrounding landscape began to change.

The flames from the explosion were replaced by another pitch-black flame, the metal melting and deforming, burned to complete boiling heat with a wail, but the air was extremely cold.

The Lord of the Crows stopped, and judging by the eyepiece readings, he had climbed about thirty-seven floors. Even if he didn't know what deck the embarkation was on, he knew that he must be on a very high level at the moment, and the flames had not been visible at all in the lower levels.

A guess was born in Koraks's mind.

He looked at the flames, reversing the frequency of the communication channel in the shadow of his dwelling. After several attempts, he was connected to a new communication channel.

A rapid tick of warnings began urging him to upload his identification code, but instead of doing so, Corax made an unidentified emergency call that could only be used once.

"I'm on board." He said.

His voice is completely unaffected by any outside noise. At the same time, he did not reveal his identity, only this puzzling sentence.

The message is sent, the current is low and the noise is continuous, and a prompt pops up in the upper right corner of the eyepiece, indicating that he has been temporarily banned from speaking by this communication channel. Coraks waited patiently, not rashly choosing to send the identity code. The raven's emblem shone on the shoulder armor.

A few seconds later, with a crisp tick that signified the lifting of the ban, another voice rang in his ears.

"Karn has received it, Master Koraks, and I will transmit our location to you."

"Understood, how's my brother doing?"

"It depends on which one you're asking, my lord is fine, except for the lack of weapons and well-fitting armor. But Chemos's phoenix has been seriously wounded. ”

Corax was silent for a moment: "How is he? ”

"He can still walk, and he can give commands with clarity." Kahn said.

Koraks noted that he did not mention anything about the fighting.

The Raven Lord's heart sank for a moment - he didn't know who had been wounded by Fogham, and he had even lost the ability to fight, but there was probably only one person who could do it on Vengeful Spirit.

Horus.

He was still silent, but he didn't leave anything behind. Karn had sent the coordinates over, and he forwarded them to the crows, telling them to gather their follow-up troops, and he himself was speeding through the darkness.

At this moment, only by seeing Fogrem and Angrand with his own eyes could he settle down a little. However, while he kept his precious silence, the communication channel didn't seem to think so.

A strange sound began to ring within it, almost like a bell, only too dull, too dense.

Corax frowned, and Karn immediately began to warn, "My lord, our channel is by—"

"-hiss."

Crisp, direct, sudden. Like a fire being extinguished by a rainstorm, like a sleeping man pierced into the heart with a blade. Karn's voice was cut off, and Corax narrowed his eyes, waiting for a moment in the darkness, he already had a premonition.

"Hello guys, brother." A voice whispered through the channel, with Horus's usual gentleness. "It's a bit of a haste to meet like this, but it's good that I noticed that you're moving on my boat."

He let out a strange chuckle that wasn't Horus Lupecal's, it wasn't him.

"Especially you, Fugen, I'm so glad to see you healed. And you, Angelon, I have to thank you. Having three primordials board my ship at the same time is not something that can be done casually. What could be better than seeing our brothers reunited? To tell you the truth, I've already started to prepare a banquet, so please come to the main bridge and find me, okay? ”

He ended the conversation with a low, creepy laugh that sent chills down Corax's spine, but not because of Horus's obvious madness, but because of the sight in front of him

He saw that there was an extra door at the end of the corridor at some point, very high and very luxurious. A fine relief of gilt and silver depicts four giants being crowned.

Phoenixes, ravens, war dogs, and the wolf god in the center of the picture. His eyes are two scarlet gems and he wears a twisted laurel wreath on his head. Corax was pretty sure that just a few seconds ago, the door wasn't there.

Moreover, it was slowly opening, and a billowing black mist escaped from it. Corax's pupils shrank sharply, and he turned his head to retreat, but the darkness was enveloped in fog at this moment. All roads are gone, and only one remains.

A pristine white staircase with a brightly carpeted carpet. At the end of the road, a royal court was waiting patiently.

The Lord of the Ravens was silent for a moment, activated the Lightning Claw, and walked in without fear, the world distorted by a violent flash of light. In an instant, he left the burning deck and appeared in a true royal court.

Korakes had been here before, only once, but he did.

Frankly, it made a deep impression on him - no royal palace in the worldly sense could compare to the royal court housed in a battleship, and it was the most direct proof of Horus Lupecal's noble status and endless glory.

Now, that's changed.

Let's start with the most intuitive point, this place is now full of corpses hanging upside down. Pale and swollen, and bleeding from all sides. The ground was a dull red, and the dark trails penetrated deep into the deck, outlining a huge eight-pointed star.

In the center of the royal court, the throne of the wolf shepherd god shone brightly, and Horus Lupecar sat on it with a smile, the scarlet eyes of the white armor staring at him thoughtfully.

"Ah, you were the first to come, my dear crow." Horus affectionately spat out a salutation. "That's good, but I'm going to ask you to wait a moment, okay?"

He tilted his head and winked at Corax, looking relaxed and pleasant.

"Anyone hasn't arrived yet. We can't start the feast before Fogen arrives, he'll be angry about it. Moreover, without him, how can a banquet be called a banquet? ”

Korax did not speak, but remained silent. He observed the royal court, which was full of corpses, and two flashes of light rang out one after another around him.

Horus laughed happily and stepped down from his throne. He, as always, opened his arms enthusiastically, as if to give a hug.

"Fugen, brother!" He shouted. "You're well! Oh, Terra, at last! ”

"Horus." The phoenix threw the name from its hate-filled chest, its purple eyes burning with purple eyes.

"What's wrong?" The master of the royal court looked at him in confusion. "You're not going to hug me—ah, yes, too. After all, you've just recovered, and I didn't think it through. So, Angrand, what about you? ”

He smiled and took a step forward, opening his arms again to the bloody gladiator. The Nukerians stared at him grimly, shaking their heads slowly and coldly.

"Okay." Horus regretfully lowered his hand. "I won't ask you, Colax, after all, you've never been a fan of such overly violent expressions of emotion."

To this, the Lord of the Ravens replied with a gentle clash of lightning claws, sparks flying, and electricity frantically scurrying towards each other, thirsting for kill.

Horus looked at him appreciatively, looked away from him, and gestured to him.

"Do you know what I admire most about you? Your silence, Corax, I like this the most. Silence is an incomparably precious quality, and too many people only know how to babble without understanding the importance of keeping their mouths shut and doing things. But you're too silent sometimes, brother. Some people are silent in order to leave the word to their loved ones, but what about you, raven? And what is the purpose of your silence? ”

"Horus" Foggrim pronounced the name with trembling hands, interrupting the conversation between Horus and Corax, even though the latter had not even thought to answer.

Angrand sighed, and immediately stopped in front of him, faintly between him and Horus.

"What's wrong, brother?" Horus asked, the smile still on his face.

"What are your new requirements for banquets? Beverage? I've got Khan's steppe wine here, Robert's hometown wine, and cold wine from Nostramo, unless you want to drink Ruth's special—"

"—I don't want anything." Fogrem said. "Except for one thing."

Not surprised, Angron stretched his hands to his waist and grasped the two power swords. Corax lowered his body, his claws ready to strike, and the engine of the jumping backpack was already roaring. Horus looked at Fogham with a smile and asked softly.

"What do you want?"

There was no answer – because there was no need to answer in the first place. Forgrim's handsome face contorted with anger and hatred, and the veins on his neck erupted as he rushed toward Horus. Corax swooped down, descending from the sky, claws slamming into the head of the Lord of the Court. Angron sank his shoulders, his expression cold.

The battle began in an instant.

Vogrim was the first to leave the fight, his sternum dented and blood gushing down his throat. He lay on the ground, trying to get up with both hands, but he couldn't get off the ground.

Corax was the second, and Horus dodged the Raven Lord's thunderous attack faster than he could have imagined, and even had the strength to turn around and grab him with his backhand, slamming him to the ground as if he were wielding the World Breaker.

In an instant, Angron was the only one left on the field, and he first forced Horus to stumble a few steps to the side with a shoulder strike, and both swords came out and stabbed at the junction of the armor behind Horus's back.

The clash of gold and iron was harsh, and Horus turned around with a smile, his left claw sweeping through, forcing Angron to return to defend with his sword. At the same time, he threw a right hand in an attempt to punch Angrão in the face.

The gladiator had dodged this blow as expected, and even had the strength to slash back with his sword with his backhand. Horus raised his power claws in a slightly surprised way to fend off.

Corus Corax leapt from the ground in an instant, his claws whizzing across Horus's back. He had to eat the attack solidly, and his pace was slight.

Anglang seized the opportunity and rushed forward with a roar, and at this moment the twin swords stabbed Horus's head without reservation, far faster than lightning, and even distorted the air.

Faced with such a dead end, Horus smiled.

He stepped sideways, dodging the stab by a fraction of a second, and immediately bowed his head, dodging another surprise attack from the Lord of the Ravens.

The winds of the battle began to change, and Angron and Korax looked at each other, and both changed their style and pace, and began to turn the battle into a fight. Horus patiently accompanied them in their movements, his footsteps sounding softly in the royal court, and he was still smiling as he walked leisurely.

Phoenix struggled to get to his feet, but his body wouldn't allow him to do so. Blood flowed freely, winding and rugged across the ground, silently sinking into dark red and pitch black.

Somewhere in the eight-pointed star began to brighten.

And also

(End of chapter)