Chapter 126 War Council

Taking into account the sheer size and raw power of the Silent King Szarekh’s military, Vane had Big E rally all the Primarchs and any nearby Imperial forces. As a result, an absurdly massive Imperial armada assembled in Mesmoc, a system sitting right on the edge of the Nephilim Sector.

By the time Vane and Big E arrived, plenty of Imperial troops had already set up shop in the system, having used the Webway and the obsidian highway tunnels to get there fast.

A few days later, the Primarchs started dropping in one by one. Worth noting, Sanguinis actually showed up. She had completely dumped her duties on the Imperial Fists and the Custodes, claiming that playing security guard for a warp highway was way too boring.

Once all the Primarchs were gathered, a massive banquet kicked off to boost everyone’s morale. The atmosphere hit a fever pitch the moment the Primarchs walked in. Anyone lucky enough to snag an invite to this event felt an overwhelming sense of glory. They were very lucky, getting to witness the grand spectacle of nine Primarchs reunited in one room.

The hype peaked when Vane and Big E finally made their entrance. Countless people bowed, screaming pledges of loyalty at the top of their lungs. A few guys literally passed out from the excitement. It took the combined efforts of the Custodes and the Astartes to keep the crowd under control and stop the banquet from devolving into a fanatical riot.

After the brief chaos settled down, Vane, Big E, Guilliman, Sanguinius, and the rest of the Primarchs gathered around the center of the banquet hall. A circular hololith table hummed to life, weaving hard-light projections into a detailed 3D map of the Nephilim Sector.

“We called you all here for one reason: to take down the king of the Necrons, Szarekh, and the Sautekh Dynasty’s overlord, Imotekh.” As Vane spoke, the projector whirred, pulling up two separate profiles displaying the intimidating figures of Szarekh and Imotekh. “After that, we’re going to prop up this little Necrontyr, Ahotekh, as the new Necron Overlord.”

Vane pointed to the small Necrontyr standing next to Trazyn. After a battery of tests and trials, this particular Necrontyr had come out on top, making him Vane’s hand-picked choice to lead the next generation of their race. (TL/N: He apparently made a number of them off screen)

Ahotekh’s parents were literal bottom-tier Necrons without a drop of noble blood in their mechanical veins. Making him the leader was guaranteed to piss off the Necron elites, but it would also shatter their arrogant bloodline-based hierarchy. It was a guaranteed way to force a massive social revolution on the new Necrontyr race. At the very least, it would stop things from reverting to the way they were before the War in Heaven, where commoners were just tossed into the meat grinder as fuel for the dynasties without any basic rights. Even xenos needed a healthy dose of democracy, equality, and freedom in this new era.

If it was a shithole before I got here, and it’s still a shithole after I’m here, then what’s the point of me even showing up? Vane thought to himself. Did I cross universes just to play basketball and drop rap verses with these guys?

“During this war, we absolutely have to watch out for the effects of the Pariah Nexus,” Vane said, turning his gaze toward Trazyn. “I’ll let the head curator of the Solemnace Galleries take it from here and explain exactly what the Nexus does.”

Everyone’s eyes shifted to Trazyn, making the Necron Overlord feel a brief flash of shame. He was literally a race traitor now, helping humanity curbstomp his own people. But then he remembered that propping up Ahotekh would essentially make him the mouthpiece for the new Triarch, and that tiny speck of guilt was instantly tossed out the window. When the dust settled, he was absolutely going to blackmail every major dynasty into handing over their most historically significant artifacts.

“The Pariah Nexus is a masterpiece crafted by the Technomandrites,” Trazyn began. “Back during the War in Heaven, the galaxy was literally torn apart. It was the Void Dragon who originally extracted Blackstone and handed it over to the Technomandrites so they could build a network to suppress the Warp.”

Hearing this, the mini Void Dragon puffed out its chest, looking incredibly smug. Look at that, my masterpiece. Pretty badass, right?!

Trazyn shot the former god a look of sheer disgust before continuing. “The Blackstone pylons emit a specialized frequency that suppresses the Empyrean, completely severing the connection between realspace and the immaterial universe.”

“If your connection to the Warp is too strong, humans turn into psykers and immediately become prey for Warp gods and demons. But without any touch of the Warp at all, a human soul simply stops working,” Trazyn explained. “Astropathic communication, Warp travel, psychic powers—all of it becomes useless. Even your very souls will wither away without the ambient energy of the Warp.”

“So, basically, the Necrons want to exterminate all life in the galaxy to maintain their dominance?” Dorn was the first to speak up.

“No… no,” Trazyn shook his metallic head. “Not the Necrons as a whole. Just Szarekh. He abandoned our race eons ago, and now he’s back, trying to reclaim his old throne.”

Vane pointed back at the hololith. “The mission this time is simple: wipe out Szarekh, the architect of the Pariah Nexus, and take out his main rival, Imotekh, while we’re at it.”

“Aren’t those two enemies?” Corax asked, looking thoroughly confused.

“They are, but Imotekh’s political agenda is just as dangerous to us,” Vane explained. “Neither of them has any intention of coexisting peacefully with humanity, which means they both have to go. Then, we prop up Ahotekh and force a peaceful coexistence between our two races.”

The Primarchs really didn’t understand why the Forefather was so hellbent on playing nice with the xenos. But since he was giving the orders, it wasn’t their place to argue. They all just nodded in agreement.

Next up was the briefing for the war effort.

Archmagos Cawl’s new tech had already been rolled out across the board. Brand-new vehicles and Primaris Space Marines had been distributed to the various legions, massively jacking up the Empire’s military power. The establishment of the Pantheon meant human psykers could now bind themselves to a Primarch, effectively shielding them from being hunted by Warp demons.

With that massive threat out of the way, psychic hit squads and Astartes Librarians were being deployed on a massive scale. Even if their military tech was slightly behind the Necrons, the tactical genius of the Primarchs would more than make up the difference in an all-out war.

The Primarchs received their specific assignments. Some were tasked with intercepting other Necron dynasties to stop them from reinforcing the Silent King. Others were ordered to sever supply lines and sabotage military deployments. A few even got the green light to raid the Necron reanimation crypts, ensuring the metal skeletons stayed dead for good.

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