Somber and soft music played as the image of a servo skull writing upon a parchment with a quill pen, the single red optic staring at them as the gothic backgrounds were lit in fire before a gruff, yet soft voice began speaking.
"That's ominous." Nami muttered, the setting was giving her bad vibes.
"In the grim darkness of the future, there are many tales of heroism, of defiance against all odds, of nations and people who have clung to existence by dint of their courage and tenacity alone when all have sought their destruction, of fiends and villains, of wickedness and malice, of horror and strife. But ever have the most heinous and compelling been the stories of jealousy, greed, and the treachery from which they spring. Brother slaying brother, sister slaying daughter."
"Now I am really worried." Nami said.
The Night Raid collectively couldn't help but feel some familiarity to this presentation.
Sabo and his comrades were of the same mindset as well.
"Yet in all the annals of the grim darkness of the future, there are few that display the cold, callous reality of those terrible times more than this dark song. For if the Emperor could shed a tear for each great treachery, each time his will has been suborn, his bright and glorious design for humanity's safety and prosperity gone awry; then surely one of the bitterest tears would be for this tragedy."
"Oh, boy." Flash said.
"Welcome, gentle listener as the league of law present for your delectation: one of the most lamentable of ballads. Welcome to the history of the planet and people called... Krieg."
Then the words, THE DEATH KORPS OF KRIEG, appeared in giant bold white letters. It slowly faded to white before it showed a black screen with a head covered in a gas mask with red tinted lenses and a helmet with a winged skull emblem on the forehead and a small pike on the top as the sound of heavy muted breathing was heard as if through a gas mask before it faded to white.
A lot of the audience were worried and unsettled at the heavy breath of the soldier in front of them, feeling like something terrible was coming.
"Krieg? Doesn't that mean in German…" Izuku contemplated.
"War? Yes it does." Batman responded.
"A planet called war in a galaxy full of war? I don't like the sound of that." Gray Fullbuster said.
"That mask was scary…" Ruby admitted.
It then showed a beautiful planet with towering spires that reached nearly to the exosphere, armed with an assortment of guns and turrets bound to a heavy fleet of ships.
"Whoa!" Luffy said with sparkling eyes at the beauty of the planet, along with Usopp and Chopper and several others.
Baldermort spoke again, "In the Imperium of Mankind, the empire which spans the Milky Way Galaxy of the grim darkness of the future, which is said to contain a million worlds, there were few that could match the planet of Krieg; a hive world with towering mega-cities that caressed the skies, each with subterranean vaults that bore deep into the ground. But outside of these sprawling hubs, the skies were blue, the fields were green, beneath the ground lay rich deposits of minerals and metals aplenty."
The scene changed to show various space ports and gun turret satellites orbiting the planet as various ships came and went.
"Above it, in orbit, the world was encircled by satellites for its defense, ports for its many commercial ventures, a mercantile world at the very heart of its region of space. A world of wealth and plenty, almost unheard of elsewhere in the Imperium."
The audience were impressed by the sights they saw.
The scene changed to slow a white Hive tower, glimmering in the sunlight much to the awe of some of the audience.
"Alas, for with their growing affluence, prestige, and power, came the slow creep of the greatest of rots, the most cardinal of sins: Pride. The world's teeming citadels were each ruled by a single family, often a single man or woman, and as is universally known, pride goeth before the fall. For the ruling elite became enamored of their power, jealous of their wealth and prestige, and slipped along the path towards isolationism, petty grudges, Machiavellian courtly intrigues."
Sabo frowned, being reminded of his parents and the World Nobles.
Likewise Night Raid looked at each other with understanding. Krieg had gone down a similar path to the Empire.
"They built their defenses, forging nye impregnable bastilles of their Hives, begrudging the resources that were tides to the Imperium. They never saw that their prosperity was brought by the sacrifice of others, due to them never seeing the horrors which the Imperium's armies fought. They could not encompass their place within the whole, the dire need for the interior of the Imperium to sport the neverending wars fought on its fringes."
The scene changed to a massive place that seemed to span for miles, resembling a polymerization of Greek and renaissance architecture painted in gold and blue. It slowly zooms into the gates, etched with an arched star-like design on the top frame, an angelic figure holding a sword pointed to the ground engraved on the parting doors, with twin griffin statues guarding the entrance.
"And so, we visit the birthplace of the crime, where it all begins. The scene: a palace of astonishing opulence at the top of the highest of spires, in the largest of the hives, the home of the Chairman of the Council of Autocrats, the ruling body of Krieg. Three of the world's most powerful men, the Autocrats, sit around a table of marble and gold filigree, supping on Amasec of a rare, powerful vintage and thus they sow the seeds of the future."
While the more childish ones were in awe at the palace, the more serious one felt a chill crawl up their spines.
"That place is so cool!" Natsu said.
"Yeah!" Happy replied.
"They are indeed very wealthy." Erza said.
"I hope I can get a place like that one day." Lucy said wistfully.
"This makes me dislike this place even more…" Sabo grumbled.
"You're telling me." Zoro said in agreement.
"Nothing good can come from this." Sanji said, being uncharacteristically serious. Krieg reminded him of his birth family's greed and ambition.
The scene changed to show the table where the three Autocrats sat, the first one visible being the Chairman; a middle-aged man with a thin goatee and a bald head that contrasted the augmentations on the back half of his skull, some blemishes on the left cheek, and green eyes, wearing posh and extravagant clothing including what appeared to be a gold rimmed collar that was raised nearly over his head.
"So, here we sit again." The chairman began as he looked over the parchments that showed the Imperium's tithes with a bitter and resentful expression, "Counting the cost of a tyranny that takes and takes but gives us nothing..."
"Great..." Najenda grumbled, being reminded of Prime Minister Honest by the Chairman.
"Sounds just like Luthor." Batman said, narrowing his eyes.
Superman nodded in agreement.
The second Autocrat, one Belikov, showed himself; a middle-aged man with receding black hair, a handlebar mustache, and steely blue eyes, dressed in a blue jacket with golden markings over a white dress shirt and a jabot cravat, beige pants, and long black boots that reached his knees.
"Here, here, Chairman." Belikov agrees, supping on the vintage Amasec as he notes the costs of the tithes, "They are like unto a leech that grows fat on our lifeblood."
"Kissass." Qrow Branwen said disdainfully.
The final Autocrat, Turgenev, came into view; a rather young man with platinum blond hair tied into a ponytail with some loose bangs framing his face, dressed in regal and extravagant clothing, a white furred coat over a red jacket with gold trimmings over a white dress shirt all of which decorated with gold jewelry, red dress pants, and black boots.
"This is not a conversation we should be having, Chairman." Turgenev added his thoughts, his voice quiet and submissive, "The Imperium is not known for its... clemency to those who... break faith with it."
"Sycophant..." Akainu grumbled along with Kaido.
"You lack a spine, Turgenev, and perspective." Belikov sneered at the younger Autocrat, annoyed by his submissiveness to the Imperium, "Your hive is almost paltry compared to ours. You do not see the vast shipments of our toil lifted into the skies and onward to an entity that gives us nothing while sapping our strength. And for what? Protection?" The Autocrat let out a humorless 'HA!' before continuing, "It's a racket. They are like hoodlums who offer to protect while hiding behind a threat of punishment if we do not pay them, like the lowest hiver gangs."
"Perhaps your defenses are high enough that you can survive an orbital bombardment from the fleet and the Navy." Turgenev shot back, not at all amused at Belikov mocking his Hive and his way of management, "We are not all in that position."
"I mean... he has a point." Usopp said.
"Yeah but that doesn't change my opinion of him as a coward." Zoro said.
"Have you considered that your lack of defenses may very well be caused by the very tithes to the Imperium?" The Chairman questioned the young Autocrat, who paused at the leader's words, "How much could you bolster your bulwarks if you were free of this oppressive yoke? If the wealth you generated were not stolen?"
"No, I agree but the Emperor commands it." Turgenev replied, having been a devout worshiper of the Emperor since he was a child but lacked the spine to join any Inquisitorial element of the Imperium, "We are all human, no?"
"Can you actually see them lifting a finger if we were beset by Xenos? Can you?" Belikov retorted, incredulous at the young Autocrat's words, "We pay them for nothing, nor is it the Emperor's will. It is the gaggle of greedy nothings that sit on the High Council of Terra. There is probably no Emperor at all, a fairy tale to gain compliance, a fiction used to force us to our knees."
"Oh, you're not one to argue!" Yang shouted.
"Preach it sister!" Leone said in approval.
The Chairman nodded with Belikov's words, "I must agree, Belikov. I have dealt with these delegates of the Administratum, the Ministorum, nothing but petty bureaucrats. But also, you lack perspective, Turgenev." Turgenev raised a suspicious eyebrow, but the Chairman continued, "The Imperium's fleet and vengeance is a boogeyman. It is not real. If they are beset on all sides as they claim and use to justify our tithes, then they have not the resources to bring us to heel. If they are not beset, then their fleet, their armies, are not as all-consuming and all pervasive as we are told. A hollow threat."
Turgenev's eyebrows raised but said nothing as the Chairman continued, "When our hives have their defenses, our orbital arrays, our macro cannons, any fleet would be torn to shreds before it reaches orbit and when there, we would annihilate them. The truth is that no matter the reality, if they are actually fighting wars or if they are lying, they will not have the power to take Krieg. We really are beyond their ability to bring to heel, if we throw off the shackles of their propaganda. All you have to do, Turgenev, is believe in Krieg more than you fear the spectre of the Imperium!"
The youngest of the Council was silent before he meekly gave his answer, "I will... mull it over."
Many frowned at Turgenev not standing up for himself.
"Spineless fool!" Yamato growled.
"What else do you expect from that pathetic weakling?" Katakuri said as he was very unimpressed with Turgenev.
"Don't take too long, Turgenev." Belikov replied, "We are almost ready. The Feast of the Ascension is only a month away. Because in this fight, I will tell you straight; you are either with us or against us." He vaguely threatened the young Autocrat, who now had an expression that mixed both annoyance and fear.
"Now, now, Belikov." The Chairman put a hand on his colleague's shoulder, diffusing the tension, "We're all friends here. I'm sure Turgenev will come to his own decision, and that decision will be the right one."
Many frowned more, seeing that Turgenev really didn't have that much of a choice.
"Turgenev may be a dithering idiot but I don't think he has a choice in the matter." Glynda Goodwitch said.
"He is in too deep to back out now." Vine Zeki noted.
"He made his bed now he has to lie in it." Raven Branwen said unsympathetically.
"Just give me more time." Turgenev had his head down and his hands up, "I see the merit of your plan. I'm just concerned about my holdings. I will bid you farewell. I have matters to which to attend and things to set in motion, if my hive is to be prepared. Chairman. Belikov." The young Autocrat then stood up and walked off as Baldermort's voice came back on.
"As Harkon Turgenev rises from his seat and politely nods to his colleagues and leaves, the remaining two hunched over conspiratorially."
Belikov snarls as he whispers to the Chairman, "I don't think he'll draw the gumption. Spineless."
"It's a large step for a worm like Turgenev, but he will come around." The Chairman replied to his colleague, still not wanting to kill the boy just yet.
"Now, I feel bad for Turgenev." Ruby said, feeling bad that the autocrat either complied or the two would murder him.
"He still plans on betraying the Imperium, kid." Kisuke Urahara replied.
Belikov gave a skeptical look before he reported to the Chairman, "Our forces are being quietly moved into position. When you give the word, Chairman, we will fall on these loyalist elements of the Guard from all angles. I have already made sure that their holy supplies are being delayed. All goes to plan."
"Then soon, it is time to initiate Phase One." The Chairman says, putting his hands together in a tent-like shape, "Martial Law. We can then remove any obstacles. If Turgenev makes any moves to inform the guard, the rats amongst our land, then we can use the emergency executive powers to remove him. We can also justify the open movement of our men. If we do this right, Belikov, it will be over in days."
"Oh, we will." Belikov noted with a smirk, "All is going to plan as I said." He then rose from his seat and raised a glass of Amasec for a toast, "To your health, Chairman. You will go down in history as the greatest of men of Krieg. 'The Liberator.'"
"'The Liberator?'" The Chairman let out a chuckle as he raised a crystal glass of Amasec for the toast, "I like the sound of that."
Leone scoffed in disgust, "Arrogant douche."
"Men like him are the reason for most of the World's problems." Wonder Woman said with narrowed eyes. The Chairman and Belikov truly disgusted her.
The scene fades to white as it shows the orbital arrays above Krieg, "The two men smugly smile at each other, raising their crystal glasses to toast each other's success, and thus the die is cast. Over the coming months, subtly, quietly, the forces of Krieg were redeployed like spiders forming a web. They controlled every junction, every transit system between the Hives. They poised to strike. They made sure not to show their hand, all of the Council were as one, only Turgenev vacillated, only he."
Akainu grumbled, hating Turgenev even more.
"But then none of the others had Colonel Jurten sharing their hive."
The scene showed a war hardened man with a short brown hair hidden by a Commissar's hat, a lantern jaw with a 5 o'clock shadow, two scars running from the right eyebrow and right cheekbone, and steel blue eye, dressed in a standard Commissar's uniform with a Bolt pistol on one hand and a power sword in the other.
"The commander of the Imperial Guard stationed on Krieg, Colonel Jurten was not a man to be trifled with and certainly not by the likes of Harkon Turgenev."
Many blinked at Jurten's appearance, seeing why Turgenev was intimidated by him.
"This guy just screams badass by his looks alone." Gajeel said, impressed.
"I don't doubt that at all, partner." Panther Lily said.
The scene then changed to show another Hive city as Baldermort spoke again, "When they were almost ready, their plot about to hatch, they set the board with a penultimate move. All across each hive on the entirety of Krieg, the word went out. The Chairman of the Council of Autocrats was to make a declaration, a rarity to be sure. None could actually remember the last time one had been made. Something was in the offing, something big. And so, the billions of citizens of the Hive worlds of Krieg from highest to lowest gathered in preparation for this address, this unusual announcement. All silenced as the screen stock came to life and the majestic figure of the Chairman appeared before their eyes."
It then showed a screen turning on as the Chairman sat down in an opulent chair, clearing his throat before he tapped on the voxphone to confirm it worked before he then began his speech, "My fellow loyal citizens of Krieg. It is with a heavy heart that I must disclose to you, that there are vipers amongst our number. Wolves amongst our flock. We, the Council of Autocrats, your leaders, your shepherds, your defenders, your lords, we have kept from you the rise of these vermin. I knew that it would break your hearts to know that some have turned their backs on our great nation, that they conspire to destroy our way of life, to destroy our harmony, but now I can hide this no longer."
The citizens of each Hive looked at each other or started to mumble in worry but all were silenced by the Chairman continuing his speech, "For the protection of all, every hive, every citizen, I must declare martial law. Rest assured, the instant we have rooted out these scum, the moment we have cleaned house, this emergency action will end. But for now, we will do what needs to be done. For the greater glory of Krieg!"
"That's a clever plan then." Najenda grumbled, "With the citizens thinking that there are traitors in their midst, the citizens won't realize that they are seceding from the Imperium or that the loyalists are being killed."
The scene changed to the command center with Colonel Jurten watching the broadcast as Baldermort spoke, "In the Command Center of the Imperial Guard Forces of Krieg, in the Hive of Ferrograd, the message did not go untallied or unnoticed. Colonel Jurten and his aide Denisov watched as the Chairman finished his speech to the adulation of the crowds. The screen died, the Colonel did not change his stance, did not look away, he stood transfixed, lost in the deepest of contemplations before he finally spoke."
Colonel Jurten stared at the dead screen for several minutes before speaking to his aide, "There's something amiss here. Have we had any sightings of any of these insurgents?"
"Not a peep." Denisov, a young man with short brown hair and blue eyes, wearing a blue and silver commissar's uniform, reported, "Must be being dealt with at the local level."
"Hmm." The Colonel murmured before he said, "I don't like it. Recall all of our men out on furlough."
Denisov looked at the Colonel in surprise, "That might raise an eyebrow or two."
Jurten let out a single 'Ha!" of false amusement, "Turgenev wouldn't notice an Ork infestation right under his nose, just do it."
"Yes, sir!" Denisov saluted the Colonel before he left to give the order, leaving Jurten alone as he stared back at the dead screen in thought.
"What the hell are you up to, Chairman?" Jurten mused to no one, as a feeling of dread overcame him.
Several shared the Colonel's dread, thinking about what might happen on Krieg.
"If only he knew what the Council of Autocrats were planning." Batman said.
"They can't kill all of the loyalists right?" Flash asked, he saw how the odds were stacked against the loyalists on Krieg.
"Men like Jurten aren't broken that easily." Green Lantern replied.
The scene then turned to the white, spoking gas masked symbol that appeared before changing to a field where a massive number of tanks and soldiers marched while Baldermort spoke again, "As the forces of Krieg now had caught blurs to reposition, thus they did. Huge formations of infantry and armor crisscross the landscape of Krieg. Ever confusing to the guard who could discern no actual threat, no insurgent forces, no war. Jurten waited but wearily, something was definitely amiss. Of course, his warrior instinct sensed the itching between his shoulder blades, the feeling of being stalked, it was right."
It changed to a battlefield at dusk, showing various troopers firing on a retreating army, while the music turned dark and harsh, "A dusk only days before the celebration of the Emperor's Ascension; they struck. All of the movement, all of the repositioning had been to one end, to one goal: the encirclement of the loyalist elements of the guard. When the armies of the Council of Autocrats struck, it struck hard. Their supplies bled by the machinations of the Council. Taken completely unaware, the guard was slaughtered; formation after formation was fallen upon by well-coordinated attacks, heavy fire from the hives themselves when all those in the realms of the traitor's cities were rounded up and executed on the spot. It was plain and simple butchery."
The scene showed several soldiers firing upon the advancing forces of the Autocrats as they attempted to commence a fighting retreat.
"Bastards…" Sabo cursed as he was furious by the betrayal he witnessed.
"I hope Jurten kills them all." Akame said darkly. She was disgusted by such wicked treachery displayed by the Traitors.
"Casualty reports came flooding into the command center at Ferrograd. Almost immediately, Colonel Jurten took decisive action. He knew the Autarch of Ferrograd to be a weakling, so to be sure, he paid him a visit."
It then showed Turgenev's palace, a gilded and golden place with angelic statues surrounding the outer parts, zooming in as Baldermort continued, "The guards of the Palace at the top of the spire of Ferrograd move aside with alacrity as a battle-hardened and dour countenance men of the Imperial Guard flanked their Colonel."
The throne room was then shown; a massive room with several pillars and gothic-like designed fences and two separate stairs that all led to a massive throne that sat under a massive golden chandelier and in front of a menagerie of golden statues and stairs that lead up to it. Beside the throne and statues were massive windows with golden frames that allow light to shine in.
None stopped him as his entourage threw back the doors to the audience chamber where Turgenev sat, his menials scattering before the Thunderhead that was the delegation of guard. Colonel Jurten did not miss a step as he marched directly to the foot and then the stairs up to Turgenev who now sat bolt upright on his throne-like chair at its summit. He looked directly into the eyes of the palace flop."
Turgenev saw Jurten coming up the stairs to his throne-like chair and sat up, "What is the meaning of this?! Barging in here like this, what has gotten into you, Jurten?!" However, whatever bravado he had immediately dispersed when he saw the cold fury in the Colonel's eyes as his mouth curled into a snarl.
"I am going to ask you one question: did you know about this?" The Colonel demanded of Turgenev, who started sweating while trying to remain composed.
Knowing what the Colonel was asking, the Autocrat merely decided to play dumb with a placating gesture, "Uhh... About what?"
Unfortunately for Turgenev, the Colonel immediately knew his answer when gazing into the Autocrat's eyes, growling, "The lips flap, the arms gesture, but the eyes say it all. Goodbye, you simpering traitor!"
"No! No!" Turgenev all but tried to escape before Jurten pulled out his Bolt pistol. Turgenev, realizing that his fate was sealed, merely closed his eyes as Jurten pulled the trigger and his body collapsed onto his throne.
"Eep!' Ruby squeaked and quickly looked away while trembling upon seeing Turgenev's head blown off.
The reactions of her teammates weren't far off with Weiss gasping, Blake's ears flattening in fright and Yang trying her best not to get nauseous.
There were other members of the audience who were unsettled by Turgenev's death.
Usopp turned pale and Chopper jumped into Robin's arms at the sight.
Though he had no sympathy for Turgenev, Batman couldn't approve of his death.
The other two members of the Trinity, Wonder Woman and Superman were of the same mindset.
The expressions of the Shinigami were a mixture of grim and stoic.
"Good riddance." Kaido grumbled, not having sympathy for cowards.
The colonel blew the smoke off his Bolt Pistol before Denisov came in with another detachment of the loyalist forces, "We have secured the Hive, the message has gone out sir. The remaining Loyalist forces are heading here at maximum speed." His tone took on a bitter one as he notes, "Those that are left."
The scene then showed several tanks moving through a blazing field as they sped on at maximum speed, "The hive secured, the remaining Loyalist forces fled to Ferrograd all the while harried and punished by the armies of the treacherous Council, trapped in the one hive with a fraction of their forces. The result seemed to be inevitable. Krieg would declare its independence, would cease to be a part of the Imperium and there was little Colonel Jurten nor any of the Loyalist forces could do to prevent it... or so it seemed."
"Jurten made one last desperate plea to the greater Imperium, alerting them of the events on Krieg and raising a call for assistance, but the calculation of the Council of Autocrats was correct. The Ministorum and Administratum weighed the cost; on one hand, Krieg was wealthy and had rich deposits of minerals, a vast industry, a gem without measure. But on the other hand, there were the layered defenses, the orbital platforms, the powerful cannons that they had installed that could bleed any fleet in orbit and bled them badly. The calculations were swift and simple, the result foregone: Krieg would take an entire fleet and hordes of troops and entire columns of armor and artillery to retake and in doing so, they would ruin the very resources that they were seemingly fighting over. The risk simply did not meet the tally of the ward."
"Great, so no reinforcements are coming!" "How's Jurten gonna fight two Hive cities worth of soldiers?!" Lubbock said indignantly.
Baldermort interrupted the audience's thoughts, "Alas, this is where the avaricious lords of Krieg had made a fundamental error; they had underestimated the Imperium and they had underestimated Jurten's will. Commumication came back, it was simple in its wording but the ramifications... oh, the dire ramifications of that one missive... For it gave the location of a hidden bunker in Ferrograd, one not even its residents knew. The missive went on to order Jurten and all the Loyalist forces to resist the traitors, to punish them, and to attempt to return to the Imperium at any cost. The last part of the missive... Well..." He let it sink into the audience.
"Oh, no." Ironwood whispered, fearing what Jurten might do in such desperate times.
Sengoku and Najenda shared bad feelings about the missive.
"The bunker's thick blast doors screeched into life for the first time in what must have been millennia. Perhaps more. Rust and detritus were thick in the air, the lights inside slowly flickering on. At first, all Colonel Jurten could see were grey metal walkways, but as the illuminators gained power, the contents of this hidden treasure trove hove into vision."
It then showed a massive missile silo with a missile resting inside, nearly the size of a tower, "Even Jurten was awed by what he beheld. The Magos of the Mechanicum that walked into the massive area with him scratched the ground with its metal legs and created an eerie echo as the clicks and whirls of his mechanical body resounded around the cavernous expanse."
Jurten stared at the missiles even as he heard the Magos come to his side, speaking but not turning to the Tech Priest, "Are these what I think they are?"
"These are weapons from the Dark Age, my lord." The Magos spoke, his voice a metallic hiss rather than a voice as he stared on at the several hundred missile silos.
"How many? What range? What can I expect from them?" The Colonel inquired to the Tech Priest, finally turning his gaze towards the mechanical intellectual.
"Enough to destroy your enemies, to bring them to their knees, anywhere in this globe. Enough to transform this world... forever..." The Magos trailed off on that last part in a sinister tone that unsettled the audience.
"No..." Superman's eyes widened as it started to dawn on him.
The rest of the Justice League caught on to the same realization as Superman.
"Is he considering…" Martian Manhunter murmured.
"And you can launch them at the targets I wish?" Jurten asked, a plan already forming in his head.
"Yes..." The Magos hissed, "This can be done."
"Good." Colonel Jurten growled as the calculations were already completed in his head, "Prepare them. The Feast of the Ascension approaches. ...We shall give these traitors his regards."
"He wouldn't!" Wonder Woman yelled out, desperately hoping Jurten wasn't going to do what she thought he would do.
"Is he seriously going to condemn the planet to oblivion!" Winter yelled.
"Jurten has made his choice." Yamamoto said simply. He knew that sometimes war demanded the most heinous actions be committed in order to end it.
"There are innocents who will perish!" Wonder Woman shouted furiously. Sacrificing the innocent to stop evil did not sit well with her.
"Accept reality woman, the people of Krieg will have to pay for the sins of their leaders." King said dismissively.
"Jurten has his orders, mu ha ha ha!" Queen added.
The scene then showed a hive city surrounded by spiraling dark clouds, "The day of the Feast of the Ascension dawned. A day that would go down in Krieg's history... but not in the way that the rebels imagined. The amassed forces of the high council tore down the defensive hard points of Ferrograd with concentrated fire, their best shock troops rampaged through the breaches created... but they found no resistance. They found no infantry manning barricades, no snipers hunting their officers, nothing."
"The streets and alleyways of Ferrograd were like a ghost town; nothing moved, nothing. As they penetrated further into the city, their endless march utterly unopposed, a grim foreboding permeated them all. Where was Jurten and his guard? Where?" The last word started making some of the audience nervous before it showed a massive hi-tech gate, "When they reached the inner segments to find that all the access points to the Underhives, into the very center of the metropolis as well, all had been welded closed."
"Get out of there! It's a trap!" Eijirou Kirishima shouted.
"As the sun approached its zenith, a rumbling began to build beneath them. It was as if the outer rings of the hive were about to collapse in on themselves. Huge doors then opened, and the masked rebels encompassed their doom."
The scene faded to white before revealing a massive expanse where several hundred missiles arose to the sky from underground missile silos, the flames of the discharge burning away whatever they came into contact with be they organic or inorganic, all were burned to swathes of ash as Baldermort spoke again, "Hundreds of missiles, as one, fired into the skies, burning many to a crisp with their discharge. Those rebels that remained knew, one glimpse of them and they knew... they were dead."
The scene changed to show Krieg as massive white hot explosions began dotting the planet, "Each of the missiles had separate targets, each different payloads, different intent. Over the course of the next few hours, nuclear missiles slammed into each of the hives across the entire globe." Then each strike signified by a cracking boom heard from the upper atmosphere as the scene changed to show the landscape as several flaming mushroom clouds rocked the landscape and a cloaked figure watched on from the edge of a cliff.
"Some toted powerful defensive shielding, many did not. But in any case, the fallout did its damage. As this happened, many of the missiles exploded in the upper atmosphere, causing radiation to rain down over the entire world. " The scene then changed to show a massive blast of spiraling fire that engulfed the sky, "Others of these weapons from the Dark Age of Technology were designed to create a firestorm that would drown the entire planet, burning every inch of its open expanse, its verdant fields, its rich orchards, vaporizing its seas, claiming every single last living thing outside of the Hive cities and many inside.
"Oh... god..." Orihime Inoue said with shaking eyes and trembling hands.
"For the rebels were utterly unprepared for the devastation that had been unleashed by Jurten. Krieg burned." The scene then showed a burning hellscape surrounded by fires and rivers of magma or motel materials, "But even the fires finally burnt out, there was no escape, no respite, for the sun was clouded by masses of detritus thrown into the upper atmosphere and a nuclear winter ensued. Krieg froze." The scene then showed whatever remained of the hive cities slowly being frozen over by vigintillions of snowflakes as ice formed from every part.
"On the day of the Emperor's Ascension, through the actions of Jurten and his Magos accomplice, the rebels felt the full wrath of the God-Emperor and billions of lives were snuffed out. Then billions more froze. Or perhaps their skin slipped off them, their hair dropped out in clumps, their eyes were made sightless, and their teeth were left in any food they attempted to consume."
Baldermort's rather calm description of what happened to the survivors nearly made several audience members hurl and even the more hardened ones were disturbed.
"Death was set loose to stalk the land, unfettered and insatiable. Krieg was destroyed."
It then showed the gas masked symbol again before it faded to white and then showed a soldier in a gasmask and all covering military uniform holding another in their arms, mourning them as the world burned before it switched to show several members of the burgeoning Death Korp in the blasted hellscape that was now Krieg, ready to fight for the war to retake Krieg, "And so the war began in earnest. The nuclear, chemical, and biological carnage unleashed by Jurten evened the odds, so high a toll had it reaped. The forces of the rebels were reeling, their beautiful cities, their lush land, mostly destroyed. All were forced into subterranean existence, like too many rats in a cage too small."
It then showed the forces of Krieg, now in the uniforms and gas masks that they were all familiar with, reminding some of the Imperial German army of both World Wars while the background showed a sky covered by red clouds with intermittent lightning strikes, "No quarter would be asked, nor given. To the rebels, the Imperial Guard under Jurten were the worst of all war criminals. They had butchered billions, had performed the ultimate crime of bringing Krieg low, destroying its people, its lands, its seas, its skies, all for the love of a fictional character somewhere far distant in the darkest reaches of space. They had killed Krieg for millennia, if not longer. They were the vilest of fiends."
The scene changed to show more Krieg guardsmen in the trenches as Baldermort continued, "To the Loyalists, the rebels had turned their back on the God-Emperor, the Imperium, and all of humanity out of the basest of motivations: greed. They had damned every soul on Krieg for nothing more than wealth. And damned is the correct word in all its connotations. The loyalists were ardent adherents to the Imperial Creed, they loved and worshiped their god, The Master of Mankind, the Emperor. To them, all of Krieg, every man, woman, and child have been denied the heaven of a place at his side."
It then showed several Krieg soldiers riding on horses with spears through the ruins of their once proud city, "So, it was a holy war on one side and a war of vengeance on the other. But as time went on, the entire culture of Krieg became more twisted, more hateful. There was simply no time to heal, to forgive, to forget. Never is there a more bloody conflict than Civil War, for true rage comes not from the adversary, the alien, the Xenos. The other true rage comes from the knife in the back, the brother betrayed. And both sides believed that they had been betrayed in the most horrific way."
Akainu could almost admire both sides as they were so dedicated to their cause.
"As the war was without end, the battles without compare in their spite, the tactics deployed the most callous, the most vengeful, the body counts, the most eyewatering in all of the Imperium it could be said. And it was human killing human, brother killing brother. The existence of the people of Krieg swiftly descended into a level of barbarity, a level of brutality that cannot truly be described. The weak, those who could not take part, those with deformities, those with frailties, all were despised on both sides as they could not contribute to the war effort, thus did the Cult of Sacrifice grow in its potency with each passing bitter year of the conflict."
It then showed a black and white scene of Jurten as he stood before the mass of loyalist troopers, beginning a speech that sealed Krieg's future and the fate of those yet to come, "True sons and daughters of humanity, sons and daughters of Emperor, weep for the sins of Krieg. Weep for our betrayal of the Emperor. Weep that you have but one life give, for there is nothing we can give, nothing we can do to atone for the sins of Krieg, yet to not even try would be the greatest sin, another sin against the Emperor. Sacrifice, for it is the only way to honor the Emperor we betrayed. Sacrifice all you have, all you are, all you will ever be. For we are nothing in his eyes until we atone. For the Emperor!" He finished the speech by raising his Power Sword, earning the salutes of the masses in front of him.
"What... What kind of madness is that?!" Weiss shrieked.
She could not fathom the madness her eyes saw.
The scene changed to show the forces of Krieg, armed and ready for war, standing for deployment to the front lines as Baldermort spoke, "All were indoctrinated from their very first breath. All. The feeling of being damned, of desperately needing to gain forgiveness from their God-Emperor rose, as the death toll mounted. It seeped into the very subconscious of the people of Krieg; no sacrifice would ever be too much. Many would say that this was madness, this is madness."
"HELL YES IT'S MADNESS!" Weiss shouted, aghast that the people of Krieg would sacrifice so much that they must sacrifice anything and everything because of the actions of the autocrats and their greed.
"But in my reading of the lore from my perspective alone, this made perfect sense." Baldermort stated much to the shock of the audience before he started to explain his reasons, "The Loyalists of Krieg believed that they had to redeem themselves in the eyes of their god, so if they could just fight hard enough, sacrifice enough, prove themselves worthy of redemption, they could regain the love of the Emperor. Then every single soul lost, every human who had been lost in this war without end could be redeemed. If they could not, if the Emperor always turned his head from them, then every single life lost, every single privation, every suffering, every sacrifice was for naught. Each battalion, each regiment, each warrior of Krieg was brought up to believe that if they could just fight hard enough, then maybe, just maybe, their effort would be the one that brought salvation to all of the men, women, and children of Krieg that had fallen. It redeemed them all."
"Well, that kind of makes sense..." "In the worst way possible." Tatsumi said but his words were hollow reflecting how he felt.
The scene changed to show a Death Korp Grenadier standing in the ash covered wastes with his Helgun raised, with the light from a nearby fire reflecting ominously off his armor and skull-like face plate over his gasmask, "Such fervor was almost impossible to stop, but was met with the hatred of the rebels of Krieg who blamed it all on the Loyalists. Battles were hard to describe, but I shall try."
"The skies were blighted, the very soil irradiated, so out of their hives, out from their protections, the armies of both would emerge. The lines were redrawn up and the engagements were ferocious, because they only had a limited time to make gains. No human could survive on the surface for long, even in protective gear, so the battles were not nuanced gambits of thrust and counter, positioning and perfection. No, they were headlong charges into the ranks of the enemy, a desperation to take ground in a short period of time before the Klaxons and whistles ordered the withdrawal. And if substantial gains had not been made, then all who died, all the millions of men left on that battlefield were wasted for nothing."
"And this went on for Five. Hundred. Years."
The scene then changed to show the Kriegsmen and their commanders standing in the nuclear winter wastelands, seeing the rebel forces advancing in the distance through the blinding snowstorms.
"First rank, ready!" A Krieg commander yelled out before he blew into his whistle, signaling the charge as he raised his sword to the air, "CHARGE!"
Another commander screamed out, "FIRST RANK, READY!" He blew into his whistle before bellowing out as he rode his horse into battle, "CHAAAARGE!
"FRONT RANK! READY!" Another commander yelled before blowing into his whistle before roaring out with his blade in the air, "CHARGE!"
"FIX BAYONETS!" Another commander roared out as he and his infantry fixed bayonets to their lasguns, before he roared, "CHARGE!"
"FOR THE EMPEROR!" A final one yelled as they joined the fray of the war.
Baldermort spoke over them as the battlefield raged around them, "Each year the calluses and callousness grew. When generals of ability on either side arose, their faction would make gains. When they succumbed to death from age or poisoning from merely existing on Krieg, they could be replaced with less experienced or able warlords, thus the tides of battle went one way then the next by the next generation."
The scene changed to show the forces of the loyalists advancing on the rebel hives as the day dawned. "The forces of the loyalists slowly by slowly taking one hive after another, but the ancient defenses made in the halcyon days before that dreaded moment of ascension, before the nuclear attack, were still in place. The losses in taking the most powerful hives were catastrophic for the loyalists, sometimes leaving them so denuded of men that they could be retaken again within weeks, covered in the hordes of the rebels. It's won one way then the other. Never-ending carnage, never-ending charges, never-ending bloodshed."
The scene changed to show several Kriegsmen in what they assumed was a deployment center, "And yes, I am being repetitive in my linguistic style, to show you the grinding nature of the conflict, to show how the wheel turned, always crushing billions of lives under its tracks throughout the ages. Krieg developed astonishingly efficient ways of generating, reclaiming, and retooling their resources, they became a beast with but one goal; the manufacture of weapons of war, both material and personnel."
It then changed to show a tunnel underground where the loyalists fought against the rebel forces, "The training regimes alone were barbaric; live ammunition used in every exercise, life could not be cheaper. With the goal of a universal redemption for not only every soul on Krieg, but everyone that had existed and been lost in those years, no sacrifice was deemed too high. None. And all of the things that make humans what they are was lost, thrown onto the pyre of war. No culture, no heart, no love, no poetry, no dance, no music, no relaxation, no standard of life whatsoever." The scene changed to show the Kriegsmen in the trenches, marching to the next battlefield, unflinching and unafraid to die, "The promise of Krieg was gone, replaced by a monster that sought only war."
Fade to white as the Krieg symbol appeared before showing the ruined hive city where millions of loyalist troopers marched, "Finally, after 500 years of conflict, finally, the loyalists took the last hive. Krieg was one again, unified in the worship of the Emperor and the need to serve him. Even regaining dominance of the entire world was not enough, however. They could never be forgiven for the treachery and betrayal of a now mythical evil, the Council of Autocrats."
It then showed the Krieg helm and gasmask over an iron cross with a small white banner that read Krieg, "But they were one and ready at long last to rejoin the Imperium, so they could fight amongst the stars in the Emperor's name. So, it could continue to seek redemption in the only way they knew how: War and Sacrifice."
The scene then changed to somewhere not on Krieg, showing an Imperial Administratum sector, a gothic and beautifully designed area with statutes and aquila symbols liberally displayed as Baldermort spoke, "An Administratum menial, hunched in gape, debasing himself in his very stance, enter the room of his direct superior."
"What's the Administratum?" Luffy asked, cocking his head to the side.
"Basically the administration wing of the Imperium." D replied, "However, they're so bloated that entire planets or even star systems can be lost to rounding errors."
"What?!" Ironwood said incredulously, as several others looked shocked at such things, "How has there not been reforms at such incompetency?!"
"It's not that their incompetent, it's just that the Imperium is so vast and labyrinthine that its near impossible to create a system to truly compensate for all of it." D explained.
It changed to show the menial, a pale and wrinkled old man with heavy augments on his body. His gloved hands with wires poking from the back were busy typing away messages from other worlds onto the typewriter attached to his chest with twin mechanical arms transcribing the words onto rolls of parchment, his right eye replaced by a red optic with his hairless head covered in sensors and receiver wiring, and a mechadendrite with a sevro skull that acted as a burning candle's holder on his right side. The rest of his body was mercifully hidden by a red robe with gold edges, while pointed gold shoes could be seen sticking out.
He hovered unmoving, his eyes down, bent in half bar, awaiting the attention of his coordinator.
It then showed the coordinator. A man hidden in the same red robes as the menial, but his face was half hidden by a respirator-like augment and his eyes nothing but orbs of milky white. In front of him was a massive book that he was current writing in with a large quill pen, with tubes of ink at the side and a red burning candle at the other. Also, near him was what appeared to be a banner lined with scripture with a skull as a decoration.
"Get to the point or I will have a new servitor by the end of the week." The coordinator rudely said to the menial, "Spit it out."
The menial did not raise his head nor his eyes as he said, "It is from Krieg."
"Where?" The coordinator asked in confusion.
"It is a world that has not been in contact for nearly 500 years." The menial explained in a meek tone, "We had written it off, but they are now... back?" He finished in a hesitant tone.
"Ah, let's see what they want, then we file it." The coordinator replied before muttering to himself in annoyance, rolling his blank white eyes, "Probably another cry for help. Why these backwater holes believe we have time for them, the Emperor alone knows."
The coordinator's attitude caused many in the audience to scowl at him in anger.
"YOU SON OF A BITCH!" Katsuki Bakugo yelled furiously.
None of his teachers nor classmates reprimanded him because they too were enraged at the callous dismissal of the devastation of Krieg and the immense sacrifices made by the Loyalists in the Emperor's name.
Superman's fists were clenched tightly as glared at the coordinator. Few things have made him this infuriated before.
Batman heard whispers of voices in his head demanding retribution against the cruel ignorance of the coordinator but he banished them away. He would not cross that line, he had vowed to himself long ago.
"They say they stand ready to rejoin the Imperium. They offer men, soldiers." The menial took a few haunting steps forward to reverently place the document on the desk before his master.
The coordinator's eyes scanned the document with his blank eyes before making a decision,
"Interesting. Send it up the chain."
The scene changed to show an imperial structure near a volcano, the most opulent feature being the massive statute of a Space Marine with his Power Sword raised as Baldermort continued with the story, "A message had been sent to the Munitorum, who had considered it and then officials in both Departmento had agreed; Krieg was a hellhole. All knew that; thus, one regiment was to be requested of them. Just one. A trial to see if they could provide anything of worth to the wider Imperium, for it was well known that the world was a blasted Death World, gone was its splendor and thus its use. Within days, the same menial returned to his master's office."
It changed back to the coordinator's office, showing the menial approaching his master's desk.
"We have a response from Krieg." The menial meekly reported. The coordinator did not look up from his cogitator, just beckoned with his hand. The menial approached and laid the document in front of him. When the coordinator's eyes finally took in the document, the surprise was palpable.
As the coordinator's shocked eyes took in the document's contents, the menial explained while keeping his head down, "They say they have twenty regiments, ready and armed. It gets more interesting as well, sir."
"Twenty regiments?!" Qrow shouted in shock.
"How the hell did they still have enough people after that apocalypse?!" Ichigo yelled.
Nothing about this made any sense to him.
"They said what!?" The coordinator said before his eyes took in the document again, "Twenty regiments, requesting the most difficult warzones?! They are either lunatics or deluded!" He thought for a moment before giving orders to the menial, "Bah! Send it to the Departmento Munitorum. Let's see what they think of this madness."
It then showed a Munitorum complex as the servitors carrying the document crawled through the halls before placing it in front of the nearest Logistician, who curiously examined the document, "A dispatch was sent to the Munitorum, immediately. The response in the Munitorum was tepid at first, excitement at the resources, if not astonishment, but many made bold claims and many failed in these claims."
The scene changed to show what appeared to be a Tech-Priest but with black robes with red edges and his face covered by what appeared to be a velociraptor skull with green lights from his optics shining out.
Many blinked at the Tech Priest with the velociraptor skull, some finding it cool while others found it ridiculous.
"That looks rad! I want one!" Denki Kaminari said enthusiastically.
"You can't be serious!" Kyoka Jiro replied in exasperation.
He was seen taking in Krieg's request on a cogitator, putting a hand to his raptor helm's chin before muttering to himself in thought, "Krieg... Well, they make all the right noises. Let's see if they can actually perform. They are either lunatics or delusional. They request Hell? We have plenty of that." He then turned to the nearest servitor and said, "Prepare dispatch orders."
The servitor nodded and left before it faded to white, showing the Krieg helm before then showing the Krieg forces on the most harshest warzones in the Imperium, battling on all sides in a heedless headlong rush to destroy the enemy, "And thus, the twenty regiments, fully armed and equipped from Krieg were deployed as they requested, to the most hellish warzones within transit ranges. The speed of their recruitment, the ability to raise, train, and equip their own men, and in such numbers was not to be underestimated. But the proof of the pudding as they say is always in the tasting, so in a rare move, the field commanders of the forces of those wars in which they had fought were contacted and collected. A candid discussion needed to be heard."
"I suppose that's understandable." Sengoku said, knowing he'd have to do the same.
"With four generals in the room, the amasec flowed freely and went down well. Finally, the question all awaited was posed."
The first of the generals, General Mort, an old and war hardened man with short greying hair and a diagonal scar running across his forehead, wearing a standard decorated uniform, sitting at a circle table with the other three generals, "So, you have all had victories in what were previously deadlocked situations? I have no doubt it was your brilliance that achieved these results, generals, but what of the new regiments? The men of Krieg? What say you, General Valrak?"
The second general, General Valrak, was a burly man in gold painted Power Armor, his head shaved and with a scar running from his hairline to his lip, "Yes, they can fight. Like mad men, they can fight. Krieg will be a worthy addition to the armies of the Imperium."
General Mort raised an eyebrow at that, before he turned to the other generals, "General Girsh? General Alchemist?"
The third general was a younger man with darker hair and sideburns, wearing a commissar's cap and uniform, and a scar next to the left eye, "Krieg? They do the job but they aren't what you'd call standard. They don't play well with others."
General Alchemist, a hardened man with scars running from his nose and cheekbone to his ear, shaved brown hair, wearing a standard imperial general uniform, "I agree, they cause far too much trouble when deployed alongside other regiments, but the results are there. They are lethal, almost insane."
"But if managed," General Girsh proposed, "They will serve the Emperor well."
"Hmmm." General Mort put a hand to his chin in thought, "I thank you for your candidness, gentlemen. Now, this amasec isn't going to drink itself!" He changed to a more jovial tone as he raised a glass of amasec, "Let us toast your victories! The victories of the Imperium! To the Emperor!" The four generals toasted and drank.
Qrow grinned despite the situation.
"I like these guys!"
Winter smacked him in the head.
It then showed Krieg as Baldermort spoke again, "At that, things changed on Krieg. The Munitorum and Administratum began the rerouting of resources, technical skills and transport to make Krieg the very heart of its region again, but this time the only thing that came were resources and the only thing that left were regiments of men. Fanatical men. Men who would die for the Emperor without consideration, without restraint. And the commissariat were shoehorned into the regiments."
The scene then showed the Commissars leading the Kriegsmen, adorn in standard commissarial uniforms but with a black gas mask covering their faces, "But unlike any other force, their remit was not to encourage the men of Krieg, but it was to restrain them from throwing their lives away. Also, their secondary task was not to instill faith as that Krieg had in such abundance that they often outshone even their own Commissars, but they were uncoordinated with other forces in the field. For if left to Krieg, they would tell all and sundry that were weak, lacked faith, and were cowards. So, the Commissars were left to act as mediators between this most bellicose of all regiments and the Militarum, and the guard."
Many were horrified that the men and women of Krieg would throw their lives away and that they had to have Commissars to act as mediators.
"These Kriegers are nuts if their Commissars are the voice of reason." Flash remarked.
"I would be more worried if anyone from Krieg was sane after the calamity that happened in their world." Dabi commented.
"But an obvious solution developed in the Munitorum. A very simple one. If Krieg could not work with others, well..." Baldermort spoke as the scene changed to show a corridor leading to the chambers of the Imperial Palace. "Stepping out of the chambers of the High Lords of Terra themselves, the Munitorum and Admisitorum officials, who walked with an excited pace down the hallowed corridors, discussed the results."
One of the officials was a middle-aged man with long brown hair and eye augments that seemed almost like goggles, wearing highly decorated and pristine garments with scrolls tucked under his left arm and holding a cellphone-like device that was connected to his augments through wires. "The High Council of Terra has passed judgment. Vitae Wombs have been approved."
The other was more of a servitor than a man, hauling a bookshelf behind him with wires and cables sticking out of the sides of his head and neck, holding a staff and with a mechanical arm on his left that held a book, dressed in attire that fastened him to the shelve, "At this rate, we'll be able to raise entire armies from Krieg!"
"Vitae wombs?" Izuku asked.
"Basically, genetic vats that allow for rapid production of people." D explained.
"They have resorted to artificially mass producing people?!" All Might said aghast at the amoral exploitation of the people of Krieg.
The scene then changed to show the armies of Krieg charging forth into the battlefield, "Such was the effectiveness of the Death Korp of Krieg. Such was their need to be placed as far from other warriors of the Imperium as possible, such drastic and intensely questionable measures were to be employed. But for the specifics of the Vitae Wombs and their ramifications, perhaps you can find those details out in the entries by my colleagues. I'm sure one of them has covered it."
"Thus was the Death Korp of Krieg finally ratified. From Krieg will be raised and equipped entire armies to serve the Emperor's name."
It then changed to show the Helm of Krieg as sad music began to play as Baldermort spoke in a rueful tone, "But here's the rub, the ironic tragedy of it all. The Emperor, the Master of Mankind, the architect of the Imperial Truth, the lord who crafted and then led the crusade to free all of his people, all of humanity, from the yolk of tyranny, he would never have wanted this."
"I don't think he would at all." Superman shook his head sadly. Nobody, not the millions and billions that sacrificed themselves, deserved the things that the men and women of Krieg tortured themselves with.
"And if he ever were to awaken, if the Emperor were ever to be healed and walk amongst his people again, he could crush the fighting spirit of the men and women of Krieg, he could eradicate hundreds of years of hate and pain and suffering with but three words:"
There was a poignant pause for the three words that were said.
"I forgive you."
Some teared up at those three words, others lowering their heads feeling for the people of Krieg even more.
"Those poor people..." Ruby hugged Yang who hugged back.
Z merely shook his head, for once looking melancholic, "In the grim dark future, innocence is lost and war is everything."
D shook his head as well, "There is no peace among the stars."