Admu skipped gleefully down the mountain path alongside Leman, barely able to contain her happiness. She didn't quite understand what he meant when he told her that she was some kind of god, and when she pressed him he seemed reluctant to divulge anything more. However, after hearing that he wanted her to accompany him back to his home and help him save his brothers, any questions she had were drowned out by overwhelming joy and excitement. Not only would she be able to go out and see the rest of the galaxy as she had begun to dream about, but she would be able to spend more time with her new best friend doing it! She couldn't have asked for more.
"Say, Admu…" Leman said. "Did you really have to bring that thing back with us?" He said, gesturing towards the dead serpent she had slung over her shoulder and dragged behind her.
"Well, I wanted a trophy to signify our victory!" she said with a beaming grin. "Besides, the other one was far too big to carry."
"And why am I carrying your old antlers?" he said.
"It's for my papa! He loves collecting stuff like that." she said.
"Fair point." Leman said. "As for my proposition… you haven't had any second thoughts?"
"Nope!" Admu said without hesitation. "Though… it might be hard to convince papa and the others…" she said. "But once you explain it to them like you did to me, I'm sure they'll support it!"
Now I'll just have to figure out how to explain this to whoever I meet when I get back to realspace… Leman thought.
Leman awoke in a familiar wooden cabin, nestled in soft furs and surrounded by the smell of pine and morning dew. Several days had passed since Leman and Admu's return, and since then they had retired to Nurgle's quiet forest village while the preparations for the next leg of their journey were made. When he had explained his experiences in the mountains and what his father's spirit had told him to the 4 gods, their reactions were mixed. Khorne was as unemotional as he usually was but was upfront about his support of the idea. After all, it was a considerable step forward in their plan to usurp the ruinous powers and was exactly what they were hoping to achieve through his trials. Tzeentch was positively ecstatic, barely able to contain his excitement at the prospect and eagerly altering his plans to accommodate this new and unexpected development. Slaanesh had more reservations, and while extremely hopeful about the prospects she was understandably concerned about how Admu would fare in the wider universe. Then there was Nurgle.
Nurgle remained expressionless during Leman's explanation, uttering not a word nor making any indication of his support or opposition to the idea. Leman could tell he was hiding his true feelings, but what those feelings were was unknown to him. He knew he likely couldn't go through with the plan without the approval of all 4 deities, so the green one's judgement was crucial to its execution. After he had finished speaking, Nurgle merely said that he would have to think over what he had told him, and that in the meantime he could stay in the same cabin he had before. After they had returned to his village, the green one treated Leman no differently than he always had, showing him the same warm hospitality when Leman had first arrived in this place.
While Leman waited for Khorne and Tzeentch to finish the final repairs of his armor and weapons, Admu caught up with her brothers and sisters. They crowded her day and night, showering her with questions about her adventures. She graciously obliged, regaling them with tales of the gleaming marble city full of living porcelain dolls, of the mighty black fortress inhabited by great warriors and knights of legend, of the snowy mountain monastery full of wondrous secrets. She told them of Leman's exploits and feats of strength, and how they had been whisked away together to far-off lands in Tzeentch's simulations, facing great peril but ultimately succeeding in making it to their ultimate destination. Leman decided to leave her alone for the time being, giving her time to spend with her family knowing that if she accepted his proposition, she likely would not see them for some time.
Leman emerged from the wooden cabin into the crisp morning air, the last remnants of the nightly fog settling onto the leaves and grass as droplets of dew. In the courtyard, Admu was showing off to her younger siblings her newfound ability to conjure her horns in and out of thin air at will, to their endless amusement and applause. In his hand, he held the note that had been left under his door during the night. Upon the rough parchment read the words:
I have made my decision. Meet me at the tallest tree in the heart of the forest so that we may speak in private.
The tall redwood tree was visible from practically all parts of the great forest and sat on a mighty foothill which overlooked the rest of Nurgle's domain. Beneath its shade, Leman found the green one perched upon a mossy rock. He sat down next to him.
"When you are in the midst of it, looking up at the treetops from below, the forest feels endless at times…" Nurgle said. "But from up here it seems so… small."
"I got your note." he said, holding up the parchment. "You have made your decision?" Leman said. Nurgle smiled softly.
"In truth… it was never my decision to make. I've spent a lot of time with her in the past few days. Every time she speaks of you and your quest, her eyes sparkle brighter than the stars in the clearest night sky. She's outgrown this forest, this world, and it's time for her to go out into the galaxy and do what she's always wanted to do… help people. I know that… I'm just a stubborn old badger that hates to see my little daffodil becoming an independent woman." he said, chuckling. Leman could see tears welling up in her eyes.
"I would say I would protect her… but if I am being honest, it is likely she who will be protecting me." Leman said, leaning back.
'She takes after her old man. We're hardy folk!" Nurgle said, beating his barrel chest and laughing heartily. "It's natural for a father to worry about such things… but I trust her to find her own way in this world now. You have my blessing to take her with you." Nurgle said.
"Thank you." Leman said, reaching out for a handshake. Instead, Nurgle grabbed Leman in a prodigious bear hug, nearly crushing Leman's rib cage in the process. He dropped him after remembering his own strength, and Leman coughed a bit before recovering.
"Oh! Sorry about that, it's just a… uh… family tradition…" Nurgle said.
"I see now… where Admu… gets it from." Leman said, laughing while his voice struggled.
When Nurgle and Leman had arrived back in the village, Admu and the other 3 gods were awaiting them. The entire village was gathered around them, as the gods had brought with them their own entourages bearing gifts.
"Papa!" Admu shouted, jumping into her father's arms. Nurgle strained a bit, unprepared but nonetheless happy to have his daughter in his arms again.
"It seems my armor is not the only thing you have brought." Leman said, curious what they carried with them.
"As our champion, it is only natural we bestow you with gifts to help you succeed in your journey." Slaanesh said, opening an opulent chest encrusted with gold and jewels. She lifted up a black-scaled cloak of snakeskin, which shimmered with an iridescent sheen. "The skin of the great serpent you slew has some interesting properties. Using a bit of magic of my own, I fashioned it into a cloak of anonymity." she said.
"Cloak of anonymity?" Leman said. "What does it do?"
"It hides your psychic presence." Slaanesh said. "While wearing it, you will appear unremarkable and be able to hide your presence in crowded spaces. You can conceal your identity to a point, although it may not hold up to prolonged inspection. It isn't a cloak of invisibility, so it has its limits. It is up to your discretion to use it to its fullest potential. Oh, and I also made one for Admu as well."
That should make it at least a bit easier to have her around humans… Leman thought.
"I also included clothes and a sewing kit for you, Admu, seeing as it is unlikely you will be able to find a tailor that can accommodate your… dimensions. Besides, I doubt any mortal seamster could even hope to compare to my craftsmanship." Slaanesh said, laughing conceitedly. "The leather is harvested from the impenetrable hide of ancient legendary beasts, and the thread is enchanted to be as hard as adamantium. The spool of thread is enchanted as well, and will never run out, so you may repair it or make adjustments to your heart's content." Admu chirped with excitement.
"I considered crafting you a set of armor…" Khorne said. "However, it is unlikely I could make anything which would be stronger than the natural hardiness you inherited from your father. Speaking of.." Khorne stepped aside to reveal Leman's armor, shining and glittering like new. Leman stepped forward and ran his fingers over the polished ceramite, feeling not a single blemish or crack.
"This will do me nicely." Leman said.
"I made some modifications to the internal mechanics." Tzeentch chimed in. "Using the data collected from your battles in the colosseum, I identified several shortcomings, bottlenecks, and weak points, and devised solutions to each of them. The heat capacity for the exothermic generators should be much, much higher, but I would advise against pushing that limit… unless you would like to be peeled out of your armor again." Leman winced at the memory.
"So then, I take it that this counts as both of your gifts?" Leman said.
"Oh no, of course not!" Tzeentch said, turning to unlock a sealed container. He punched in a password on the container's keypad, and it opened to reveal a silver-engraved gauntlet with a great icy-blue jewel in the shape of a wolf's eye inlaid in the center. It looked almost like an artificer power claw, although the slots where the blades would be were strangely empty.
"What is it?" Leman asked.
"Well, using the genetic information I, uh… obtained during your trials, I devised a techno-magical device to harness your latent psychic abilities in a safe and controlled manner. Also, it can grow ice-claws. I particularly like that part." Tzeentch said.
Harness my latent psychic abilities? Leman thought.
"How does it work?" Leman asked.
"Well… honestly I'm not quite sure. I designed to interface directly with your psychogenetic physiology, meaning… you'll just have to, er, intuit how it works." Tzeentch said. Leman pursed his lips indifferently.
"Uh, my thanks." he said.
I guess even as an ally, Tzeentch will always be Tzeentch. Leman thought. I will have to dedicate some time to learning what use this device has… if any. The irony that he may end up using psychic powers himself did not escape him, although he had come to accept many absurd things during his time here. What was yet one more absurdity atop the pile?
"I as well have a gift for you." Khorn said. He raised his hand into the air, and with a clap of thunder and a burst of flame, his black blade appeared in his hand. "You proved your worthiness to wield this sword in our battle, it would be dishonorable for me to take it back after your victory." he said, planting the sword into the earth before Leman. The primarch grasped the handle of the blade, raising it carefully. He ran his fingers along the inscribed runes on its surface, which glowed like hot metal. It was warm to the touch, but not painfully so.
Perhaps it only burns those it sees as enemies. Leman thought.
"You have my gratitude; this is a truly fine weapon." Leman said.
"You will also be granted the other weapons you used in the Colosseum, seeing as you wielded them with such great skill. You will need every boon possible to ensure ultimate victory against the false gods." Khorne said.
"Ah, I almost forgot!" Nurgle said, fumbling with something in his knapsack. "Here, I made this for you with a little help from the big red fella." He pulled a crested metal helmet from his bag. The helmet was adorned with polished elk horns, and lined with swirling, knotted patterns.
"Are those… " Leman said.
"Yep! They're my old ones." Admu said, giggling. "You'll look like a miniature me wearing them, Mister Russ!" Leman gave her a playful sideways glance.
"I added a bit of my healing expertise to give them a special enchanted property." Nurgle said. "While wearing it, the helmet will protect you from any disease, toxin, or other bodily ailment. It can't heal or prevent physical damage, but it will prevent you from getting sick or poisoned."
Ironic… Leman thought. That he should give me something that would directly combat the servants of his alternate self.
"Thank you, I have no doubt this will be extremely useful." Leman said.
"Well, all there is to do now is prepare the portal to the Materium." Tzeentch said. "I have almost finished construction of the generator in my laboratory. After I run a few tests, I can have it brought here and fully operational in two days' time. Until then, I suggest you two make any preparations you need…" he turned to Admu. "…and bid farewell to your kin." Admu looked down with a saddened expression, but soon recovered her cheerful demeanor.
Almost home. Leman thought.
Leman finished fitting his newly improved armor, adorning himself with the gifts of his gracious hosts and benefactors. He clenched the fist of his ice claw and gripped the hilt of the black sword on his hip. Admu had finished saying goodbye to her many brothers and sisters, telling them that when she returned, she would recount to them all of the incredible things she was going to see and do on her new adventures. She spent a good deal of time with her father, talking and enjoying each other's presence before her impending departure. By the time she had finished her goodbyes, Tzeentch's constructs had finished assembling and activating the portal generator. The circular disk of silvery-blue opalescent liquid rippled and crackled with arcane energy, enclosed within a ring of studded metal devices. There was a metal ramp leading into the entrance, which shimmered and shifted like a reflection in a turbulent river. Leman looked closely into it and realized where the portal led to.
"The Fang… this is Fenris!" Leman said excitedly.
"Indeed it is, Leman Russ. Given the unknown state of the galaxy, I thought it most apt to send you to the one place you would assuredly find safe refuge." Tzeentch said. "But remember, this is a single-use, one-way portal. Obviously, none of us can use it, and once you use it you will be unable to return… at least until you can find a way to destroy the barrier and free us all, that is." He gave him a wry smile, and in response Leman nodded confidently. "I wish you both all the luck in the universe." Leman stepped towards the portal and looked back upon the faces of the 4 gods which had helped him during this strange journey. Admu stepped up next to him.
"Well, c'mon Mister Russ! We've got a galaxy to save!" she said, impatiently tugging on his arm.
"Indeed." Leman said. He turned to the gods and denizens of this realm he was about to depart from. "Farewell, kind folk. I hope to see you all again, beyond this prison, once you have been freed." Together, they stepped into the portal.
Leman expected to step upon ice and snow, to feel the icy winds of Fenris upon his face and to breathe the cold winter air. Instead, they were surrounded by Chaos. Swirling, churning clouds of effluvial energy illuminated by the light of baleful stars permeated the abyss, concealing a slithering evil that coiled and twisted before them.
"What should I find, what should I find, burrowing, tunneling, scurrying through my abyss?" The crawling terror clamored. Rows of malignant eyes upon tendrils of fleshy blackness blinked and leered at the two wayward travelers. "I am Ghargatuloth, the Whisperer in the Darkness, the Prince of a Thousand Faces, the God of the Last Hunt. I know all, see all, touch all… yet one of you I have never seen…" Leman and Admu stood back-to-back, trying to defend themselves from the all-encompassing daemonic mass. "Ah, no matter. My master's plans do not include you… so I will do him a favor and remove the known unknowns. You were hurtling towards some puny rock in the Materium… no, no, no, that's no good. I have a better idea. How about the black hole at the center of the Galactic Core? Yes, yes, yes, that's a wonderful idea!" The mass of eyes and tentacles jittered and undulated in a nauseating display of amusement.
As terror and adrenaline filled Leman's mind, he began to hear something. It was faint at first, but gradually grew louder and louder until he could finally recognize what it was.
…music? He thought.
A symphony of notes and instruments, unpredictable but not unpleasant. It permeated the space around them, almost as if it were pushing out the malignant presence of their daemonic assailant.
"Wait…" the demon muttered. "That sound… no, no, no no nononononono! It can't be! It mustn't be! Not here.. not now… not… HIM!" The daemon snarled in abject rage. Leman and Admu stumbled as the ground shifted beneath them. They realized that they were now standing in the palm of an immense hand emerging from the darkness.
Known unknowns, unknown knowns, who knows what who knows, do you know?
"You damnable-"
The stage is set, the actors in place, yet from behind the curtain arrives a new face.
What part in the game, what role you play, what piece you are, who is to say?
"You will not take from me my quarry, you glorified jester! I am the greatest servant of Tzeentch, the Changer of Ways, the Architect of Fate! Begone with you, back to the twisted hiding holes of your fucking Webway!" The demon shrieked, violently wrapping its tendrils around the singing god's wrist. Admu stumbled and nearly fell, until Leman caught her and helped her stay on her feet.
You will not be sent to your damnation, but neither is the wolf's den your destination.
The hand struggled to keep the two away from the daemon's clutches, as the tendrils began to overpower whatever being was currently holding them in its grasp.
A slight correction is the best I can do, once released it is all up to you.
Beneath them, the hand appeared to become translucent, displaying a field of stars. The image zoomed and shifted, before revealing the surface of a planet that Leman had never seen before.
A word of advice, kin of mine…
Admu perked up when she heard that word.
Beware your nephews. Bye!
Suddenly they fell through the hand-shaped portal beneath them, the music growing ever more distant as they plummeted through unknown space. The last thing they heard was the fading sound of Ghargatuloth's seething cries.
"CEGORAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAACH!"
Leman awoke on a slimy, metallic floor. A foul stench filled his nose, causing his face to grimace in disgust. He rose to his feet, looking around and trying to regain his bearings. He was in some kind of voidship, but it was easily the most unkempt and disgusting ship he had ever seen. Grime, mold, and strange, fleshy growths spread all across the walls, floor, and ceiling, coating the rusted pipes and tubing. Foul liquids dripped from open pustules that were somehow infecting the hull of the ship itself, as if the entire craft were a diseased animal.
This must be the work of Nurgle. Leman thought. Not the jolly old gardener - the foul, bloated plaguemonger. Suddenly he thought of Admu. He quickly looked around him, finding no trace of her.
"Damn it all, where has she gone!?" he shouted. A doorway across the room opened, revealing two space marines. They wore rusted, fetid armor, covered in grime and filth, and bore the insignia of the Death Guard. For a moment, Leman and the two traitor marines stared at one another in shock. However, Leman's surprise instantaneously transformed into bloodthirsty rage. He unsheathed his flaming black blade with his right hand, and three icy claws shot out from the gauntlet on his left. He let out a harrowing roar and charged at them just as the stunned marines lifted up their bolters.
Ever since the fall of Cadia and the opening of the Cicatrix Maledictum, the world of Leprus had found itself on the border of Hell itself. Warp storms plagued the system for months, disrupting trade and communication for the Imperial Guard regiment and space marine chapter stationed there. Yet, this was only the beginning of the world's plight. In the sky, one could just barely see the faint shape of a massive, diseased starship orbiting the planet - the Terminus Est, floating above like an omen of death and disease. The surface was scarred by intense fighting, the previously lush landscape reduced to a charred wasteland pockmarked by craters. Trenches, barbed wire, and corpses littered the earth, the remnants of many failed defenses. Even worse, a fouler form of life had begun to replace what used to live in this now-cursed place. Festering moss and diseased funguses grew like skin lesions upon the earth, daemonic manifestations of the Plague God Nurgle. A bloated form walked through the nascent forest of decay and pestilence, the sound of rusted metal and squishing flesh filling the air as he walked through his most ambitious creation. Typhus, Herald of Nurgle and Lord of the Death Guard's 1st Plague Company, was admiring his latest handiwork. Another plague marine in similarly degraded terminator armor was walking through the rotted fields towards him.
"Lord Typhus, I have news from the front. The Imperial stronghold is under siege, and the chapter of corpse-worshippers which were protecting it have all been slaughtered. Unfortunately, it seems they had some kind of relic which they were able to deploy that's keeping us from breaching their defenses. If we could mount a combined assault, we coul-"
"There is no need to be hasty, commander Justinian. Nurgle is not an impatient god." Typhus said, his sickly yet commanding voice wheezing through his respirator. "One should not pick a fruit before it is ripe." Typhus said, plucking a diseased plant bulb hanging from a gnarled tree. "You must wait until it becomes soft, its insides begin to liquefy, its skin becoming blackened until it is nothing more than a rotted heap." As he spoke, the bulb began to decay into nothing but blackened fungal spores, carried by the wind to infect more of the accursed land. Typhus turned back to his underling. "We need only to wait, commander. To wait until their minds fester with fear and doubt, their bodies becoming weak and diseased, the corruption eating them from the inside out until, before they even realize it, we will have already won without firing a single shot." He made a grotesque gurgling noise that was intended to be laughter. "This patch of glorious rot is merely a seed, the beginnings of my magnum opus. A garden to rival the likes of Nurgle's, a beautiful shrine to filth and decay the likes of which has never been seen in the galaxy before! Mortarion's failure upon Pestiliax has lost him favor with the Plaguefather… by presenting this world to him as a gift, I may secure my rightful place by his side as the one true champion of Nurgle!"
Several miles away, in a makeshift fort lined with dirt mounds, wooden planks, and barbed wire, 4 guardsmen stood watch and regretted every choice they'd ever made in their lives. They were tired, hungry, and scared as hell. Their only consolation was that they weren't sick yet. If they had been, they would've been executed already.
"I still can't believe they never told us that demons were fucking real." Private Jeremiah said. "We had to find out when they tore open the entire goddamn galaxy!"
"Keep talking like that and you'll get a visit from the Inquisition." Corporal Han said.
"Shut up the both of you or I'll kill you myself." Sergeant Kelly said. She rubbed her temples and popped another antibiotic pill. She doubted these things even worked, seeing as nothing the Guard used ever seemed to work, but it was better than just sitting there and waiting to die. She gripped her Lasgun, checking the battery and sights ritualistically to keep herself sane.
"You got anything to add, Ramirez?" Private Jeremiah said. Corporal Ramirez merely grumbled and kept watch over their flank. "The Inquisition ain't coming here. Nobody is. Even the goddamn astartes are all dead."
"I said shut up, private." Kelly said, holding her lasgun menacingly. The last thing she wanted to deal with was insubordination. "Through the Emperor, all things are possible." She didn't believe a word of what she just said.
"Oh right, so the Emperor's just gonna send a bloody army to fall right on top of us and beat the fucking Death Guard? Piss off." Jeremiah said. Kelly seriously considered shooting him just out of annoyance. Luckily for him, she was interrupted by the sound of something crashing through the roof of the ammo storage shack next to them.
"What the fuck was that?" Corporal Han said. All four of them slowly crept towards the shack, their lasrifles trained on the door. Sergeant Kelly grabbed the handle of the door, and slowly pulled it open. When she looked inside, she nearly dropped her gun in shock. The other three guardsmen similarly stared into the shack with dumbfounded expressions.
"Wh- where am I?" Admu said, rubbing her head. She looked over at the four guardsmen gawking at her, and her eyes lit up. She gasped and looked back at them with a surprised expression. "Hey, you guys look like Mister Russ!"