The Emperor’s Angel of Death

#2332 - Phoenix Secrets

Although a woman's tears are not exactly a weapon for a Space Marine, considering Elliana's special status, watching her sob softly still stirred some pity and emotion within Solzhenitsyn. However, he knew that things needed to be clarified, or it wouldn't be good for anyone. He steeled his heart and continued, saying:

"Queen Elliana, I also remember that I am an Astartes. I have no intention of abandoning my mission. I will make the decisions I believe are correct, even if those decisions require considerable sacrifice. But I will try to arrange everything as best as I can. However, there is a prerequisite: that these decisions are made without being deceived or misled. Just as you told me not to trust the mortals, how can you prove that your words are necessarily true? So, if you truly hope for the return of the Primarch, the best way is to tell the truth and tell me everything as it is."

Elliana was silent for a long time, finally picking up a handkerchief from the coffee table to wipe her eyes and chin, then turning to look at Solzhenitsyn.

"You really are like him, not just in appearance, but also in temperament. Even knowing the cost, you are still willing to make your own decisions for the sake of the so-called mission. If that's the case, I believe he must have said the same to Malcador and his father."

As she spoke, she closed her eyes.

"What do you want to ask?"

"The Greymarrow, how exactly did Xerxes discover it, and where did it come from?"

"I've said before, he found it with the help of a mysterious friend when the Orks attacked the planet."

"Is that all?"

"If I had to say, the only thing I know is that it didn't come from aliens or the Warp. It came from a place called the Phoenix Lake in Tizca. It's said to be a lake, but it's actually a huge volcano crater. Its name comes from the fact that people in ancient times witnessed a platinum-colored phoenix there. The founder of the Pyre Cult, Zarathustra, received Mazda's oracle in that place, and depicted Mazda's image according to the phoenix, and built a grand temple. However, that temple sank into the volcano many years before His Majesty's arrival. His Majesty should have gone there, but I don't know what happened inside. His Majesty has always been tight-lipped about this matter."

Phoenix, it's hard not to associate Solzhenitsyn with Asuryan.

Could things really be so coincidental that Xerxes was thrown onto a planet that just happened to have a relic of Asuryan?

I'm afraid this is not a coincidence.

"Then do you know what Greymarrow is? Or rather, do you know that it is actually related to the Eldar?"

Elliana first silently shook her head, then explained:

"I don't know the secrets of Greymarrow, but I know it is related to the Eldar, because His Majesty once frantically collected information about the Eldar and also met an Eldar seer."

Solzhenitsyn suddenly had a flash of inspiration.

"That Eldar seer, could it be Eldrad?"

"It is, the chief seer of Craftworld Ulthwe, and the one who sent Veronica to your side."

"Didn't Xerxes notice anything?"

Elliana said meaningfully:

"His Majesty said that everything that seer strives for will ultimately be in vain, he is just using the other party."

"Then has he had contact with the Necrons and the Star Gods?"

"Yes, but I don't know much. His Majesty was very careful and cautious when contacting these forces, and he would deliberately avoid me and never tell me about it. I only learned some things by accident. He brought back something from a monolith named Ymgarl, saying it was the secret of the Flayed Ones rebelling against their masters. The Flayed Ones are the Necrons, and their former masters are the Star Gods. I think you should know this."

Solzhenitsyn nodded thoughtfully, his thoughts drifting to that mysterious nonahedron.

Did Xerxes mean that this thing was a weapon used by the Flayed Ones to destroy the Star Gods? Or did he mean something else?

But there's no use thinking about it now. He'll have to let the wise men of Ulan Huda examine that thing carefully someday before there can be any results.

"Queen Elliana, can you tell me some of the truth about the organization left behind by Malcador?"

"Be careful of them, be careful of them! Everything today was caused by Malcador! He is a demon! A demon with only the Emperor in his mind! They are still carrying out plans from ten thousand years ago, but I understand them. After resurrecting His Majesty, they will definitely have further actions, because they only serve that tyrant! Their only desire is to make their ruthless and cruel master stand up again!"

Elliana said almost gnashing her teeth, which was very different from her usual gentle and elegant image, which shows how deep her hatred for Malcador was, but even so, she still chose to cooperate with them.

Solzhenitsyn guessed that it was probably because she was too weak.

"How many of them are there exactly?"

"Well, according to my speculation, there are probably 10-15 executors, and each has its own code name. They don't call each other by name. Apart from the ones who have already appeared in front of you, the rest are a mystery, but without exception, they should all be veterans of the Great Crusade era, and they also have an unknown power on them, everyone has it. I don't know the source of this power, but its essence is terrible, it is definitely not benevolent, you must be careful."

"The power on them"...

Solzhenitsyn suddenly remembered the flames that sometimes appeared on Saul.

"Is it from the Throne?"

"I don't know, maybe it's not that simple."

"When did you start working with them?"

"After His Majesty ordered Muhr to send me and the Avesta away, I lived alone on that empty ship for several years, until one day Malcador suddenly found me. He said that I still had a chance to see His Majesty, but the prerequisite was that I had to enter suspended animation and part of my consciousness had to be divided into a machine. When the time was right, someone would wake me up."

"I see..."

Solzhenitsyn thought for a while, calculating the connections in his mind. It seems that Malcador had already begun to lay the groundwork for the future after Xerxes' death. Thinking about it carefully, it's a bit strange. Could he foresee that the Emperor would be severely injured by Horus and have to ascend the Throne?

Or was this plan not originally intended to be executed ten thousand years later?

"How was Xerxes' relationship with the other Primarchs?"

"Generally speaking, they were all good, or rather, many Primarchs were compared to His Majesty..."

Elliana shook her head.

"Compared to His Majesty, they were more like children. Some of them were not only strange-tempered, moody, tyrannical and cruel, but also extremely self-centered. However, there were also some who had a very good relationship with His Majesty, such as Sanguinius, Jaghatai Khan, and Vulkan, etc."

"What about Konrad Curze? He seems to be..."

"Konrad Curze——"

Speaking of this name, Elliana seemed to fall into a memory, and was silent for a long time.

"His relationship with His Majesty was very special. At least in my opinion, this Primarch was a complete madman, who seemed to be immersed in the darkest emotions of mankind all day long. However, His Majesty seemed to have a special view of him, and he would appear much calmer when he was by His Majesty's side. I know that Konrad Curze has the ability to foresee the future, but he cannot control this ability. Perhaps it is because His Majesty can suppress or temporarily treat his stubborn disease, but more importantly, it is probably because His Majesty is willing to listen to him."