…
In the underground surgical chamber of the fortress, the Burning One stood over the shattered remains of the new recruit incubators, gazing down at the sanguinary priest known as Cobro. By Cobro's side stood Bellona. The Burning One had come only because Bellona had claimed she needed the wisdom of a being both great and wise.
Though unaffected by flattery, the Burning One endured Bellona's request, as she was the only one willing to lead him to Tyron.
Facing the fragment of a star god, Cobro spoke his plea: "Do you possess any knowledge in biotechnological sciences?"
"It is not my forte," the Burning One replied, "but go on—I know more than enough for such trivial matters."
Cobro hesitated, then looked to Bellona. She nodded, silently urging him to reveal their plight. It was Bellona who had proposed Cobro speak with this flaming entity about the issue of gene-seed defects. Whatever the nature of this being, it wielded technologies and sciences unfathomable to humankind.
Initially, Cobro had resisted, longing instead to find a cure for his brothers' afflictions through his own efforts. But Bellona's simple words had persuaded him: "You know how impossible it is to study Bloodthirst and Black Rage. This may be your one chance."
For a man at the edge of despair, even the faintest glimmer of hope is irresistible.
"Take a look at these." Cobro showed the Burning One the hastily scrawled notes. They referenced only the Blood Angels' struggles with Bloodthirst and Black Rage, concealing any mention of the gene-seed itself.
Upon scanning the cryptic notes, the Burning One asked, "Whatever biotechnology you have employed, does it rely on the Warp?"
Cobro pondered for a moment before nodding.
"Then why consult me at all?" The flames around the Burning One blazed fiercely; combustible materials within the chamber ignited as he emitted a rage so visceral it shook the souls of those present.
Yet he held his fire, as he had with Foros and the others. Contemplating briefly, he reined in his fury.
"The Warp is not as cold and indifferent as your reality," he explained, forcing a degree of patience upon himself. "In this universe, what you create may incur no cost, may require no balance to maintain."
"You may struggle to understand this. Put simply, if your techniques are advanced enough, you could craft flawless gene-enhanced warriors here—perfection itself is possible, if you possess the mastery."
"But if you draw from the Warp, there are… prices to pay. This is the balance I speak of."
Cobro's heart sank. After countless sacrifices to free his brothers from their flaws, was it all for nothing, undone simply by the Warp's touch?
"I may not have the answer, but perhaps others do. A small imperfection is trivial; I've encountered far stronger gene-modified warriors who drew directly from the Warp—close to perfection, indeed. It is not beyond reach that you, too, might draw near to it."
"Thank you," Cobro murmured, his hope rekindled.
"But ultimately, such perfection is needless. Mortal lives, fleeting and frail, are mere candles in the wind; from the grander perspective, they hold no consequence." And with these words, the Burning One turned and drifted out of the chamber.
Cobro watched him go, muttering to himself, "Arrogant fool…"
…
The following day, the swarm's assault grew fiercer. Walls of the fortress trembled under the weight of even larger creatures bearing down upon them. The time for the decapitation strike was now.
The strike force mirrored the previous deployment: the First Companies from various chapters, Dante, the Burning One, and the Iron Men. With no certainty that slaying the swarm's overlord would stem the xenos tide, the bulk of the forces remained behind to defend the fortress.
Before the strike commenced, all combatants gathered in the monastery.
"I've conducted a psychic reconnaissance of the combat zone," Mephiston announced. "The swarm's numbers have doubled, but it poses no real concern."
"This time, I will join the fight personally," Dante added.
A chapter master raised a hand to question him, "How will we reach the location? Beyond the fortress' anti-air defenses, our transports will be vulnerable."
"We will teleport," Dante replied. "The Weepers possess stable, precise teleportation technology."
Foros nodded. While their teleportation shields weren't enough for everyone, the Techmarines had recently perfected a method for group teleportation protection.
"Once teleported, we execute our mission swiftly and return immediately. If the situation shifts, we will teleport back."
"This is different from before—our sole target is the swarm's overlord."
At Dante's words, they knelt, one by one, before the statue of Saint Sanguinius in prayer. When their prayers concluded, they moved to the open field, where the Techmarines activated the teleportation shield. Within moments, they were transported directly to the target location, materializing not outside the derelict warship, but within its vast deck.
Before them lay pools of bubbling green fluid.
"It seems Tyron's toys work well—they didn't throw us straight into one of those digestion pools," Carain remarked, pointing to the viscous pools.
In the absence of immediate danger, Carain allowed himself a moment of levity, though the swarm remained oblivious to their arrival.
Dante soon heard Mephiston's voice: "The swarm has no knowledge of your presence aboard the ship."
From within the fortress, Mephiston and his psykers shielded Bellona's acolyte, allowing her to observe the swarmship's interior and exterior.
The acolyte's mind filled with visions, swiftly skimming the entire warship and its surroundings. Beyond the ship, masses of creatures clustered around the swarm's overlord, perfectly still.
"Advance," Dante commanded, gripping his axe as he led the way.
To avoid alerting the overlord, Mephiston assisted the acolyte in concealing any mental traces related to it, creating a psychic mask.
The swarm overlord remained ignorant of the team's presence, as did the strike team of its exact location.
One of the Techmarines deployed a detector, homing in on the large xenos signature as he took the lead.
After half an hour's advance, the Techmarine abruptly halted, glancing at Foros. "The scanner indicates a xenos entity… in our midst."
"What does that mean?" Dante demanded. "Is there a xenos disguised among us, or are we surrounded?"
"It's… centered within us." The Techmarine puzzled over the display, tapping it, yet the reading remained unchanged.
Yet, looking around, they saw nothing.
Mephiston, noting the anomaly, used his psychic abilities to assist, but even his senses detected no xenos.
With both sight and psychic probes returning nothing, they dismissed it as a possible scanner malfunction and pressed on.
Then, one of the Space Marines felt a subtle shift beneath his feet and looked down.
Beneath him was a pulsating fleshy mass, gradually revealing itself. It lay motionless, like a dormant organ of sinew.
He looked up at Dante, confusion mounting in his gaze.
At that moment, the deck shattered, and from below, an enormous beast burst forth, consuming half the strike team in a single, gaping maw.