[Designation L1792: The Garvin Imperial Feudal World]
Within a cluster of snow-white buildings towering into the clouds, a massive crowd gathered in a sprawling plaza. A complex, oppressive atmosphere permeated the air.
At the front of the plaza, neatly arranged military formations exuded a solemn and majestic aura. Piles of weapons were stacked before the podium, while wealth and coins lay scattered across the ground, seemingly discarded at random.
Among the crowd, some stared greedily at the gold and silver treasures on the ground, a burning desire flashing in their eyes. Others gazed longingly at the highly advanced weapons gleaming with a deadly luster, seemingly weighing them in their minds.
They had come to this place with various motives. Some sought to rebel against oppression, some sought a quick death, and others simply wanted to fish in troubled waters and profit from the chaos.
However, faced with the dozens of towering Knight mechs standing in the plaza, everyone held their breath. No one dared to make a rash move.
As the crowd grew larger, the clamor gradually subsided. The Prince remained completely silent, looking down upon everything from his high vantage point, as if waiting for a crucial moment.
A moment later, a tremor echoed from afar. A Dominus-class Valiant Knight mech slowly marched down the wide road dedicated to the castle.
It was far heavier than the Armiger mechs. With every step it took, the ground trembled slightly, shaking loose fine debris from the cracks in the pavement.
Its massive frame was almost level with the surrounding buildings. Its broad shoulders and thick limbs displayed unparalleled strength, resembling a mobile fortress of war.
Only when it reached the center of the plaza did the people truly grasp the reality of its exaggerated proportions.
Forming a stark contrast to this majestic Knight mech was its owner—a young man who looked exceptionally frail.
He carried an uncontrollable air of panic and dishevelment. Everyone immediately turned their eyes toward him.
This made the young man instinctively try to fix his appearance to maintain his composure.
He stubbed his toe against the marble floor, nearly losing his footing and falling to his knees.
"Your Highness, you must not rush, or my etiquette classes will likely be extended by another two hours."
An old man's strong hand grabbed hold of him.
"Uncle, they are here."
The young man's face was pale. He took a deep breath, forcing himself not to recall the blasphemous sights. He tried to whisper his report, but the old man cut him off immediately.
The old man stepped aside and pushed him toward the microphone.
"Say it out loud, Leonardo. The sole heir of the Garvin Dynasty has no reason to hide anything."
"Is... is that really a good idea?"
Leonardo looked at the dense crowds surrounding them in layer upon layer. Recalling the scenes he had witnessed, a deeply bewildered expression crossed his face.
Even he, a Knight pilot, had been so terrified that he lost his composure. How could these ordinary citizens possibly withstand such a blow?
"Say it."
The old man's tone grew heavier.
He no longer possessed the demeanor of the kindly old man who used to indulge Leonardo in skipping his etiquette lessons. Instead, he radiated an intense, overwhelming pressure.
"Yes."
Leonardo braced himself and stepped up to the microphone.
"Reconnaissance squads have detected the movements of cultists. They are right at—"
"Louder!"
Feeling the explosive emotion from the man behind him, Leonardo abandoned all hesitation and bellowed,
"One hundred and twenty kilometers from the Principality, reconnaissance forces have discovered cultist movements! There are approximately three hundred Knights and around six million Minion troops!"
Amplified by the Empire's excellent vox-caster system, the report echoed throughout the massive city that housed millions of people.
Leonardo genuinely felt that his uncle had lost his mind. He was truly terrified by the traitorous forces, and he genuinely had no desire to speak to these commoners.
What role could they possibly play in a war? Even if the Garvin Dynasty had its own industrial production lines and could arm them with all sorts of melta weapons, what good would it do?
Wouldn't they just start a rebellion first?
Just as Leonardo feared, the dead silence lasted only a brief second before it was shattered by a cacophony that sounded like a passing storm.
"Lord Knights! Three hundred Lord Knights?!"
"It is over. We are dead for sure this time. Why does this damned struggle between the elites have to drag my life into it?"
"Why don't we surrender? It is just a religious sect, isn't it? I can convert."
"If you want to die, do not drag me down with you—Military Police! There is a heretic here!"
"...Are you satisfied now, Uncle?"
Watching the chaos below, Leonardo, who had regained his calm by establishing a psychological advantage—feeling that his willingness to fight already placed him far above the common masses—looked back at the old man, his face speechless.
Naturally, there was no shortage of brave souls. They pushed through the tight cordons of the Armiger guards and claimed their respective weapons, but compared to the chaotic mob in the plaza, their numbers were pitifully small.
"I want this city to become a meat grinder that bleeds the heretics dry. A few tens of thousands of professional soldiers are not enough. Even if they fought for ten years, fought to the death, they could never exhaust the weapons stockpiled by the Dynasty. It would only end up benefiting the heretics."
The Prince stepped up to the podium. His melee-specialized Cerastus-class Knight mech seemed to sense his intent, loosening its grip on its massive greatsword.
"The common people are ignorant and afraid of death. But to make them lay down their lives, only one thing is required."
The noise was deafening. Visible terror spread through the crowd, and many had already ignored the authority of the Knight House, turning on their heels to flee.
"What thing?"
Leonardo watched the colossal tip of the sword plummet toward the ground.
"Despair."
Clang!
The Cerastus Knight slammed its greatsword down heavily. The thunderous boom of the blade striking the Steel plating below echoed throughout the plaza, instantly silencing the chaotic crowd. The civilians froze in all sorts of bizarre postures, looking up at the high platform in confusion.
"Citizens of the Imperium, how much longer will you deceive yourselves?"
"Among you are transient refugees. You might harbor the illusion that you can simply run away again. Among you are subjects of the Lunnster Principality. You think this is merely a dispute that will end in a change of overlord. However—"
The Prince's booming voice resonated. At the exact same moment, the horrific scenes of slaughter captured by the scouts were vividly projected onto every pristine marble wall.
"You will not survive."
"This was never a dispute between nobles. Since the Consterdon Massacre, this war has been inextricably tied to your fate. When the heretics' butcher knives fall upon your necks, when the final principality of the Garvin Dynasty falls, where do you expect to run?"
Perhaps due to the Prince's long-standing authority, no one dared to contradict him. Everyone stared blankly at the projected scenes of carnage: human skin flayed by cultists, fascia violently extracted, dried, and strung into harps.
"But I just want to live... I just want to live..."
Someone screamed and fell to their knees. His voice was piercingly loud in the silent plaza.
In almost the blink of an eye, a squad of military police tracked him down and dragged him onto the high platform.
"You are lying to yourself,"
the Prince stated. "I know you. You are a logistics officer. You control the trade routes across the Dynasty's territories. You know better than anyone else what has happened in the other domains. You have been panicking, desperately trying to escape, but the merchant caravans you sent out to scout the paths have not sent back any news in a week."
"I—"
The man opened his mouth but could not produce a single sound.
"And you—"
The Prince then looked toward a muscular soldier. The projection began to play footage of the soldier secretly letting a group of youths escape.
The soldier hastily fell to his knees.
"Your pity led you to release a group of young men who longed to flee. But tell me, what news did your fellow scouts bring back?"
The scene shifted. Those same youths had been gutted by the cultists, their remains fashioned into marching banners. The technological capabilities of the Garvin Dynasty were quite advanced; everyone could easily match the faces that had been overjoyed just moments before to the twisted masks of despair they had become.
The civilians were utterly dumbfounded.
While the noble lords were truly ruthless, the creatures in the footage could not even be considered human anymore, right?
"Do you see?"
The old man looked at the stupefied crowd, his voice remaining resonant and powerful.
"From the very beginning, you had no chance of survival. We will lead the army to fight back. We will defend the property of the Imperium. But when we fall, do you really think the successors of this land will show you any mercy?!"
No one answered. The truth was already clear in everyone's hearts.
BOOM!!!
Right at that moment, a terrifying howl ripped through the air. Leonardo instinctively tried to dive back into his mech, but the old man grabbed him firmly.
It was a saturating artillery barrage pounding against the void shields. The brilliant flash of light that erupted at that instant almost swallowed the entire sky.
"Uncle, the vanguard has already engaged the enemy,"
Leonardo growled, but the old man remained perfectly still.
He just stood there, watching the distant city walls be toppled, watching the grasslands of their territory be polluted by a blasphemous purple, watching the cultists—draped in human skin and wielding bone—charge across the fields.
Their bodies were severely mutated. Behind their thorn-covered vehicles, they dragged countless struggling humans, tearing them into bloody pulps.
Everyone watched.
"Now, you have only one chance."
The Prince roared, "The Dynasty grants you weapons! Use your lives to fight those heretics! Fight so that you may die as human beings! And we, the Knights, will always charge ahead of you!"
As for anything else, they could not provide it. Not even The Emperor could.
The artillery fire continued to roar, deflected by the void shields. The Prince decisively abandoned the defense of the open terrain, planning to shift the battlefield to the inner city protected by the void shields.
"..."
The first person silently picked up a weapon. Then the second. Then the third.
The two men who had been detained were released as well. Now was not the time to hold them accountable for their dereliction of duty.
Death was at their doorstep; they could only use their lives to carve out a fighting chance.
Leonardo looked at all of this in a daze.
The old man patted Leonardo on the shoulder and asked,
"How do you feel, Your Highness?"
"I will tell you the truth. If I do not die after this battle, I am definitely abdicating the throne to you."
Leonardo, who had ascended to the throne less than twenty-four hours ago, smiled bitterly. "Secondly, I suppose I should change my impression of them just a little."
"They are just like us—descendants of pioneers. The only difference is that we have Knights, and they do not."
The old man observed the ripples spreading across the sky and noticed Leonardo's tense expression.
"There is no need to rush. We have void shields, and these traitors have no fleet. They are forced to engage us in urban warfare."
"Right."
Leonardo nodded, feeling rather helpless. He realized his uncle genuinely was not in a hurry, acting completely relaxed even as the enemy pushed right up to their doorstep.
"This is your first time participating in Knight combat, is it not?"
the old man suddenly inquired.
"Yes. As you know, before fleeing Garvin, I skipped far too many of my lessons."
Leonardo replied awkwardly.
"That is perfectly normal. I ran away during my first history lesson as well."
A look of fond reminiscence appeared on the old man's face.
"I still remember the first time I stepped onto the battlefield. I was so excited that I completely forgot our military formation techniques along with our family history. I charged right into the middle of the enemy pack. It was your father who fished me out of a pile of corpses."
"By now, I suppose I have fought hundreds of battles."
He let out a long sigh. He never imagined that the corruption of Slaanesh would descend upon his brother's House.
"Then please, command me."
Leonardo declared firmly. Aside from living a carefree life of luxury, the only thing he had developed was a somewhat proficient mastery of Knight piloting techniques. He knew absolutely nothing else.
Then, a look of shame washed over his face, and he added, "I apologize for being so ignorant and incompetent."
"Knowing how to utilize people's strengths is also an excellent virtue."
The old man replied, patting the young man with an encouraging smile.
No matter how mischievous this child had been, he had not fled from his duties. He had not succumbed to the corruption of Slaanesh. And now, he was willing to pilot a Knight into battle. That was enough.
"Uncle, is there still hope?"
Leonardo suddenly asked, causing the Prince to freeze for a moment.
He then patted his nephew's shoulder once more.
"Of course there is, my boy. Of course there is."
"Go now. Take your post."
"Understood."
The numerous Knights strode forward, all heading toward the very front of the military formation.
Ten minutes later, at the top section of the city's defensive perimeter.
The rumbling of war machines drifted through the air. Any soldier with a modicum of experience could tell that the engagement was imminent.
"My Lord, say something!"
Shouted a commoner clutching a las-musket from an observation tower not far from the Knights.
There were no retainers left to slap him across the face for his insolence.
"I am Leonardo Garvin, the sole legitimate heir of the Garvin Dynasty."
Leonardo looked up at the man, then glanced at the expectant faces of the people around him, and spoke plainly.
"We cannot hear you!"
a troublemaker shouted loudly.
"I am Leonardo Garvin, the sole legitimate heir of the Garvin Dynasty! Ahead of us lies hell, but that is nothing to fear! I am the 'Blade of Oaths'. I shall charge before you, and I shall die before you!"
Leonardo subconsciously raised his voice and turned his Knight around. The mech's vox-caster system—powerful enough to stun a Beast to death at close range—broadcasted his booming voice across the surroundings.
The sheer volume instantly knocked people off their feet in a chaotic heap.
"...Are you satisfied now?"
Looking at the hapless civilians, Leonardo sighed in exasperation and commanded his Knight to step forward.
But before he could even put any distance between them, a muffled yet incredibly heavy noise echoed from behind.
It was a rumbling sound like a landslide or a tsunami.
"?"
A look of astonishment crossed Leonardo's face.
"Move up! Get to the very front!"
His uncle's voice crackled through the comms. With no time to overthink, Leonardo used his mental impulse connection to drive the Knight mech forward. The mechanical behemoth displayed extraordinary agility as it wove through the towering skyscrapers.
CRASH!
The inner city wall was pushed down the very moment the 'Blade of Oaths' advanced. Three Chaos Knights approached like demons, their silhouettes twisted as if they had just crawled out from the abyssal depths of The Warp.
One was studded with ornate spikes, its dark purple, almost black chassis resembling coagulated blood. Its chain-axe tore through the air amidst the roar of its engine.
Another dragged writhing mechanical tentacles behind it, its armor embedded with skulls that clattered together to produce a sickening racket.
The third was stuffed with blood-drained flesh, advancing with silent yet deadly steps. Its melta cannon barrel flickered with an eerie, sickly green light.
The three marched in perfect unison, bearing down on the 'Blade of Oaths' with suffocating malice.
One against three. All of them were Questoris-class.
Leonardo gritted his teeth. Feeling every vibration of the mech through the neural interface, he slightly closed his eyes.
It was an extension of himself; it was his Faith.
He drove his consciousness forward. The mech roared as it charged, cracking the earth beneath its feet.
The 'Blade of Oaths' hoisted its massive reaper chainsword. The blade accelerated into a blur of silver light and clashed against the dark purple mech's axe.
Sparks flew wildly as the agonizing shriek of metal pierced the fog. In the brief moment the two behemoths were locked in a stalemate, Leonardo heard a whisper from the enemy's cockpit.
"Oh, my dear Leonardo. How could you refuse an invitation from your aunt?"
"Shut up!"
He growled, firing an armor-piercing shell from his shoulder cannon that struck the dark purple mech squarely in the chest.
The armor exploded, raining shrapnel, but the enemy merely stumbled a step before laughing maniacally and counterattacking. The chain-axe chopped toward the left arm of the 'Blade of Oaths'. Leonardo twisted his chassis, allowing the axe blade to scrape past, leaving only a shallow gouge.
The plasma reactor roared, and his heart raced in tandem. In almost an instant, Leonardo, merging with the spirits of his ancestors, entered the zone.
The thundercoil harpoon lit up with a magnificent blue glow. With an exaggerated agility, the 'Blade of Oaths' dodged the second swing. Enduring the lash of a whip from behind, it drove the harpoon straight into the enemy's cockpit.
BANG!
The force field shredded the chassis, generating a crisp, explosive crack. Leonardo rapidly aimed his triple-barreled flamer around him, sweeping the area. Searing flames engulfed the suicide assault vehicles attempting to break through the Armiger Knights' blockade. He then quickly pivoted toward his next opponent.
"Next!"
The vox-caster system broadcasted his roar, carrying his explosive battle lust far into the distance.
There were Knights who were incompetent, and Knights who were inept.
But there should never be a Knight who is a coward.
At this moment, aside from the valiant struggles of the Knights, the Minion forces behind them were also closely watching the battling giants.
Those people who had held onto a sliver of hope and chosen not to throw themselves into the battlefield at the very beginning—
They watched the Knights slaughtering each other. They watched house after house be reduced to rubble. They watched the cultists being crushed into bloody chunks beneath the collapsing buildings.
The enemy didn't seem so invincible after all. They could bleed and die, too?
"Keep up! Keep up! Do not let those heretics with explosives get near the Lord Knights!"
Immediately following this, countless professional soldiers surged forward, striving to unleash their firepower through the gaps between the giants, eager to inflict as much damage upon the enemy as possible.
"Charge! Let us charge alongside the Lord Knights!"
The retainer armies followed with fanatical zeal.
"Charge! Break through with the Lord Knights!"
the troublemaker yelled.
The retainer troops and the civilians fervently raised their weapons together.
"Charge! The Lord is dead! Avenge the Lord!"
'Who just cursed me to die?!'
Vzzzt... Vzzzt...
Leonardo could no longer remember how long he had been fighting.
A Chaos Knight tackled him to the ground. Tentacles wrapped around his mech's legs like vipers, and razor-sharp bone teeth bit into the armor. Hydraulic lines ruptured, spewing scalding hot fluids.
Leonardo groaned in pain. The neural feedback felt like needles piercing his spine, violently snapping him back to reality and making him realize his dire situation.
His mech's triple-barreled flamer was destroyed. All ranged ammunition was depleted. Only the harpoon remained operational.
Bang! Bang!
The Chaos Knight repeatedly hammered its broken Dagger against the cockpit of the 'Blade of Oaths'.
He desperately tried to struggle, only to find that his left arm was pinned beneath the wreckage of another Knight.
He attempted to roll over, but realized the Chaos Knight's legs still had power. A perfect triangular lock held him firmly to the ground.
A look of absolute despair washed over Leonardo's face as he watched his cockpit being chipped open bit by bit.
'Dying like this is far too pathetic.'
"Charge! The Lord is still alive! Let us save him!"
Right at that moment, another familiar roar echoed out. Leonardo instinctively turned his head and saw the same troublemaker who had demanded he speak before the battle, leading a massive horde of civilians toward him.
"Charge!"
The troublemaker held his gun high, firing shot after shot into the cultists. Suddenly, one of the Mutants rushed at him with exaggerated speed, slicing a mutated, elongated finger straight across the troublemaker's throat.
The troublemaker died.
His headless corpse slumped forward onto its knees, but falling right alongside him was the corpse of the Mutant.
"Charge!"
The slightly pale and plump logistics officer rushed forward clutching explosives. As his stomach was torn open by a chainblade, he could only hurl himself from afar toward the Chaos Knight.
More and more people swarmed toward Leonardo. They saw that the Knight was still struggling, still fighting.
Guns and explosives were ferried forward bit by bit through a wall of human flesh, engulfing the enemies along with the Chaos Knight's legs in a fiery blast.
BOOM!!!
How could the Chaos Knight, its Energy Shield already overloaded long ago, withstand such an impact?
Screech—
The crushing weight from above lessened.
The 'Blade of Oaths' swiftly rose to its feet. Spinning around, it blasted the harpoon right through the cockpit of the Chaos Titan.
Leonardo never imagined he would live to see such a sight.
He had hoped his surviving Knight armigers would lend a hand, that his uncle's reinforcements would arrive in time, or that the retainer troops would drag artillery over to blast the damned enemy away.
The only thing he had not expected was to be saved by a group of commoners sacrificing their flesh and blood.
"The Lord is still alive!"
"Lord, lead us in one more charge!"
The people scrambled over to the Knight. Their crude language no longer sounded grating to Leonardo's ears.
In the past, he had despised these lowly peasants. Yet now, they were standing in the very same trench, all fighting for their survival.
Because he finally understood where his usual unchecked authority came from. Now, it was time for them to fulfill their duty.
"Yes."
The 'Blade of Oaths' nodded. Its vox-caster system had been ruined in the recent skirmish.
Leonardo could certainly still fight. He could certainly continue this bloody battle, leading his subjects to fight to the bitter end.
But where was the hope after the bloodshed?
"Lord, can we win?"
someone shouted.
"Of course we can!"
Leonardo's voice rang out from the breaches in his Knight's armor.
But could they truly win?
No, there was no hope.
There was only Honor.
Dying in battle as human beings was the greatest Honor they could bestow upon these Mortals.
The Knight strode forward, and Leonardo led his people into another charge.
At this moment, how he wished to lead his people to survival. How he wished to lead them to victory.
However—
Was it possible?
The fall of this planet was a foregone conclusion. The corruption of Slaanesh had spread entirely too fast. By the time Imperial reinforcements arrived, this world would likely no longer exist.
Could they not win?
The Knight charged, locked onto the enemy, and engaged once again.
Yet, the moment they clashed, this Chaos Knight seemed to lose all power. It collapsed stiffly forward, impaling itself upon Leonardo's blade.
He looked down in astonishment, only to realize that the Chaos Knight's entire lower half had been obliterated by melta cannon fire.
Just then, Leonardo heard a continuous string of explosive roars surging from beyond their abandoned territory.
He immediately snapped his gaze over.
They were towering warriors, fully armed and encased in impenetrable Steel.
Driving anti-grav vehicles that hovered in the air, completely ignoring the countless ruins and corpses below, they began to cruise swiftly across the battlefield.
They cut through the tidal wave of heretics. With unparalleled impact, they tore a lethal rift into the muddy quagmire of the battlefield.
They would bring victory.
Like divine soldiers descending from the heavens.
The Valkyries belonging to the Astra Militarum soared toward the winter, flying into the rising sun.
The time was the ninth of September, 741.M41. The nobles who had embraced the Lord of Pleasure were cheering, hosting an endless, eternal party. Wrapped in human skin and fascia intertwined with vox-casters, the Slaanesh Knights began their hunt, vowing to crush the Principality that dared to resist to the bitter end into dust.
At 13:39, the sun rose high above the fortress of the traitorous Knights. In that very instant, countless Stormbirds descended. Ten minutes later, the hatches opened, and the Adeptus Astartes dropped into the battlefield like a torrential rain.
"With sword and fire, ignite the lands of the heretics."
A black sword sliced across the star map, letting scattered flecks of glittering gold drift downward.
"With the ashes of our enemies, fertilize the soil of humanity."
Illuminated by magnificent lighting, the general, the knight, The Angel, and the psyker all gathered together.
Surrounding the four figures, commanders from all echelons stared with burning fervor at the strategic lines gradually extending across the star map.
Then, the teleportation beacons on the planet's surface lit up. Aside from the general coordinating the grand strategy, all the commanders threw themselves onto the battlefield without a second thought.
The Crusade had begun.