"Kill him."
Datch's command was concise and direct. The moment he finished speaking, Skarbrand and the Changeling lunged at the Dark Apostle.
"Roooaar!!!"
Skarbrand's mighty axe, potent enough to obliterate everything, swung at the Dark Apostle Kar-Gatharr in the most brutal manner.
Kar-Gatharr, realizing the attack could cut him in two, had no choice but to retreat awkwardly to dodge.
Even with the blessings of the gods, Kar-Gatharr knew well he stood no chance in a direct confrontation against one of Khorne's Greater Daemons.
Skarbrand pursued, slamming the axe down in relentless, ever-stronger blows. Kar could only continue withdrawing, ceaselessly dodging direct confrontation.
As the prey fled, the Daemon's fury grew, filling the air with an ear-splitting roar that made eardrums ache. The Changeling moved ghostlike, raining a discordant laugh into the Dark Apostle's ear, clearly relishing his distress.
Satisfied, it began chanting a spell, ancient magic swirling about.
In an instant, countless slime-coated, writhing, shadowy tentacles sprouted around Kar-Gatharr. Moving as if alive, they desperately wrapped him up, immobilizing him in a bog of darkness.
"Why!? Why do you noble servants of the gods obey orders from the Corpse King's minions and treat fellow followers like this?"
Kar-Gatharr shouted, voice strained, glaring at the Changeling.
The being laughed enigmatically, louder than before.
Faith? The ruler of all change needs no faith, only change itself—endless change. Followers? Sorry, it's irrelevant.
Skarbrand now approached the restrained Dark Apostle. His axe, glutted on countless souls, rose high and crashed down toward Kar's neck.
"No—!!!"
A desperate scream mingled with the dull crack of axe cleaving flesh and bone. The head of the blasphemous monster was flung skyward; its giant, headless body stiffened, then toppled.
The chaotic energies swirling around him rapidly dissipated. The battle was suddenly over, and so was the Dark Apostle's journey.
The Changeling casually conjured a witchfire orb, tossing it onto the corpse and reducing it to gray ash.
Amidst the ashes, Datch discovered a glittering crystal the size of a fist.
"What's this?"
He crouched to pick up the crystal—it felt as cold as ice.
As he examined it, light suddenly emanated from within, tracing distinctive rune outlines across its surface, projecting a vivid image.
On video appeared a terrifying man in red armor adorned with bone spikes and chaotic motifs, brandishing a star scepter with eight points.
His evil nature radiated from the image itself.
["Kar-Gatharr, Apostle of Darkness, in the name of the four great gods, I bless you."]
["Well done. The Ring of Bucharis has been found, the weapon of Tenebrus prepared. Guilliman will soon notice the power of chaos."]
["Once this world was full of faith for the Corpse King, sheltering countless devout souls. But these ignorant souls will eventually attain enlightenment, help us in our great endeavor, and the world will become a paradise for the gods."]
["The long war ends. For millennia we have prepared. Soon, even dust will become a mountain. Abaddon will lay the entire galaxy into the hands of the gods."]
As soon as he finished, the image shattered.
"Kor Phaeron!!!"
Achallor dragged himself to Datch's side, leaning on his halberd, and uttered the name of the man in the picture.
Hearing the name, information flooded Datch's mind: Kor Phaeron was as much a seed of evil in the Warhammer world as Erebus, one of those most deserving death.
In the early phases of the Horus Heresy, he had ambushed Guilliman with a ritual dagger, intending corruption of the Primarch. Enraged, Guilliman had torn out his heart with his bare hands.
"They have the ring. The final ritual may begin at any moment," Achallor said urgently.
"Nameless lord, whatever the cost, you must stop them!!"
Immediately, a task panel appeared:
[Mission: Stop Hand of Abaddon and prevent the final ritual.]
You have defeated the Dark Apostle, but the enemy has acquired the Ring of Bucharis and is about to begin the final ritual to corrupt the entire planet. Shield-captain Marcus Achallor expects you to intervene and stop these traitors.
[Quest Rewards: Exp +1200, Points +1200, Fame +100, Random Giant of Light Summon Card ×1]
Datch clicked for item details:
[You may summon a Giant of Light to obey your command for 3 minutes.]
"Only 3 minutes, how disappointing…" Datch thought.
"It would be amazing if I could summon Tiga in Glitter mode, or Legend in Cosmic Will form. A normal form can help fight a Chaos Titan at best. Well, since we're stopping things, let's end them entirely."
"Don't worry. The traitors will not succeed. Free everyone you can—we need their help," Datch instructed, then pulled out the golden hammer to help Achallor repair his armor and body.
Achallor nodded and went off to relay Datch's orders, freeing many of the Emperor's imprisoned followers:
battle-hardened but stubborn Sister Superiors, ragged Astra Militarum troops, weak civilians. Datch tapped each with the golden hammer, restoring their stamina.
He also repaired vehicles near the church so people could fight.
Meanwhile, Achallor and his men purged traitors from within the cathedral, planting bombs at the altars of the four Chaos gods.
During this, sharp-eyed Primaris Space Marines discovered the hidden cult leader, Tharador Yheng. No longer the fanatic who incited the rebellion, she was arrested and, by Achallor's unique methods, forced to divulge key intelligence.
The leaders of Hand of Abaddon, Tenebrus and the Warpsmith Torvann Lokk, were also present.
The enemy had forced Iron Warriors to secretly construct a giant bone cannon using battlefield corpses and blasphemous rituals.
Its breech was assembled from countless warped ribs; backs and receivers formed from thick, giant rivet-bones.
Layer on layer of pelvic bones created a massive, thick, 15-meter-wide muzzle of skulls, locked together in eternal agony. Each bone welded and reforged with chaos fire into this heretical war engine.
When the ring was set at the bone cannon's core, this evil device—made of pure pain and death—could unleash a ray potent enough to punch through an Imperial void shield and also trigger a planetwide corruption ritual.
At that moment, the faithful buried in the world of Gathalamor would have their souls twisted by the Chaos gods into a horde of terrifying ghosts.
Realizing the urgency, the heroes acted quickly. Datch wasted no time, leading rescued people directly to the front. Simultaneously, Achallor relayed information to Commander Dvorgin and Sister Imelda, making clear that if the bone cannon fires, resistance will be meaningless.
Upon arrival at the front, Dvorgin and Imelda ordered an Imperial attack. Mordian Astra Militarum Regiment, Phyroxian Tankers, Battle Sisters, Defenders of gathalamor, Mechanicus troops, Kamidar Knights—all entered combat.
The Imperium came courting death, determined to stop the bone cannon's firing.
Yet, lacking fortification advantage and up against Chaos-blessed rebels led by Iron Warriors, the imperial defense forces were hugely disadvantaged.
Datch fired the Poke Ball as he entered the battlefield.
"Rooar!"
Skarbrand dove in, roaring as he charged the densest mass of enemies, creating a storm of blood and gore.
The Changeling flitted about, taking lives with cunning sorceries.
Even a squad of Dark Angels was freed from the Room of Requirement by Datch to help stave off the Chaos plot.
Meanwhile, Datch flitted about repairing tanks and machines and healing wounded soldiers.
Warm golden light flashed; metal was restored, engines reignited, bodies recovered.
Datch's mere presence let the overmatched imperial troops hold the line alone, gradually reversing the battle's collapse!
The traitors soon noticed something was wrong:
however many of the Emperor's troops they cut down, they'd always stand back up, while their own lost warriors never returned.
No matter how superior their numbers, they'd be worn down and killed at this rate.
"Enough! Fire the bone cannon. Now!!"
Tenebrus's cold voice rang out on the Chaos comms.
It was clear victory in a normal fight was impossible; only the ultimate blasphemy could settle matters.
Boom—!!!
Not an explosion, but a battlefield-shaking scream, as if billions of souls wailed in agony at once.
From the titanic bone cannon of skulls, a sinuous beam of purple-black twisted light shot skyward, umbrella-like, enveloping the sky.
Moments later, even more shrill screams erupted.
Countless souls arose from the earth, all howling at once, bodies twisting into monstrous ghosts before the eye.
"Son of a bitch! These NPCs have no sportsmanship! The quest's going to fail!!"
Datch cursed the game designers for their lack of fair play, opening the game store, frantically searching for any item to change the field.
[Item: Effect Reversal Darts
Effect: While the dart is embedded in an item, its effect is reversed.
Review: "A magical item that can reverse the effect—or even the nature—of anything it hits!"]
"Perfect. Let's try it."
Datch exchanged for the item; a red-and-white toy dart appeared in his hand.
Meanwhile, the previously emboldened Imperial Army came under assault by the ghostly monsters.
Their bullets mostly passed through these spirits.
"Don't shoot! They're immune to bullets!" Dvorgin bellowed.
The only way to fight ghosts was in melee, but even then, barely any damage could be done. In just a moment, the tables turned; the Imperial forces were surrounded.
However, the Sisters of Battle quickly discovered that steadfast faith allowed them to inflict major damage.
They led others in loud prayer, chanting as they fought the ghostly tide—though the odds remained dire.
It's important to remember: this world alone has tens of billions of dead buried within it.
If all their souls transformed, the living would only slowly wither away and die.
Datch gazed at the colossal bone cannon, now guarded by Iron Warriors and ghost monsters, and brought out his can of Popeye's Spinach.
"It's up to you now."
…