The heavy grey power armor on Marcus radiated a cold killing intent, and the muzzle of the heavy bolter in his hand still emitted wisps of smoke. That single shot had cleanly ended the Nurgle cultist's final moment of madness.
David Rick looked at the newcomer, his steady expression shifting slightly. A complex mix of emotions flickered in his eyes: surprise, melancholy, and a trace of undetectable weight.
"Marcus—"
In contrast, Marcus stopped ten meters away. He flicked open his faceplate and sneered, "Governor, are you surprised to see me?"
David closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them again, all emotion had been retracted, leaving only a vast calm.
"Marcus, what happened back then... it wasn't what you think."
"Not what I think?" Marcus took a violent step forward, his armor thudding heavily against the ground as he roared, "My parents, my wife, and my child—all died in that catastrophe ten years ago. And you, David Rick, for your political record and to climb into the Governor's seat, you slaughtered half of Lobo City. And you tell me it wasn't what I think?"
With every sentence, Marcus's rage climbed higher. By the end, he was beyond fury; he raised his heavy rifle and fired a shot directly at David's head.
Bang!
A high-explosive round, as thick as a thumb, shot out instantly toward David's forehead. Yet David Rick didn't flinch; he didn't even move. Just as the projectile was about to touch his brow, a pale gold psychic shield shimmered into existence. The round slammed into the barrier and detonated with a roar.
When the smoke cleared, the pale gold shield remained intact, without even a ripple on its surface.
Seeing the other man take the shot head-on and remain unharmed, Marcus showed a look of astonishment. "Heh, I didn't expect you to hide so deep. You're a psyker."
For the longest time, David Rick had presented himself as an ordinary man. Only after that shot did Marcus realize he was a psyker, and judging by the strength, he was at least at the mid-Gamma level.
David slowly raised his hand, and the pale gold shield receded like a wave back into his body. He looked at Marcus's face, which was distorted by anger, and spoke calmly: "No, I never intentionally hid it. There was simply no need to mention it."
He paused briefly before continuing, "Regarding the Black Erosion that broke out in Lobo City ten years ago, you only saw that I issued the lockdown order. You only saw that I sacrificed nearly half of the civilians. But what you didn't see was that Lobo City at that time was facing something far beyond a mere plague."
David spoke slowly, his words sounding as if they had been soaked in ten years of time. He looked up at the sky outside the transfer station, as if looking through time to see the clouds stained black by the erosion a decade ago.
"The pathogen was out of control. A Warp rift was being forcibly torn open, and the power of the Plague Lord was pouring through. In less than a week, all of Lobo City would have turned into a playground for pestilence. As the rift expanded further, this plague would have reached all of Kolor. By then, everything would have been irreversible."
Marcus roared, "Hah! Stop acting so virtuous. This is nothing but your excuses."
David shook his head. "No, I never said this was a righteous act. I simply chose the least terrible option among a set of rotten choices."
He took a step forward, pale gold psychic energy flowing slowly at his fingertips—not with killing intent, but with a heavy exhaustion.
"Marcus, you don't know. The Warp rift back then had drawn the gaze of the Plague Lord. Ordinary purification methods were useless. Kolor could not seal that rift on its own; we needed help from the Inquisition's Sector Headquarters, but far-off waters cannot put out a nearby fire. The only way at the time was to use a massive amount of life energy from living beings to forcibly suppress the rift."
At these words, Marcus spoke in disbelief, "You—you mean—"
David sighed. "Yes. it was a sacrifice. Using those infected, beyond-saving citizens to satisfy the Plague Lord's appetite."
He turned his gaze directly to Marcus. "I know better than anyone that those people were innocent. The moment I gave that order, I nailed myself to a pillar of shame. For the last ten years, I have only been maintaining that image."
Marcus roared, "Then why didn't you reveal the truth? You could have explained it!"
"Explained it?" David sneered. "How? Should I have told everyone that the Governor personally strangled millions of lives in Lobo City to save the rest? Should I have told them that when facing the Warp, the Empire can only survive through such filthy means? Don't be naive, Marcus. The people don't need the truth; they want an iron-fisted leader. The Inquisition doesn't need the truth; they want an obedient puppet. And I became the villain pushed to the front of the stage."
The hand Marcus used to hold the heavy bolter began to shake slightly. David's words were like a sledgehammer hitting the deepest hatred in his heart. He remembered the black dust filling the sky of Lobo City ten years ago, the final desperate transmissions from his family, and the despair of searching through ruins only to find cold remains.
"Heh, you're lying. If that were true, why didn't the Inquisition step forward? Why let you carry all the infamy alone?" Marcus's voice was no longer as high-pitched; perhaps David's defense had loosened his resolve for revenge.
David let out a self-deprecating laugh. "Those people in the Inquisition? They're more than happy to have someone else carry the weight of this sin. They needed a scapegoat to cover up their dereliction of duty and to soothe the people's anger. I accepted the Inquisition's deal, became the new Governor, and carried the infamy of the slaughter while suppressing Chaos forces within Kolor."
After hearing David's defense, Marcus whispered, "So that's how it was—"
But a moment later, he burst into a wild laugh.
"David, oh David. You can't be so naive as to think that a set of words, which could be true or false, would make me stop. No matter how grand you make it sound, my family died because of you. That is an indisputable fact."
The engine of Marcus's power armor began to hum with an audible overload.
"I came here today for revenge, not to listen to moral philosophy."
Before he finished speaking, Marcus's power armor erupted with incredible force. His frame surged forward like an out-of-control heavy tank toward David. He holstered his bolter and flicked his right hand; an alloy combat blade snapped out from his arm guard.
"David Rick, you must die!"