The Astartes were more stable and more lethal than the Thunder Warriors.
They had been born to serve war.
Both in body and in mind.
With superb combat techniques, they crushed every enemy in their path.
They poured the fires of destruction onto the enemy's defensive lines.
Turrets were destroyed, while monsters created through genetic technology were felled in droves by concentrated bolter fire.
The Gene Cult's most prized final line of defense fell after merely an hour.
The Empire's great army advanced toward the Gene Cult's temple district, crushing their last resistance.
Inside the Gene Core Temple.
Heliosa-54, the Gene Cult's matriarch and supreme ruler, summoned her most favored disciple, Ta'lab Vita-37.
"The Tyrant's forces have breached the final line of defense. They will reach the temple soon. You must leave with the Primal Master Copy."
The matriarch looked at the young woman before her and gave her order.
"Why does the Tyrant want to destroy us?" Ta'lab Vita-37 asked.
"He does not wish to destroy us." The matriarch shook her head. "He merely wants us to join his great undertaking."
"So you will stay here." Ta'lab Vita-37 looked confused. "But why must I leave?"
The matriarch extended a hand as nimble as a needlepoint and placed it against Ta'lab Vita-37's forehead.
A spiraling stream of light, like a genetic helix, appeared at her fingertips and entered Ta'lab Vita-37's mind.
Ta'lab Vita-37 felt an ocean of knowledge and information flood into her head.
"The Primal Master Copy contains humanity's purest genes, as well as all genetic knowledge humanity has acquired since leaving Terra. It must never fall into the hands of a brutal man."
"The Gene Cult must survive, but the Primal Master Copy must never be handed over to the Emperor."
"I have given you all the knowledge I possess. If one day the Tyrant destroys himself through his own madness, the Primal Master Copy may be the key to humanity's salvation."
Ta'lab Vita-37 bowed, crossing her hands over her chest.
"I will not disappoint you, my revered matriarch."
With that, she turned and left.
The matriarch began formatting all information related to Ta'lab Vita-37, ensuring no one could find her.
When every memory of the girl vanished as her neural synapses were erased, she wept.
She had liked Ta'lab Vita-37 as though the girl were her own daughter.
And now, she had forgotten everything about her. Not a trace of Ta'lab Vita-37 remained in her mind.
Having done all this, she turned to the control console of the gene weaver and activated an all-channel broadcast.
"Please cease your attack. We surrender."
Elsewhere, Ta'lab Vita-37 left the temple through a secret passage, carrying the matriarch's knowledge and the Primal Master Copy taken from the Vault of Ten Thousand Histories.
Yet before her escape could even begin, it was already over.
The moment she emerged from the secret passage, she saw several Adeptus Custodes in golden armor waiting at its exit.
Their leader was the commander of the Adeptus Custodes, Waldo.
Ta'lab Vita-37 had no idea how she had been exposed.
But the instant she saw the Golden Armored Warriors, she instinctively tried to flee back the way she had come, only to find her retreat cut off as well.
"What do you want?" Terror colored Ta'lab Vita-37's voice.
She had heard of the Tyrant's Golden Armored Warriors.
They were pure weapons of war, born for one thing alone: killing.
Waldo took a step forward. "I do not wish to hurt you, but you must hand it over."
"Hand over what?"
"The Primal Master Copy."
His answer frightened Ta'lab Vita-37 into taking a step back.
"Never." She shouted as she gave the order to the guards at her side. "Stop them."
The guards faithfully carried out her command.
Yet in less than a breath, the guards who charged forward were chopped into pieces by the Adeptus Custodes' halberds.
The gap in strength between the two sides was enough to drive one into despair.
Even after undergoing genetic enhancement and cybernetic implants, Ta'lab Vita-37 had been unable to see the Adeptus Custodes' movements clearly.
They were too fast.
The Primal Master Copy in Ta'lab Vita-37's hands was seized, and she herself was restrained by the Adeptus Custodes, escorted into a shuttle, and taken away from Luna.
"How did you know they would move the Primal Master Copy?" Waldo turned to look at Raven, who stood on his shoulder.
"The universe is a book to me, and I possess the ability to read it."
Raven used his beak to preen his feathers.
"That woman received all of the Gene Cult's knowledge and the Primal Master Copy. More importantly, the Gene Cult deleted all information about her."
"No one knows who she is. She is simply the Chosen One for the position of secret laboratory director."
"I know."
Waldo did not particularly like being told how to do things,
but considering Raven's special status, he still nodded.
"Now that matters on Luna are settled, let's go get some fries and have some fun."
"You like that fried food so much?" Waldo asked.
"You have to like something, or life would be unbearably dull." Raven said.
"One is born to fulfill one's duty. How could that be dull?"
Waldo could not understand Raven's words.
Why did life need amusement?
Raven tilted his head and looked at the unsmiling commander of the Adeptus Custodes.
"Big Corn Cob, if you no longer needed to protect the Emperor, what would you do?"
"Me?" Waldo considered it for a moment, then shook his head. "That day will never come. Duty ends only with death."
"Fine, I knew talking to you about this would be like talking to a wall." Raven shook his head.
"Come on, go make me some fries. Last time, the ketchup was mediocre. You should find some uncontaminated tomatoes to use as ingredients."
"You are too picky."
"As Big Guy's adviser, do I not even have the privilege of eating good ketchup? Believe it or not, I will poison Big Guy's ears and have him send you corn cobs to guard a pond."
"Fine. I will have the Adeptus Custodes collect every variety of tomato across Terra and make them into sauces for you to choose from."
"Big Corn Cob, that's the right attitude. Once I am strong enough, I will definitely persuade the Emperor to take you to other universes and broaden your horizons."
The Gene Cult's matriarch surrendered to the Emperor with the survivors.
The Empire's territory expanded once more.
Terra and Luna, two planets of special significance to humanity, had both fallen into the Emperor's hands.
Upon receiving news of the victory, Malcador immediately brought people from Terra to Luna and began reconstruction work.
They repaired the machines that had lain dormant for so long and dispatched people to purge the horrifying monsters roaming the surface.
The climate controllers also began operating again, creating a habitable atmospheric environment for Luna.
Once Luna had established order and resumed production, the Emperor convened a new meeting.
"The Gene Cult has declared its eternal submission to the Empire. With their genetic technology and machines, we can soon cultivate Astartes warriors on a massive scale."
"But if we wish to launch a galactic crusade, warriors alone are far from enough. We still need sufficient ships, so our next target will be Mars."
PS: Big Corn Cob, image from the internet. Also, I need a few images of female Adeptus Custodes; put them in the comments.
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