Nimrod, you are no longer worthy to be my enemy
Morlo.
"The task you entrusted to me fifteen thousand years ago has come to an end today." Olivia Sule said, putting down her weapon and beginning to draw symbols on the portal.
A closed door is better than no door at all.
Those roaring, mad, and greedy creatures on the other side would never willingly relinquish this slight advantage.
Besides being known as the Emperor of Mankind, she knew more about the situation outside the portal than anyone else, and she was well aware of how much the other side craved the wealth of this world.
He has already seized power from the other realms through trickery and force; for him to approach those gods who have suffered losses and setbacks would be tantamount to playing with fire and getting burned.
Sureka had accompanied him on a one-way spaceship to Morlo and witnessed him walk through the gate.
He returned to Terra with the immense power he had gained, leaving only Sureka behind.
Each stroke of her pen sent a nauseating, Affliction shiver through her heart.
Sureka's telepathic abilities have now become her Curse.
Being so close to the door amplified all sorts of detestable thoughts in her mind.
Every lover who betrayed her, every enemy who hurt her, every person she abandoned.
Sureka thought of her distant homeland. Although she had lived in Terra for 16,000 years, longer than she had stayed in Morlo afterward, she still longed to return to her homeland.
Every spell Sureka was fading; every line painted with silver paint vanished before she could even recharge it.
She couldn't concentrate.
She had waited and prepared for this moment for so many years, yet she just couldn't concentrate.
The deafening explosions drew closer, and she could already hear Warmaster's terrifying footsteps.
Sureka knew Horus Lupercal would eventually find this place, but he arrived much faster than expected.
Damn it, why are you concealing the existence and nature of the Warp?
Damn it, why did you assign this task to me?
Damn it, why didn't you destroy it sooner?
Sureka thought resentfully, though her long life of 31,000 years had already taught her that subsequent questioning was utterly useless.
Boom!
The acrid smoke made her cough, and a sound of footsteps echoed behind her through the thick fog of blood.
Sureka trembled slightly as she poured her desire to forever close the gates into her hands, stroking the smooth surface of the black barrier.
"Excuse me, ma'am."
"Although we are complete strangers, I must open this door."
Sureka turned around and saw his beloved son for the first time.
Horus is clad in heavy armor, with brass trim and inscriptions all around.
Amber eyes surrounded a golden wolf's head, adorning his shoulder armor.
He gripped a deadly claw in his right hand and a massive hammer in his left.
Please!
Even the most fallen souls retain a place for goodness.
Horus raised the Worldbreaker Warhammer, a fleeting look of bewilderment crossing his face.
"You shouldn't place your hopes on benevolence and morality."
The jewels adorning the end of the Worldbreaker's hammer reflected on Sureka's face as the bronze-black hammerhead struck.
Bang!
Blood splattered onto the dull Obsidian doorway.
Darkness swept in, and the chill that struck the depths of Horus made Horus feel as if he had fallen into an ice cellar.
I need strength.
Horus's ambition burned fiercely as he passed through the gate.
A bleak world came into his eyes, and wildfire lit up the orange-red sky.
The bone-white desert stretches into the endless distance, while the blood-red mountains stand majestically.
He could hear the clash of swords, but saw no signs of battle.
He could hear wailing Lament, but he could not see any flesh.
Whispers lingered in his ears, plotting a famous transformation scheme.
The cells in his body are constantly dying and being replaced by New Life cells.
During the cyclic entropy increase, the ground beneath our feet suddenly becomes solid.
Horus glanced down and found himself standing in the middle of a path paved with Obsidian.
Eight forked roads stretched to the horizon, their paths filled with horrifying and Distortion scenes.
The flickering lights swept across the desolate swamp, and the rotting corpses of the black-armored Warrior bubbled and spewed.
Beneath the undulating mist, corpses covered in barbed spikes hung from the Shadow of Order.
The sprawling trees form a labyrinthine jungle that surrounds a series of hills.
Each hill has eight gates around it.
I've been to similar places before.
Horus strode forward, gazing into the distance.
Each of the four main roads leads to a castle atop a mountain, comparable to the magnificent palaces of the Emperor.
The castle gleamed with the light of rubies in the flames and storm, and booming laughter rolled down from the mountaintop.
Horus raised his head and shouted toward the magnificent fortress.
"You need me; you promise me power that surpasses all others."
"You promised me to defeat Nimrod and slay the Emperor's power."
"You promised me the new Overlord of the Milky Way; now is the time to fulfill that promise."
Angry roars, flashes of lightning, soft whispers, and joyful screams all rang out at once.
Millions of voices swept across the nightmarish land.
Horus listened intently, and a message was revealed by the Four Gods.
"The Road of Obsidian is an eternal path of slaughter; you must defeat 88,888,888 Devil."
"The Road of Obsidian is ever-changing; you must conquer nine hundred and ninety-nine kingdoms."
"The Road of Obsidian contains endless gifts; you must bear the gifts of sevenfold septum."
"The Road of Obsidian encircles the bliss of this shore and the other shore; with each step you take, you will experience six ultimate pleasures."
Horus gripped his giant claws. "Let's begin."
He strode forward.
Behind him, on the other side of the shore.
"What happened?" Ezekyle Abaddon stared at the black rock wall; the Auspex array had completely failed.
He yanked off his helmet and looked ahead, but it was still pitch black.
It was not just physical darkness, but utter nothingness.
The concept of light has never existed in this place.
"Lord Mortarion, where is Father?"
He went to the place he most wanted to go.
Mortarion's voice rang out, and with it, concentric ripples spread around him.
Abaddon's vision returned, and he saw Horus Asimand looking equally bewildered.
Little Horus gazed at the dark doorway, which, before his father touched it, had been a slab of Obsidian, but now had turned into a vertical film of black oil.
Should we go in with him?
"If you want to face death." Mortarion's lips curled into a smile.
Abaddon and Asimand took a deep breath, Davin's terrifying experiences flooding their minds.
Will they ever see the Warmaster again?
What if he never comes back?
"He's back," Mortarion said.
Abaddon and Asimand stared wide-eyed as ripples spread across the surface of the portal, quickly transforming into a raging storm.
A deep voice rang out, "Have you been waiting for me all this time? For so long?"
"Of course, you were only gone for two minutes—" Asimand's words came to an abrupt halt.
More than two centuries had left no trace on Horus, but the two minutes behind the door brought deep wrinkles to the corners of his eyes.
"Two minutes—" Horus murmured.
Mortarion spread his wings and hovered in mid-air, gazing intently at Horus.
He witnessed an unimaginably long journey and countless horrific killings.
The flames and will burning in Horus's eyes were more intense and brighter than ever before.
Not only his eyes, but his body was more upright and robust; he was seven times stronger than ever before.
His body contains Empyrean power; he is a deity embodying the power of destruction.
"Warmaster, you have gotten what you wanted."
"Of course." With Horus's words, all traces of decay from the ravages of time and war vanished without a trace.
He put aside the hundreds of centuries of warfare he had fought for.
In order to gain the power he longed for and win all victories, he endured trials a thousand times greater than those required by the Gods. He plunged into the sea of Devil and killed hundreds of billions of them.
He conquered 1,100 kingdoms in the Empyrean and made billions of Devil kneel at his feet.
He earned the blessings of the Four Gods openly and honestly through force and confidence.
He has gained the same power as his father, not through deception.
There was no haggling, and no empty promises or delays.
A terrifying energy leaked into the real world.
Abaddon and Asimand both stepped back and knelt down with a thud.
Even Nurgle's Daemon Prince folded his wings and bowed in respect.
Horus looked eastward toward the Galaxy, Nimrod, you were once my rival.
Now, you are no longer worthy to be my enemy.
His gaze shifted to Terra, "[I have only one opponent, and that is our father.]"