The Cursed Remnants of the Kingdom of the Dragon

Dawn Star, planetary capital Karena.

Karena is built at the end of a straight, arrow-shaped valley whose source lies far upstream, beyond Zarukin.

The valley widens abruptly in Karena, forming a large bowl-shaped structure, surrounded on three sides by towering rock walls, with the azure sea on the last side.

Hathor Mhat walked through it all; Karena was older than any of the buildings he had ever seen since leaving Terra: bustling commercial districts, ocean liners from all over Dawn Star, cathedrals with domed ceilings, rotating towers inlaid with polarized glass, and vast libraries.

The city was originally home to 70,000 people, but as the electromagnetic storm grew larger, more than 500,000 people poured into the planetary capital, boarded ships, and left their homes that were about to be destroyed.

Traffic was overwhelmed, with cars lined up one after another, and tens of thousands of residents trudging along the congested highways.

Hathor's gaze searched through the crowd, and he keenly noticed that, just as Lord Nimrod had said, not a single person among the people around him possessed Psionic Energy potential.

They were not the Emperor's Sisters of Silence, nor did they evoke any sense of disgust, yet they were rejected by Psionic Energy.

The crowd looked at the towering giants clad in red armor with a mixture of curiosity and awe.

Hathor quickly identified his first target, a man who, unlike the other civilians, did not show any fear. He was wearing a cloak painted with a storm pattern.

Beneath the cloak was an ochre robe, faintly embroidered with gold patterns.

[Sons of C'tan!]

Hathor immediately matched this man with the local religious organization that Lord Nimrod had mentioned.

Lord Nimrod foresaw this years before the War Council decided that the Fifteenth Legion and Fourth Legion would be responsible for rescuing Dawn Star.

His prediction that this action would be a crucial step in his struggle with Azek Ahriman for the Librarian leadership has come true.

Hathor had no doubt that the Sons of C'tan was the key to his victory.

Following the man's gaze, he found five people who dressed similarly to him and had similar expressions.

Hathor raised his staff; he didn't intend to use his preferred Psychic Lightning.

Lord Nimrod said that Sons of C'tan has a high reputation in the area, and taking action against them among the fleeing people might provoke sensitive emotions among the populace.

Just as Hathor was about to release his bio-energy to weaken his target and cause him to collapse—which could easily be mistaken for malnutrition during their escape—a man suddenly ripped off his storm robe from his blind spot.

On the exposed ochre robe, there were complete patterns embroidered with golden snakes.

He used both his hands and feet to try to climb up the statue.

The sculpture depicts Damyan Toron, the first King of Light of Dawn Star.

Hathor cursed under his breath. He immediately changed the spell he was casting. As the Temple Master of the "Pavoni," he skillfully switched spells in an instant.

Psychic Lightning crackled through the crowd, instantly knocking the Sons of C'tan and the others, who were preparing to rally the crowd, to the ground unconscious.

"Murder!"

Terrified screams erupted from the crowd, and they instinctively began to scatter and flee.

The "Psychiatrist" took a heavy step forward and shouted, "Stop!"

The "Psychiatrist" exuded a terrifying aura, and the refugees immediately felt a dragon-like pressure from him.

They wanted to scatter and flee, but the threat in the giant's words and the red-armored Warrior forming ranks made them stop in their tracks.

After calming the public's panic with "intimidation," the "Psychiatrist" gave orders to his Thousand Sons subordinates.

"Bring the unconscious person out."

Karena's luxurious villa had already been reported to the Imperial Meteorological Court by its original owner, who then boarded Voidship and left when the Dawn Star's core underwent an unexplained decay, reducing the planet's lifespan to only six months before it self-destructed.

In the dimly lit basement, the Sons of C'tan slowly awoke.

The image in his mind was still of him climbing the statue, preparing to deliver a speech.

He looked around in confusion, then his pupils suddenly contracted as he saw a giant in red armor—an outsider.

Hathor smiled, and with his perfectly crafted voice sculpted by biochemical energy, he uttered words full of magnetism.

"Sons of C'tan, let's talk."

The Red Giant's words, and the scent of Peace he sensed, eased the tense nerves of the Sons of C'tan.

What do you want to talk about?

"Let's start with why you are the Sons of C'tan." Seeing that the other party was no longer tense due to his "Psychological Suggestion" and the carefully blended essential oils, the "Psychiatrist" began to guide them gently, starting with simple topics.

The "Sons of C'tan" are not a secret organization; they exist openly on Dawn Star, and the other party does not particularly resist them.

Starting with this topic will allow you to further guide him into the flow of the conversation.

The Sons of C'tan smiled and said proudly.

"We are the chosen ones, destined to ascend to heaven and join the Storm Lords! His storms shake many worlds, His return shatters the earth!"

"Our world missed an opportunity when a dark and Age of Strife descended upon this Milky Way, elevating the chosen ones to His golden palace among the stars!"

"Now, merciful Storm Lords, He grants us His grace once more! He presents to us the opportunity to be with Him! In the celebration of the Old Night, we were Deprivation of this opportunity, but now the Sons of C'tan has it again! The heavens proclaim the signs of His coming! Welcome them, embrace this golden Apocalypse!"

Hathor's eyes flashed with disdain. [Just as my lord said, the Sons of C'tan is Death Cult that worships the Apocalypse!]

Hathor operates the Data Slate and brings up the holographic map.

Where is the colony ship named C'tan?

Hathor learned from Lord Nimrod that the C'tan set out from the Kingdom of the Dragon during the Dark Age of Technology of human exploration.

Hathor is no stranger to the Kingdom of the Dragon; the "Thousand Sons" once set foot on that land and found a large number of giant missiles containing nuclear warheads in a warehouse in the Bashu region.

During their voyage, the colony ships of the Dragon Imperium unfortunately encountered a surge in Psyker during the Old Night.

The terrified crew isolated the Psyker and used machines to drain their psionic Psionic Energy.

The resentment of the dead Psyker coalesced into a powerful being in the Warp — the C'tan.

The crew fled the C'tan in terror, but their minds had been brainwashed.

The Curse of C'tan has been passed down through generations, and all the colonists on the planet are descendants affected by it.

Everyone who is awakened will become Sons of C'tan.

How to activate a colony ship?

Where are the destructive machines you created?

"..."

The "Psychiatrist" asked a series of questions and got the answers he wanted from the Sons of C'tan.

The "Psychiatrist" then questioned each of the other Sons of C'tan, obtaining the information he needed and recording it.

[Now we must carry out the Lord's command. The Lord prophesied that once Magnus and Perturabo discover that the Dawn Star People are Curse by C'tan, they will kill all the colonists and issue Exterminatus for this planet.]

Before we parted, my lord said to me, "If possible, save the remnants of the Kingdom of the Dragon Dawn Star."

My lord's intention remains that my defeat of Ahriman and victory be my primary objective, but accomplishing secondary tasks will also please him.

Hathor frowned. Lord Nimrod had said that C'tan was a powerful Warp entity that even the Primarch could not defeat alone, so there was no way he could suppress him and unleash his power.

[I hope my intelligence will attract the attention of the Primarch and Lord Perturabo, so that this mission can be completed.]

Regardless, uncovering the secrets of the colony ships and the C'tan beforehand will definitely give me an advantage in my competition with Ahriman.