The Emperor's Whale Ring to Hannibal

Lecter, Fortress-Monastery of the Faceless Ones.

Inside the Primarch's Palace, twelve Eucharist Masters had used sixty-two elegant white Aeldari bones to carve and assemble this enormous chair.

Layer upon layer of spines had been stacked into the backrest, with intact skulls of slightly varying shapes inlaid along the top.

Pelvises had been melted and cast together into a seamless whole.

Slender leg bones clustered tightly together, holding up the entire white-bone throne and Hannibal's own body.

He sat high upon the throne, his movements as elegant as ever, and picked up a rack of Ork ribs from the platter a servant held aloft.

Psykers had shaped them, temporarily preventing them from releasing spores while preserving their perfect fungal flavor.

Hannibal swallowed the ribs at an unhurried pace, calmly gazing at the holographic image before him.

Iron-gray Runes kept advancing, while earth-yellow Runes vanished one after another.

A Eucharist Master in earth-yellow armor came before the throne.

"Father, in accordance with your orders, the forgotten recruits have gathered around Melon and Sasebo Tezuka and linked together. They are preparing to surrender to the vicious wolves."

Hannibal rubbed his fingers together. "You seem to have difficulty understanding my command."

"They are your gene-sons," the Eucharist Master said coldly. "A ritual should be held for them so they become Faceless Ones and fight the wild wolves to the death."

"I gave them a path to choose." Hannibal silently swallowed the second half of the sentence. And we no longer have the chance to choose.

His index finger bent like a hook, like an alien scorpion's tail, stroking the ring on his thumb, where a blurred design had been engraved.

The memories in Hannibal's mind were dragged back to Terra.

His body trembled, and his vision filled with golden light.

The light came from