The Imperium's Fugitive Princess - Alpharius

As the Legion Flagship, the Abomination Exemplar lived up to the name of a Gloriana Class vessel, standing in a completely different weight class from those mere skiffs.

Because the name was a bit of a mouthful, the Canned Ones of Atlas preferred to call her the Abomination. After all, the name fit; the Second Legion itself was a Chimera of everything imaginable, and they hoped their ship was just as formidable as they were.

Perhaps from being called that so often, the Machine Spirit aboard the Abomination grew accustomed to the moniker, even gradually picking up the piratical habits of Atlas and beginning to snack on small Warp creatures.

Mordred was quite gratified by this phenomenon, feeling somewhat like a father raising a daughter. With the subordinates following the leader's example, a large number of Warp creatures were captured by the Abomination every day.

Among these unfortunate souls, the more unique specimens were picked out. After undergoing unspeakably brutal beatings, they were used to craft Enchanted Weapons for cultivation, while others were directly absorbed by Atlas.

As for the remaining dregs, nothing went to waste; they were all tossed into the Chaos Energy Furnace developed by Mordred to be incinerated, producing Chaos Energy Crystals to sustain the Legion.

Through rigorous scientific testing by the Arch-Magos, it was discovered that these Chaos Energy Crystals were highly beneficial to the growth of Atlas. When fused with the Gene-Seed of other Legions, they could significantly increase adaptation efficiency.

Therefore, whenever they entered a Warp Voyage, the Space Marines of the Second Legion would become exceptionally excited. After all, catching a cool Daemon meant that more brothers would be born.

Daemons fed on the souls and extreme emotions of living beings, but Atlas did the opposite, growing stronger by devouring Daemons.

Under this philosophy, it wasn't just the Space Marines of Atlas; the Auxilia and even the ship's residents began to follow suit.

Some Void Children even came up with the miraculous operation of cultivating Psychedelic Mushrooms right next to the Chaos Energy Furnace.

As for what these Psychedelic Mushrooms were, the name said it all; they were a byproduct of Mordred's research into the Super Mushroom species from his home world.

Ordinary people really would see little people after eating them, and even superhumans like Space Marines would experience special reactions similar to being drunk.

To Mordred, these little pink mushrooms were at best useful for brewing wine or rolling cigarettes. He hadn't paid them any mind and simply tossed them in with the other mushrooms to be raised on the ship, never expecting they would cause such trouble.

Upon learning of the situation, Mordred treated it with extreme importance and immediately rounded up the spirited lads who had stolen his mushrooms, only to be left dumbfounded.

The good news was that the stuff wasn't addictive, acting much like Catnip on cats. Furthermore, it was not only harmless but also allowed ordinary people to slowly absorb Chaos energy, making them more compatible with the Second Legion's Gene-Seed.

The bad news, however, was that those exposed to Chaos radiation for long periods would become absolute idiots.

This result left Mordred feeling utterly broken. Through various previous signs, it was clear that the Emperor had not been telling the truth; he had definitely stuffed more than one thing into his body, causing his Gene-Seed to be this abstract.

"Am I even human anymore!"

But being an idiot was still better than being a mutant. Moreover, this stuff could lower the probability of the crew being corrupted by the Warp; it could be said to be a form of alternative Fight Fire with Fire. Mordred didn't bother with it further and went back to researching new mushroom varieties.

After all, Warp Voyages were extremely boring, and Mordred's beloved Learning Machine had been chopped up by the Emperor, so he could only engage in some Blasphemous Experiments to pass the time.

However, this seemingly normal scene appeared completely different in the eyes of others.

Looking at the mushroom vendors visible everywhere on the Lower Levels, Alpharius was convinced that this was a means for Mordred to control mortals, a blasphemous act that polluted human genes.

That's right, the Captain Jerry who had previously coordinated with Mordred was actually Alpharius in disguise.

As the prize pupil of Malcador, Alpharius was well-versed in the ways of espionage. He never showed his true face, relying entirely on masks when out and about. He had come this time to observe his brother from the shadows.

Just as he was present whenever other Primarchs returned to the Empire, Alpharius loved this wonderful experience of observing from behind the scenes and digging into little secrets.

Recalling the strange, half-smiling expression the Sigillite had worn when he learned that Alpharius had completely infiltrated the Second Legion, Alpharius felt quite dissatisfied.

[Old Ones, how many people does Atlas even have in total? My people account for a full tenth, and you still dare to mock me? Truly ignorant!]

The lurker hidden in the shadows began to move. Alpharius hadn't lied to Mordred; the one thousand Space Marines he brought were fine, but the problem wasn't the Space Marines—it was him, the Primarch!

With his rich inner monologue, Alpharius couldn't help but want to laugh at the thought of his dim-witted Second Brother being led around by the nose.

[Second Brother Mordred, oh Second Brother Mordred, you aren't that wild dog Russ, nor are you one of those freaks from the First Legion. With your dullness, how could you ever discover me?

My foolish Brother! Mere imitation cannot make a Legion strong. Look at what I've discovered—a bunch of pseudo-offspring of other brothers. You are completely deceiving yourself!]

The tall, expressionless warrior strolled through the Ship Cabin. He didn't even need to hide; his identification code allowed him to move unimpeded.

The only things he was wary of were the sub-human species known as Dog-men. These Big Dogs had an unusually keen sense of smell, but fortunately, their thinking was simple. He had fooled them with a few words and even gained the friendship of their leader.

According to his most prized offspring, the Dog-man he met in the cafeteria was named Rambo, a prize student of Mordred and one of the eight Dog-men Great Commanders.

Alpharius couldn't stop the smile from creeping up again. No wonder he could become the prize student of his Second Brother; this dim-witted personality was Exactly the Same.

[No, at least the Dog-men aren't as hypocritical as Mordred. He performs Blasphemous Experiments every day yet acts so righteous, completely disregarding the Imperial Truth.]

[Come to think of it, should I recruit some Dog-men into the Legion later?]

Multitasking, Alpharius walked and stopped throughout the ship, nodding to other Space Marines he encountered. But if one observed carefully, they would see he wasn't wandering aimlessly, but following a trail of marks.

As one of the Clover, the Hydra Legion, which specialized in covert operations, had its own set of ciphers, and as a Primarch, Alpharius found deciphering them a piece of cake.

[Not bad, as expected of my proudest offspring. He actually managed to innovate, incorporating the characteristics of the First Legion into the cipher base. Link after link, quite interesting!

Look here, he even mixed in metaphors from the Dog-men's native tongue. But isn't this a bit too cumbersome? When I see him later, I must educate him properly; he must never be overly tainted by the bad habits of the First Legion.]

Following the cipher's guidance, Alpharius, who had cracked 17 consecutive ciphers, was already losing his patience. Finally, he arrived at a small alley on Number Four deck and slipped into a hidden secret door.

Then, he saw display screens Spread Throughout the entire room, and the person on the screen was none other than himself.

In a flash of lightning, Alpharius didn't hesitate and immediately chose to retreat, but someone was faster than him. A large hand descended from the air, firmly pressing down on his skull.

The breathing coming from behind him blew away his luck and brought with it a greeting:

"Yo, isn't this the Empire's runaway Princess, Miss Alpharius?"