Hogg felt that something was wrong. The energy he'd gained from devouring a Daemon Primarch comparable to a Greater Daemon was far too much—far more than he'd imagined. He couldn't convert it fast enough, so the colossal beast Hogg had transformed into stood motionless, straining to digest the clashing energies within him.
But eating things indiscriminately was never a good idea. The Psionic Energy he'd been using to assimilate the energy was redirected, and the Warp's attention returned to this region. A great sword tore through the Veil of reality, and a torrent of violent Warp energy poured into Hogg, accompanied by a gaze of approval.
Scarlet lightning ripped through the sky, and darkness swallowed it whole.
Angron, who'd been watching the two Xenos fight, crawled out of the ruins and tried to leave, but Guilliman blocked his path. The connection between Primarchs calmed the terrified Angron.
"Angron! I'm your brother, Guilliman. We're here to take you back to the Imperium. Come with us—this place has been corrupted by Xenos." Seeing Angron trying to flee, Guilliman could only try to reassure him.
"No. I have to go back. My comrades are still there. I have to save them." Stubbornly, Angron only wanted to go back and check on them.
"All right! Once our brother changes back, we can help you look for your comrades. But you have to come with us. There are still enemies surrounding this place in orbit."
"Brother? You mean that Xenos?"
In disbelief, Angron pointed at the monster standing amid the ruins. It looked even more like a Xenos than the Daemon Primarch that had just hunted him.
What had to happen, happened. Looking at Hogg, who certainly didn't look human, Guilliman could only explain, "Yes! He's our brother. He can just grow bigger, that's all. Hogg!! We have to go. What are you doing?"
Seeing Hogg standing motionless, Guilliman sensed something was wrong, but couldn't tell what. Angron was just as clueless, so Guilliman could only call for a lander to pick them up.
If a Psyker had been there, the violent Warp energy in the area would have twisted them into a Chaos Spawn.
Khorne, having lost his guaranteed pull, looked to make up for his losses and set his sights on Hogg, a somewhat grubby SSR. Khorne decided to make a draw. Though the Veil weakened a Chaos God's power, Khorne was willing to expend the effort and personally pour his power into Hogg.
Hogg's consciousness was transported to a battlefield littered with skulls. Endless armies of daemons fought there, all hoping to earn a single approving glance from the Chaos God seated upon the Brass Throne.
Hogg was a little panicked, but once he sensed his physical body in reality, he calmed down.
A thunderous rumble rang out. Somewhat bewildered, Hogg heard the Chaos God across from him murmur. All the fighting Khorne's daemons stopped to listen to their god's proclamation. Surely, a champion warrior was about to be chosen and made one of them.
"Why are you yelling so loud?" Hogg brazenly defied Khorne's power, drowning him out with an even louder shout.
Interrupted, Khorne only grew more pleased. "Boy, I like you. Become my eternal champion! I'll grant you power beyond compare."
"Power? What else do I get besides power?" Hogg had no interest in Khorne's tedious enticements. Back when he'd been a soldier, even his superiors had to buy him an ice cream bar to get him to work.
"...Besides power, I'll make you my son," Khorne continued, sweetening the deal.
"But I'm already the Emperor's son. Besides, in the Imperium, no one but the Emperor can keep me in line. If I join you, I'll be joining Chaos, and I'll just have four more guys beating me up. What would be the point?"
Hogg remained unmoved. What a joke! No matter how bad the Imperium was, it was still better than Chaos. And since he didn't have any Warp Essence, even if the Warp exploded, it wouldn't have anything to do with him.
Thinking of those useless fools, Khorne admitted that Hogg had a point. Though Hogg had rejected him again, Khorne had found someone who suited his tastes so perfectly that he decided to sweeten the deal once more.
"I'll give you a seat beside my throne and make you my right hand. You'll share with me the joy of war." It was the greatest concession Khorne could make. After all, the best things had to be saved for the Angel.
The Khorne Champions around them were green with envy at such an immense honor. Outsiders really did have the gift of the gab. They'd fought tooth and nail for tens of thousands of years just to become Champions, while this newcomer would be their boss from day one. It was unbearable.
Hogg said nothing, as if weighing his options. Slowly, he walked toward the dais, crossing 888 steps made from the skulls of the bravest warriors. Having kept track of the time, Hogg reached Khorne's feet.
In Hogg's eyes, Khorne looked like a groveling dog. No matter how good the offer was, it couldn't stir the slightest interest in him.
"How pathetic." Lies couldn't hurt, but the truth cut like a blade. Hogg's casual words struck Khorne like a devastating blow, as if something inside him had shattered.
Hogg continued his monologue. Though his voice was soft, every daemon could hear him.
"Khorne, everything I have belongs to me. I'm deeply touched by how generously you've treated me. Anyone I pledged my loyalty to would have to be a truly worthy lord, not some pathetic sycophant.
"Your offer just now was tempting, but I've come here today and been promised such a rich reward, while your old followers, who've served you for countless ages, are still stuck as foot soldiers. That makes me uneasy. I don't want to join you only to end up like them, abandoned and denied any chance of advancement."
Hogg's ruthless rejection, together with the look of disappointment on his face, deeply wounded Khorne's pride.
Wounded, Khorne rose straight from the Brass Throne. The utmost humiliation and fury ignited what little reason he had left.
Sensing that things were about to go very wrong, Hogg decided to make a run for it. Black tentacles appeared, devouring the steps beneath him as his thought-formed body began to vanish. Not even a Chaos God could stop him from leaving.
But in the final moment before he disappeared, Hogg couldn't resist one last insult. "Khorne, you're not even as good as the liquid that leaks out of Slaanesh. Go lick Slaanesh's &%￥, and don't contact me again. You're embarrassing."
The towering sword, blazing with rage, pierced the vanishing afterimage and tore apart the steps as well. The skull Hogg had stood on was sent flying, and countless daemons were utterly destroyed by the blow.
A thunderous roar erupted in Khorne's domain in the northwest of the Warp, setting off a violent tide throughout the Warp. Countless Warp creatures were torn apart by the surge.
But that had nothing to do with Hogg anymore. Having enjoyed the satisfaction of a good verbal thrashing, Hogg opened his eyes and saw Guilliman and Angron crouching at his feet. He felt awful from having eaten too much, and slowly shrank back to his original size before joining the two of them.
Seeing someone suddenly transform before his eyes, Angron warmly greeted his brother. Guilliman had already told him a little about the situation: they'd found his comrades. Some had died in the bombardment, but most were still alive. The two brothers had been waiting for the fleet to arrive while keeping an eye on Hogg's body.
"Thank you, brother. I'm Angron." He held out a rough hand, covered in scars.
Hogg placed his hand in Angron's. "Hogg Menethil, your brother. If you ever run into trouble, you can count on me."
Guilliman was still crouching there, completely oblivious to the mood. Hogg kicked him. The Thirteenth Primarch came to his senses and put his hand on top of theirs. "I'm Guilliman, your big brother! (ov)ノ" But Hogg's next words made Guilliman wish he could pull his hand back.
"Good! I hereby declare the establishment of Imperium Secundus. I'm the boss." Their three hands were raised together, and the warriors who arrived on the scene recorded the three Primarchs' gesture amid the ruins.
Before you continue